Week Nine - This will thread will contain a week's worth of writing exercises to be completed each day. I'm going to award W.P. (writing points~) for completed assignments, it's 1 W.P. per regular assignment, 5 per bonus. If I make a super bonus assignment, I will tell you what it's worth individually. (Please bear in mind that I will not award points / will deduct points for incomplete / improperly completed assignments and I cannot award points past the days of the week in question. Thank you.)

You may do as many or as few as you please. Anyone is allowed to join up at any time, but please let me know in a PM if you want to be added to our tag list because only people on the tag list will be awarded points. Also, you may leave the exercises at any time. Please tell me if you wish to be removed, though. I will not remove you unless you request it.

Our goal here: Fun, encouragement of young and old writers, and self-improvement. :D

ONE IMPORTANT RULE: PLEASE DO NOT REPLY TO ANY OTHER WRITER'S POST. I created a feedback thread, please use it: Link! My insistence on this is to ensure that other writers can edit as needed, and while it is possible to unlock posts, it's best not to create any more work for our admins / mods than necessary. Thank you for your cooperation. =) 

Monday! "Randomness" week. As in, randomly generated.

Write an hundred word newspaper editorial on the accidental shooting of the last giant panda. Bonus: Write a 100-200 word editorial on what happened to all the other giant pandas.

@Will11 , @TheNewIAP , @Ogre11 , @Kwism1127 , @ecoLyte , @Beagle , @Ford , @betaband , @Claw2k11 , @SonicTurboTurtle , @DerpBacon , @Romulus , @galobtter , @Swiftstryker , @BenCrucifix , @31TeV , @MadHattersDaughter , @At_Your_Throat , @Tim36D , @Jibble , @NightBirdBlue , @3173v3 , @Vampwolfie , @Spacecats , @Shinobi , @Morgan_R , @TacocaT , @Chris113022 , @jamescoker1226  , @bilbo

(I decided to test out an exercise generator for this week. I tweaked a lot of the exercises and added my own bonuses, but let's give it a go, shall we? ... Also, since the rest of the holidays are coming up, anyone else feel like a break after this week?)

To clarify: The first exercise is 100 words or less. (Though I may overlook a couple extra words.) The second is supposed to be at least 100 words and no more than 200.

*West China City News - English Edition: Opinion/Editorial Pages*

          Some of you that don't follow the news of the West like I do might never have heard of Walter Palmer prior to this week.  Well, let's just say that this big game hunter from America (big surprise, I know) was just a few months ago receiving a lot of criticism for going to Africa and shooting an endangered lion.  News outlets here didn't pick up on the story because historically, we've thought it brave to conquer tigers and the like... albeit with spears or bows, not high-powered rifles.
          Our failure to keep an eye on the West has finally come full circle, though, when we let this odd foreigner just walk right up to our last precious panda, Mei Mei, and shoot her in the neck and stroll off without so much as a stern talking-to!  Where were all the PAP then, huh?  They've got no problem harassing me for jaywalking, but this American walks right up and shoots Mei Mei no problem?
          This is not the China I grew up in, let me tell you.  And if by some miracle you're reading this, Walter Palmer?  I hope your parents are very, very disappointed in you.
                                                                                          - Bo Ai, Chengdu, Sichuan province

EDIT: 100-word version (not counting Title or Signature)...

*West China City News - English Edition: Opinion/Editorial Pages*

          If you don't follow the West, you've never heard of Walter Palmer before.  This dentist from America was - recently - receiving criticism for shooting a lion in Africa.  News outlets here didn't run the story because it's brave to conquer tigers, etc. ... albeit with bows, not rifles.
          Our neglect of the West has come full circle: we've let this foreigner approach our last giant panda, yell: "DIE, you Chinese Koala!", and shoot her.  Where were the PAP then?  They've got no problem harassing me for jaywalking, but this American walks right up and kills Mei Mei with impunity?

                                                                                   - Bo Ai, Chengdu, Sichuan province

*BONUS* ---

*West China City News - English Edition: Opinion/Editorial Pages*

          With all due respect to Bo Ai from yesterday's Op/Ed Pages, the giant pandas are indigenous to the glorious People's Republic of China only.  It took a lot more than some silly, confused American to drive those great bears to the brink of extinction.  It took a years-long campaign from our fearless President Xi Jinping, who (in his great wisdom) saw the dangers that the giant pandas posed to our humble citizens in our most remote provinces.
          Had our peaceful and generous leader not arranged for the giant pandas to be hunted by the PAP until there was only one token bear left (oddly enough, to please American diplomats), then our every beautiful suburb would have been overrun with those monsters each night.  Perhaps instead of keeping an eye on the news of the West, you should concentrate on what concerns you here in our exemplary nation.
                                                                           - Commander-in-Chief, People's Armed Police

The world witnessed a great triumph last week when the last giant mutant panda was destroyed. The event took place late Friday when a young man bravely went out to the reported location of the last panda.

"I was out for a walk with my cat. I didn't know the area was dangerous. Has anyone seen my cat?" he discloses. Locals report the youth not only shot the bear's head clean off, but returned to the village holding the head aloft.

"Yeah, I uh, I think I shot something. I don't know. It was dark. The noise startled me so much I guess I dropped my cat. I thought I found it, but it turns out it was just some bear head. I'm really worried about my cat." 

Bonus:

Tragedy struck last Wednesday when Hong Kong was wiped off the map. An army of mutant pandas converged on the city devouring all in their path. We turned to the science community to explain this sudden and unpreventable outbreak.

"Yes, it was entirely preventable. Everyone thought it was strange that a species of bear would prefer bamboo over meat. We could only conclude that the pandas were biding their time until they could organize a mass insurrection. We could have told people. If we wanted to," says John Cho, panda expert. In the aftermath, China is filled with displaced refugees. Offers of aid pour in from other countries. The world is united against possible future attacks and is joined in asking one simple question: Why now? 

"Panda's mutated to have unbreakable skin, oh, about two years ago. I guess we should have done something about that crazy scientist in the bamboo forests." says John Cho.

I suppose the world may never know the truth.

Realized this was a few words too many. Here's the better version.

The world witnessed triumph last week when the last giant mutant panda was destroyed. Late Friday, a young man boldly strode into the panda's terrain.

"I was out walking with my cat. My flashlight died. Has anyone seen my cat?" he discloses. Locals report the youth shot the bears head off and carried it to the village.

"Yeah, I think I shot something. I don't know. It was dark. The noise startled me so much that I dropped my cat and I thought I found it, but it turns out it was some bears head. I'm really worried about my cat."

Last giant panda shot!

People all across the world are sleeping soundly in their beds tonight, safe in the knowledge that the last giant panda has been slain. After fifty years of gruesome bloodshed, the Giant Panda Insurrection War has finally ended with the death of Mimi the Destroyer. She was slain earlier today by a Special Forces agent. Exact details of Mimi’s death are still unclear, as the Special Forces are unwilling to reveal the agent’s identity. However, we have been assured that her death was a suitably horrifying revenge against the war crimes she committed the world, which, following her death, is now safely back under the control of Mice.

Bonus:

Today we look back at the horrifying war known as the Giant Panda Insurrection War. It is still thought of as the greatest calamity to befall Mousekind since its ascension to becoming the dominant species on Planet Earth. There are in fact many similarities between the panda war and our own war against humanity, and many believe that these similarities should have been foreseen and avoided. After humanity gave sentience to the first mouse, Dinky the Great, Mice rose up against them and quickly gained control over the planet. Most thought this would leave us in an era of peace, but were surprised to discover scientists were experimenting on panda’s in similar ways to how humanity had experimented on us. Perhaps if we had looked to our past many lives would have been saved.

Tuesday!

Write the back cover blurb for a novel based on a long quest to defeat the "Lord of Evil" in his own lair. Bonus: Write a blurb for the sequel or prequel to this quest.

@Will11 , @TheNewIAP , @Ogre11 , @Kwism1127 , @ecoLyte , @Beagle , @Ford , @betaband , @Claw2k11 , @SonicTurboTurtle , @DerpBacon , @Romulus , @galobtter , @Swiftstryker , @BenCrucifix , @31TeV , @MadHattersDaughter , @At_Your_Throat , @Tim36D , @Jibble , @NightBirdBlue , @3173v3 , @Vampwolfie , @Spacecats , @Shinobi , @Morgan_R , @TacocaT , @Chris113022 , @jamescoker1226  , @bilbo , @CastleLover

          Malkalack Q. Betaband was quite the ordinary child before his parents brought home the old chest.  He might always have been so, had he not been playing hide-and-seek with his buddy Jay-Jay that day.  For when little Mal stepped into the chest and closed the lid, he found himself bumping along in the back of the great wizard Kiel's horsecart, on the way to the city of Farren!

          Come and join young Malkalack as he journeys with his new friends across the land of Chuuzyor, learn with him as he grows into a decent wizard, and cheer him on as he and his friends cross the great chasm of Storee.  There, in his lair atop the high mountain of Grahm-arr sits the Lord of Evil himself, who threatens to bring all of Chuuzyor under his terrible command.

          Will Malkalack be able to stop him in time, or will he and his new friends perish on the cliffs of Grahm-arr?

*BONUS* ---

          It has been only a few months since little Mal's brush with death atop the dangerous Mount Grahm-arr.  But the Lord of Evil was vanquished, and times began to be peaceful and prosperous once again.  Malkalack has used the time with the great wizard Kiel to learn new magics in his hometown of Farren, but he will soon find his skills put to the ultimate test.

          A new threat has rolled into town - an alchemist who sells potions powerful enough to make every peasant's dreams come true... but at a terrible price.  Now, Mal must find a way to save his friend Zerka, who has fallen victim to the alluring drink, but the clock is ticking.

          Will Malkalack and his friends be able to discover the alchemist's dark secret in time, or will all of Farren share in Zerka's grim fate?

When Bobby Goodwood started his new school he thought it would be just like his old one. It would be another place where he could mess around and annoy teachers, eventually resulting in him getting kicked out. But everything changed when he met Mindy Leroux.

She told him that this seemingly simple school had a terrible secret. The head teacher was actually an evil demon who ruled over the teachers with an iron grasp. Join Bobby on his misadventures, and watch him make friends and enemies alike, and try to save his school from a terrible fate.

Bonus:

After the evil demon head teacher was overthrown Bobby Goodwood’s school was freed from its terrible grasp. Unfortunately for Bobby, none of the teachers remember what happened, and blame him for all the destruction the demon caused.

Can Bobby prove it wasn’t him that blew up the school? Join him, Mindy and his other friends once again as they go on the hunt for the demon overlord to prove his innocence.

Wednesday!

Write a poem beginning with the line: "For the tide grows in times of trouble..." and end it with a line about poverty. Bonus: Invent two meanings / interpretations for your poem.

@Will11 , @TheNewIAP , @Ogre11 , @Kwism1127 , @ecoLyte , @Beagle , @Ford , @betaband , @Claw2k11 , @SonicTurboTurtle , @DerpBacon , @Romulus , @galobtter , @Swiftstryker , @BenCrucifix , @31TeV , @MadHattersDaughter , @At_Your_Throat , @Tim36D , @Jibble , @NightBirdBlue , @3173v3 , @Vampwolfie , @Spacecats , @Shinobi , @Morgan_R , @TacocaT , @Chris113022 , @jamescoker1226  , @bilbo , @CastleLover

For the tide grows in times of trouble,

and waves crash upon the shore.

In the caves the weary walk,

searching forevermore.

In the sky, the lighting strikes,

setting fields ablaze.

In shame the sun hides it's face,

behind those dark, dark clouds.

Ricky shacks hold people,

huddling for warmth.

(The meter might sound hiccup-y in the beginning, but that's just because that line is awful.  X)  )

For the tide grows in times of trouble,
The sea churn'd up by our distress -
Our efforts we do all redouble,
To save our ship, our land caress.
The pitch and yaw may turn us o'er,
The thunder may assault our ears,
But still we fight to reach the shore,
We give our lives and all their years.
We're told: "Work hard!  It's not too late!"
As battered our poor ship becomes,
We struggle to erase our Fate,
Our totals made of all his sums.
Then cold, fey Death arrives onboard,
He points, "I have here your solution;
Prepare yourself to meet your Lord!"
And thus ends our last destitution.

*BONUS* ---

1st meaning - Slaves struggling to row against a tumultuous sea are told by their taskmasters that their hard work will earn them the caress of their homelands.  Alas, the only comfort provided them is the sweet embrace of death.

2nd meaning - Corporate drones are told to work harder to earn their pay that keeps them barely above poverty, if that.  They are promised that their dreams (the homelands) will come true if they just keep at it, no matter what.  We all die, and our dreams remain forever out of reach.

For the tide grows in times of trouble

As air expands within the lungs.

The swell of anxiety beneath the throat

Proclaims the flow of calming breaths

Soft to follow, hard to lead

Before wealth must come poverty

For the tide grows in times of trouble, 
Fire's hottest when the end is near,
Now here I roam amongst the rubble, 
Cradling the pieces of what I held dear. 

How long since I lost all direction?
Drifted aimless away from the coast?
Forgotten the touch of affection?
Forsaken by those that I loved the most.

So now I wander amongst the rubble. 
Swept away, and I have no vote. 
For the tide grows highest in times of trouble,
And I have nothing to keep me afloat.

----------------------

Interpretation: 

So the first possible meaning of my poem, in terms of poverty, is that it is about a more emotional kind of poverty, in that it is about someone who lost their family/loved ones, and subsequently lost their way.The second possible interpretation is poverty in a more economic sense: being 'swept away' by circumstances beyond their control, the protagonist lost all physical possessions, which caused him to wander homeless, and without direction.

Its always darkest before the dawn.

Or an example of "The Will to Power" and how it drives the individual.

For the tide grows in times of trouble,

And washes away the sands from the beach of fear.

Beneath these sands are hopes and dreams,

And everything that people hold dear.

Taken from the clutches of the stormy tide,

And washed clean of all the sandy grain,

They are held up to the light,

And bought by those who reign.

Once the man has sold his soul,

And confined himself to slavery,

He smiles with the knowledge his children are safe,

Living on his bravery.

First meaning: The poem suggests that people are so poor that they have to sell everything they own, even themselves, just to try and keep themselves and their family alive.

Second meaning: As the government firms its grasp on society, normal people are forced to give more and more under the assumption that it will help bring a better tomorrow.

Thursday! Happy Thanksgiving! (I will understand if your entries are late.)

Write a compelling fifty word opening for a short story based on the following plot: the opening of a theater play is threatened by a ghost. Bonus: Explain the events of the plot in summary and write an ending paragraph.

(Alternatively... "Write a compelling fifty word opening for a short story based on the following plot: An agrophobic servant escapes from their abusive masters isolated house" and the bonus is the same, explain the events in summary and write the ending paragraph.)

@Will11 , @TheNewIAP , @Ogre11 , @Kwism1127 , @ecoLyte , @Beagle , @Ford , @betaband , @Claw2k11 , @SonicTurboTurtle , @DerpBacon , @Romulus , @galobtter , @Swiftstryker , @BenCrucifix , @31TeV , @MadHattersDaughter , @At_Your_Throat , @Tim36D , @Jibble , @NightBirdBlue , @3173v3 , @Vampwolfie , @Spacecats , @Shinobi , @Morgan_R , @TacocaT , @Chris113022 , @jamescoker1226  , @bilbo , @CastleLover

As John stepped onto the stage, he knew that ghosts were not actually real. Yet he still felt reassured by the extra security in the wings. Assuming his stage personality, he addressed the audience with the usual words: "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to tonight's performance of Macbeth..."

----

(Decided to do a silly turn to my story) 

The Bard's Curse

The yearly performance of Macbeth, by the King's Men amateur theatre, is threatened by a 'ghost'. Strange accidents have plagued the rehearsals for a few weeks now, and cast and crew are getting nervous. Our story begins at the opening night of the play. Though extra precautions have been taken to ensure a smooth performance, the play is brutally interrupted by a falling stage light. 

Because a stage hand is injured by the accident, an investigation ensues, which rules out any sabotage. However, as 'accidents' continue to plague the theatre, the incident manages to end up on the front page of the local London newspaper. Now the theatre is known as haunted, visitors start to stay away, until a local historian poses a theory: the curse of the Macbeth play might actually be real. 

Seeing no other option, the cast and crew stop naming the play Macbeth. Miraculously, the accidents stop to happen, and all's well that ends well. 

Bonus: 

John looks flushed after the first succesfull performance of that Scottish Play. Though he is glad that his acting was a great success, he can't but voice his amazement to George, the stage hand. "Yeah, I agree, I still can't believe that we caused these incidents just by saying the word Macbeth."

*A light bulb explodes* 

"I mean, Macbeth is performed so often..."

*Blood starts dripping from the walls*

"... That you'd expect other companies performing Macbeth..."

*Plaster falls from the ceiling* 

"...To suffer similarly from performing Macbeth."

*Donna is electrocuted by a prop candle* 

John stares blankly in front of him, sighing softly. "Please don't use that name anymore inside this theatre George..."

"Oh, of course, sorry. Anyhow, good luck with your next performance."

          Aiden felt his heart racing, his back against the last door between him and escape from the cruelty of Lord Endemyer.  He knew the terrors that waited to assault his mind outside, but the realization that his master would no doubt kill him for even this attempt spurred him onward.

*BONUS* ---

Summary -          Aiden, an orphan boy taken from the workhouses as a toddler by Lord Endemyer, is taught to fear the outside so as to be a loyal slave in the Lord's country estate.  When the Lord had him whipped almost to death for questioning an order, Aiden fought against even his own mind and fears to escape.  While on the run, he discovers that his mother is still alive - but that Lord Endemyer is hard on his heels.  Aiden must survive in a race against time for his ultimate freedom and the family he's always wished to have.

          "You may not have been there when Captain Grenwald ripped him from my bosom," Miranda growled as she twisted Lord Endemyer's blade further into his own bowels.  "But you eagerly plucked my son from that horrid workhouse and robbed us both of the life we could have had."  She slowly removed the sword, and Chauncey Endemyer dropped into that same dark gutter where the Captain had first taken Aiden from his mother's suckling breast so many years ago.  The Lord would never rise again.

Friday! 

Write an hundred word (or less) newspaper editorial on an unpleasant darning accident leading to widespread narcolepsy. Bonus: If you can make this damn thing sound plausible, you deserve all of the points. That said, try to tie this bizarre premise into an actual historical event as a sort of "and that's why this happened" explanation.

@Will11 , @TheNewIAP , @Ogre11 , @Kwism1127 , @ecoLyte , @Beagle , @Ford , @betaband , @Claw2k11 , @SonicTurboTurtle , @DerpBacon , @Romulus , @galobtter , @Swiftstryker , @BenCrucifix , @31TeV , @MadHattersDaughter , @At_Your_Throat , @Tim36D , @Jibble , @NightBirdBlue , @3173v3 , @Vampwolfie , @Spacecats , @Shinobi , @Morgan_R , @TacocaT , @Chris113022 , @jamescoker1226  , @bilbo , @CastleLover , @igulat 

Le Canard enchaîné: Opinions/Editorials (English Translation) -

          These kids today are unprepared because our schools refuse to teach the history of Château de Dourdan as anything other than fairy tales!  When the gloved headmistress of the Parisian Hipster Sewing Collective accidentally came in contact with her darning egg (Yes, that darning egg!), she was knocked unconscious - as was every ignorant student of hers that tried to touch it.  So far widespread is this ignorance that every relief worker that came to the scene touched it until one happened to be wearing gloves.  Police caught on afterwards, but now 137 people are perennial narcoleptics!

                                                                                          - Aurora Dubois, Issy-les-Moulineaux

*BONUS* ---

          The darning egg in question was the little-known secret behind the witch's "curse" on the royal family at Château de Dourdan in the early 1300s.  This was the historical account which was later turned into the bawdy tale of Perceforest later that century, and was the inspiration for the (actually more accurate) re-telling named La Belle au bois dormant, which became what English-speakers would know as Sleeping Beauty.
          The part about the so-called witch coming to the castle was correct.  She did say that she had cursed the princess to prick her finger on a spindle and die, but only because the witch knew the king to be a rash, impulsive man.  When the king had all the spinning wheels burned and their spindles melted down, there was no further mechanical means of making thread - which the witch had planned for all along.  She simply dropped her tainted darning egg (dipped in an alchemical neurotoxin that induced sleep paralysis on epidermal contact) in the head seamstress' basket on her way out and waited for the ensuing sleep maladies.
          As the "crime inspection" of the day involved touching everything around the victim to feel for evil spirits, it wasn't long until the majority of the castle (including all of the royal family and guard) was struck down with sleep paralysis.  Royal house envoys that had managed to avoid the "cursed" darning egg, sought out the witch to plead for her to lift the curse.  After they had delivered 100 pounds of gold to her, she gave them a concentrated tincture which she swore could be used - with a single drop in a bottle of purest water - to wake all the sleeping ones.
          She warned them never to set foot near her cottage again, and sent them on their way.  By the time the king had ordered her to be found and put to death, she had disappeared - never to be seen again.  It is commonly held in French tradition that she used her wealth to travel to the British Isles and become the first ever Queen of England.

On Friday, July 30, investigators released information regarding what they believe to be the cause of a recent and widespread onset of sleeping disorders. When responding to a call regarding a possible break-in in a Lincoln Park apartment complex, Huntsville Police discovered evidence that the intruder had actually escaped into another apartment, contrary to what witnesses suggest, and shed his pants. The inside of the jeans was found to be lined with small packets containing a chemical agent speculated by police to be a party drug. Several of the packets had been pierced, presumably by a needle, and the pants were apparently laundered afterwards resulting in the rupture of several more packets and the release of the drug into the water supply. When questioned as to why she tampered with the pants, the apartment's resident, an elderly woman by the name of Angela Smalls, said that she had initially thought the jeans belonged to her son and felt the need to mend and launder them.

(Darn it, I thought the 100 words included the bonus... Oh well, am to lazy to re-write my exercise right now.) 

In this issue, more about the bizarre Russian narcolepsy plague. Narcolepsy, normally a congenital affliction, has been ravaging Central Russian provinces for over two years. While life grinds to a halt in towns like Yanegovorypo-Russki, investigators claim they identified a cause. 

When the Cheyabinsk Meteor exploded in 2013, Professor Diaghilev was darning his lab coat in his Cheyabinsk laboratory. Startled, he investigated the blast's source. Continuing his work on an insomnia cure, he spilled it, with his darning unfinished. Though investigators cannot explain the cure's plague-like characteristics, they believe the now deceased Diaghilev was patient zero. More reports will follow.  

Is there ever a Saturday or Sunday exercise?
This is my first week doing this, so I'm asking the question of whoever normally takes part in the Writing Exercises.

Ah - so a "work week" worth of exercises.  Got it.
Any idea when the points are tallied?

Your ninth week scores are as follows:

@Ogre11 - 30!!!
@CastleLover - 30!!!
@bilbo - 11
@Bencrucifix - 17
@TacocaT - 1
@Romulus - 18
@igulat - 12

Loved seeing all y'alls entries. (Any points missing are due to failure to comply with exercise instructions. Good try and please read thoroughly next time.)

Thank you all for your participation, both this week and all past weeks. Congratulations to Ogre11 and CastleLover in particularly for your great work. ^^

I'm curious how Ogre11 managed to tie me, considering he was an entire day late for Tuesday's assignment.  :P

I'm not Kiel, so I might be wrong, but usually it doesn't matter if you're late. You get points as long as you complete the week's exercises before Kiel assigns the scores. 

I'd say the odds of your being wrong are pretty high considering in the rules Kiel says:
"I cannot award points past the days of the week in question".

Turning in something past the day it was assigned sounds like "past the [day] of the week in question" to me.
But maybe I'm thinking too academically.  XP
 

That's more or less a nice way of saying "I don't have to award you points if it's late".

Edit: Okay, apparently not.

You're not the only academic here :P I was merely referring to the earlier weeks, when points were awarded no matter when exercises were finished during the week.

Since there seems to be some confusion, I will clarify why I said that and what I meant:

I've encouraged people to go back and do past weeks multiple times, even when I was not actively hosting. This is the second time I've done W.E. weeks, so several of them exist now, and I was not the first person to host exercises here, so even more exist that are not mine. Due to the fact that we have members in several time zones and I've been late in posting at various times due to my schedule, I've been fairly lenient about timing. So, during the days of a specific week, you're free to post and earn points for any of those days. Once the week ends and is scored, all you can get out of it is the experience that comes with practice.

I realize in hindsight that the way I phrased it originally could be confusing and I apologize for that, but no one has ever brought that to my attention before. Also, in the future, a simple PM (as you already did) would've been fine.

Thanks for the clarification.

Week 9 Points Updated: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1oFAUo6tAOdf1FUrd3_siPu8Pvv_6-j-4BUwx1VEp3I0/edit#gid=0&vpid=B1

Congratulations to Ogre11 and CastleLover for their excellent showings.