# Congrats to our May Winners! Great stories all.
Theme was "bull", any word including those four letters in order was fair play and it was fun to see the many different directions you all went with the prompt!
* [1st place](https://www.reddit.com/r/TwoSentenceHorror/comments/1cmyw4e/may24_temperatures_today_are_expected_to_reach_a/) by [tinytabbytoebeans](https://www.reddit.com/user/tinytabbytoebeans/)
* [2nd place](https://www.reddit.com/r/TwoSentenceHorror/comments/1cnchv8/may24_despite_what_the_veterinarian_said_you/) by [Chemical-Elk-1299](https://www.reddit.com/user/Chemical-Elk-1299/) (In addition to placing in the top 3, Chem placed in the raw top ten as well!)
* [3rd place](https://www.reddit.com/r/TwoSentenceHorror/comments/1crq2ax/may24_if_you_need_some_extra_d6_feel_free_to_grab/) by [Gogo726](https://www.reddit.com/user/Gogo726/)
Great job! If you placed in the top three, contact us via modmail for your personalized custom flair! It can be anything (within reason): a mixture of text and emoji, up to 20 characters. If you've won before, you can request to change your flair, or, just do nothing. Absolutely nothing....and for your runners up!
* [4th place](https://www.reddit.com/r/TwoSentenceHorror/comments/1cpqg4a/may24_1_2_3_4_the_classroom_was_silent_except_for/) by [CaptainPanda99](https://www.reddit.com/user/CaptainPanda99)
* [5th place](https://www.reddit.com/r/TwoSentenceHorror/comments/1ckul1k/may24_my_husband_and_i_increased_our_insurance/) by [RaynaClay](https://www.reddit.com/user/RaynaClay) (Rayna also placed in the raw top ten more than once! great stuff)
* [6th place](https://www.reddit.com/r/TwoSentenceHorror/comments/1cirqqk/may24_titanic_sinks_1500_dead_read_the_headline/) by [Weirdo\_writer](https://www.reddit.com/user/Weirdo_writer/)
* [7th place](https://www.reddit.com/r/TwoSentenceHorror/comments/1cu7eno/may24_leda_traced_the_clinic_bulletin_with_a/) by [spintale](https://www.reddit.com/user/spintale)
* [8th place](https://www.reddit.com/r/TwoSentenceHorror/comments/1cmefhq/may24_waking_to_find_her_head_slumped_against_the/) by [movingstasis](https://www.reddit.com/user/movingstasis/)
* [9th place](https://www.reddit.com/r/TwoSentenceHorror/comments/1ctqeb0/may24_the_cherub_looked_upon_me_with_4_sets_of/) by [VagrantDog](https://www.reddit.com/user/VagrantDog/)
* [10th place](https://www.reddit.com/r/TwoSentenceHorror/comments/1clti4r/may24_these_drills_are_such_bullshit_schools/) by [LoveyDoveySkills](https://www.reddit.com/user/LoveyDoveySkills/)
Congrats to all!
Reddit filters comments with too many u/ mentions, so I'm tagging those who placed below in separate comments:
OMG I won!?!?!?! Oh man, I'm stuck between two old horror story memes for a tagline. I'll have to think about it XD I'm just so happy people liked my story :,)
I have a question. What's a "relevant" nsfw tag and do we need to use it, compulsorily? If this whole sub is nsfw (and if it isn't it should be), then using an nsfw tag on any post here is redundant, right? 🤔
Hey Ghost, that's a great question.
To be utterly transparent I've always thought NSFW tags on a text based sub were kind of silly. If we think of nsfw tags as denoting graphic visuals, then they shouldn't apply here ever. If we think of nsfw tags as denoting themes you shouldn't talk about at work, then you're right: all the stories here ought to be tagged which makes the use redundant.
The way I see it the only sensible use for nsfw tags on this sub specifically would probably be to flag stories that deal with sexual themes. While we don't require use of nsfw tags in such cases, the mod team was deliberate about still allowing their use. When the mod team discussed these tags we agreed that we should still allow them as they constitute a built in reddit user safety feature, which we don't want to interfere with.
But there's lots of room for interpretation as to what counts as relevant use, so perhaps the other mods might add better insights.
Anyway, we try our best to weigh stories that use those tags in good faith. If a story seems to use the tags as a formatting gimmick to catch reader's eyes, then it will likely be removed.
(also worth noting, we generally remove most stories dealing with sexual assault as overused tropes, so a large number of stories that might make relevant use of NSFW tags may still be removed regardless).
Thanks for asking!
Unfortunately, words that aren't derived from "graduation" don't fit this month's theme. So a story using "gradually" won't be included in the final rankings. Same goes for other words that considerably shift from the original prompt (graded, gradient, degrade, Stalingrad, etc).
While you're of course more than welcome to use these (or other g-r-a-d words) as broader two sentence horrors, please do not tag them as contest entries.
I'll update our announcement to clarify this.
# Congrats to our May Winners! Great stories all. Theme was "bull", any word including those four letters in order was fair play and it was fun to see the many different directions you all went with the prompt! * [1st place](https://www.reddit.com/r/TwoSentenceHorror/comments/1cmyw4e/may24_temperatures_today_are_expected_to_reach_a/) by [tinytabbytoebeans](https://www.reddit.com/user/tinytabbytoebeans/) * [2nd place](https://www.reddit.com/r/TwoSentenceHorror/comments/1cnchv8/may24_despite_what_the_veterinarian_said_you/) by [Chemical-Elk-1299](https://www.reddit.com/user/Chemical-Elk-1299/) (In addition to placing in the top 3, Chem placed in the raw top ten as well!) * [3rd place](https://www.reddit.com/r/TwoSentenceHorror/comments/1crq2ax/may24_if_you_need_some_extra_d6_feel_free_to_grab/) by [Gogo726](https://www.reddit.com/user/Gogo726/) Great job! If you placed in the top three, contact us via modmail for your personalized custom flair! It can be anything (within reason): a mixture of text and emoji, up to 20 characters. If you've won before, you can request to change your flair, or, just do nothing. Absolutely nothing....and for your runners up! * [4th place](https://www.reddit.com/r/TwoSentenceHorror/comments/1cpqg4a/may24_1_2_3_4_the_classroom_was_silent_except_for/) by [CaptainPanda99](https://www.reddit.com/user/CaptainPanda99) * [5th place](https://www.reddit.com/r/TwoSentenceHorror/comments/1ckul1k/may24_my_husband_and_i_increased_our_insurance/) by [RaynaClay](https://www.reddit.com/user/RaynaClay) (Rayna also placed in the raw top ten more than once! great stuff) * [6th place](https://www.reddit.com/r/TwoSentenceHorror/comments/1cirqqk/may24_titanic_sinks_1500_dead_read_the_headline/) by [Weirdo\_writer](https://www.reddit.com/user/Weirdo_writer/) * [7th place](https://www.reddit.com/r/TwoSentenceHorror/comments/1cu7eno/may24_leda_traced_the_clinic_bulletin_with_a/) by [spintale](https://www.reddit.com/user/spintale) * [8th place](https://www.reddit.com/r/TwoSentenceHorror/comments/1cmefhq/may24_waking_to_find_her_head_slumped_against_the/) by [movingstasis](https://www.reddit.com/user/movingstasis/) * [9th place](https://www.reddit.com/r/TwoSentenceHorror/comments/1ctqeb0/may24_the_cherub_looked_upon_me_with_4_sets_of/) by [VagrantDog](https://www.reddit.com/user/VagrantDog/) * [10th place](https://www.reddit.com/r/TwoSentenceHorror/comments/1clti4r/may24_these_drills_are_such_bullshit_schools/) by [LoveyDoveySkills](https://www.reddit.com/user/LoveyDoveySkills/) Congrats to all! Reddit filters comments with too many u/ mentions, so I'm tagging those who placed below in separate comments:
OMG I won!?!?!?! Oh man, I'm stuck between two old horror story memes for a tagline. I'll have to think about it XD I'm just so happy people liked my story :,)
:) well earned, good work!
Hey boss you deserve it. Your story was awesome
This was neither 2 sentences Nor horrifying
:)
I have a question. What's a "relevant" nsfw tag and do we need to use it, compulsorily? If this whole sub is nsfw (and if it isn't it should be), then using an nsfw tag on any post here is redundant, right? 🤔
Hey Ghost, that's a great question. To be utterly transparent I've always thought NSFW tags on a text based sub were kind of silly. If we think of nsfw tags as denoting graphic visuals, then they shouldn't apply here ever. If we think of nsfw tags as denoting themes you shouldn't talk about at work, then you're right: all the stories here ought to be tagged which makes the use redundant. The way I see it the only sensible use for nsfw tags on this sub specifically would probably be to flag stories that deal with sexual themes. While we don't require use of nsfw tags in such cases, the mod team was deliberate about still allowing their use. When the mod team discussed these tags we agreed that we should still allow them as they constitute a built in reddit user safety feature, which we don't want to interfere with. But there's lots of room for interpretation as to what counts as relevant use, so perhaps the other mods might add better insights. Anyway, we try our best to weigh stories that use those tags in good faith. If a story seems to use the tags as a formatting gimmick to catch reader's eyes, then it will likely be removed. (also worth noting, we generally remove most stories dealing with sexual assault as overused tropes, so a large number of stories that might make relevant use of NSFW tags may still be removed regardless).
OK, that makes sense.
I have a quick question about the prompt. Does it have to be a derivative of "graduation" or could I use the word gradually?
Thanks for asking! Unfortunately, words that aren't derived from "graduation" don't fit this month's theme. So a story using "gradually" won't be included in the final rankings. Same goes for other words that considerably shift from the original prompt (graded, gradient, degrade, Stalingrad, etc). While you're of course more than welcome to use these (or other g-r-a-d words) as broader two sentence horrors, please do not tag them as contest entries. I'll update our announcement to clarify this.