World of Warcraft™

The wayward plans concocted by judges of the 2009 and 2010 Global Writing Contests have been foiled, and the Ocunomicon has been cast back into the howling Sightless Abyss whence it came. This victory would not have been possible without you, the writers, bravely wielding the ink-drenched Quills of a Thousand Truths! Even with two years' worth of ocular fortitude strengthening their retinal acumen, the judges were unable to withstand the sheer number and magnificent quality of this year's entries...

... especially considering that an entire mountain of short stories was airdropped on top of them.

With the smoke cleared and the errant judges corralled and subdued, the victors of the 2011 Global Writing Contest have emerged. Behold now, your champions!

Winner:

• "The Exit" by Danny McAleese

Finalists (in alphabetical order):

• "Anatomy of Demons" by David Patterson
• "Daughter of Lordaeron" by Marika Kermode
• "Echo of Pride" by Martin Arthur Paul Wilson
• "Reforged" by Anthony Dickson
• "The Future of Lordaeron" by Tyler F.M. Edwards
• "The Heavier Burden" by Erica Cargle
• "The Stranger" by Walter Handloser

Honorable Mentions (in alphabetical order):

• "Ashes over Stormwind" by Ryan K. Stansifer
• "Blood and Thunder" by Alex Boston
• "Haven of the Windless Sea" by Celine Taillefer
• "Iron Lady Down" by Joe Trela
• "Isn't Falstad Dead?" by Ian Casteen Bates
• "A Mage's Honor" by Geoffrey Walano
• "Mending and Renewal" by James C. Reuss
• "Pawned" by Ivan Carvalho
• "Purity" by Tim Marrero
• "The Short Happy Lives of the Southern Barrens Sapper Corps" by Nicholas Lampros
• "Warrior's Hands" by Allison Utterback

The grand prize winner will receive a trip to Blizzard's headquarters in Southern California to meet and eat with the Blizzard writing staff. In addition, the winner will receive a Doomhammer™ hammer by Epic Weapons and copies of the StarCraft Archive, the Diablo Archive, the Warcraft Archive, the Warcraft: War of the Ancients Archive, and World of Warcraft: Chronicles of War. All books will be signed by Chris Metzen, their respective cover artists, and the Creative Development Publishing team.

The seven runners-up will each receive copies of the StarCraft Archive, the Diablo Archive, the Warcraft Archive, the Warcraft: War of the Ancients Archive, and World of Warcraft: Chronicles of War. All books will be signed by Chris Metzen, their respective cover artists, and the Creative Development Publishing team.

The winning entry, along with excerpts from the finalists, will be posted Soon™!

See you next year, fellow vision enthusiasts! Praise C'Thun!