Once again, we have decided to encourage our members to get writing by launching a writing contest. Up for grabs is $100 towards a box of cards on www.cardsbythebox.com.

Here are the topics you can chose from for this edition of the contest:

-Complete the following sentence: If I worked for a card manufacturer I would…
Do you have a killer idea for a new and original product? Would you change the way they do the marketing of the cards? Would you finally come up with a solution to the patch forgers problem?

- A Very hobby Christmas
Go back in time and tell us when your best hobby Christmas was, what were your presents, what did you do and do you expect this year to top it?

-My favourite product
We all have pet peeves and favorites, this time let’s be positive! Tell us what your favourite product is and why. Don’t leave anything out about it, tell us what kind of subset it includes, which year it was from, the price, the odds tell us everything

-My best card show
Tell us all about the best card show you attended, where was it, when, what did you buy there, did you bust some wax? Were the cards manufacturers there? Did you take part in any redemption program?

-Your local card shop
This is where you get your cards and supply, why do you like the shop so much, what makes it different from the other shops? Are the owner and staff friendly? Do they hold events like pack wars or trade nights?

-Those were the days...
Are you one of the nostalgic collectors who wish things could go back to the way they were? Tell us why that is, what did you like about the good old days? Did you have a favourite product or set?

-The future of the hobby
Try your hand at predicting what is in store for all of us collectors, what do you think is in our future? What current trend will carry on? What will be pushed to one side? This is your chance to tell it like it is and be able to say “told you so!” down the line

-Your box/pack busting rituals
Are there some things you do every time you are about to open a new pack or box? Do you always start by the same side? Did you ever break the ritual and get an awful break?

-What is a Super Collector?
For you, what does the expression super collector mean? Is it someone who has all the cards? Is it a die hard fan who will do anything to get any item related or depicting their favourite?

-My plan to get my kids to collect
Is collecting a passion that was passed on to you by a parent? Are you planning to do the same for your kids? How will you go about doing that?

Each article will receive 250 CC (as long as it is well written and spelt checked), every article chosen for submission to Tuff Stull will receive a further 1000 CC and the article published will get another 1000 CC

To be eligible for the contest, your article MUST be at least 800 words and 1000 words to be eligible for publication in Tuff Stuff. You can enter as many articles as you want.

The winning article will be chosen by the editor in chief, the following criteria will be observed when choosing a winner:
the quality of the English
the originality
the visual support (pictures, graphics, etc…)
the coherence of the author

RULES
1. Simply write any articles about the ten topics mentioned above

2. Your article must have a minimum of 800 words (1000 to be considered for Tuff Stuff)

3. Grand prize winner will receive $100 toward a box on Cardsbythebox.com.

4. All qualified entries will receive 250 CC for their work (unless the article is poorly written and obviously not spell checked)

5. All submissions must be spell checked and posted as a new thread in the article submission forum: https://www.sportscardforum.com/forumdisplay.php?f=446 . In the thread title include your article title and the words CONTEST ENTRY.
Example: The Future of the Hobby – CONTEST ENTRY

6. The deadline to submit your article is on the 31st December 2010 at 5.00 PM EST.

7. Open to ALL members to include SCF Staff (except for the Editor-in-Chief and the site owner)

8. You can write as many articles as you wish!

ELIGIBILITY AND ARTICLE REQUIREMENTS
1. You must be a member in good standing to enter (No unexpired infractions worth 5 points or more)

2. The article must be your own original work - using something written by someone else will result in disqualification

3. The article you use must be brand new - you cannot use an article which you previously submitted for the articles site

4. Add pictures to your article - it helps getting your message across

5. If your article is 1000+ words, it could be chosen as part of our monthly submission to Tuff Stuff Sports Collector Monthly who choose one of our articles each month to publish.


FURTHER DETAILS
1. Each article will be edited and posted on the SCF articles website. They will become SCF’s property.

2. The best articles received will be featured in the upcoming edition of Collectors’ Corner, SCF online magazine.

3. The best article will be chosen by the Editor-in-Chief

That's it, good luck to everyone and I really look forward to reading all the entries!

If you have any questions, please feel free to post them hereor drop me a PM! I look forward to reading your submissions and best of luck everyone!