What is Bamboo Shoots?

Bamboo Shoots is:

  • A place to share writing.
  • A way to interact with other writers and authors.
  • Friendly writing contests and exercises to flex those writing muscles.
  • Word, excerpt, image, or video prompts.
  • Contests and Challenges (e.g., Year of the Rat — June Contest or 100 Word Challenge)
How does it work?

Create a BambooRidge.org account in order to participate in our Bamboo Shoots writing contests. It’s free to join!

You can participate in Bamboo Shoots in two ways:

  1. You may respond to an open prompt in one of our contests or challenges (many prompts/challenges can make up a monthly contest).
  2. Or you may submit pieces in the Shoot Da Breeze section, which is a non-contest, free write, any-kine area with no specific topics or prompts.

The section called Offshoots is for news about Bamboo Shoots, contest reminders, etc. where you can make suggestions via a comment for prompts or contest and challenge ideas.

  • At the moment, once you submit a piece you will be unable to edit it. This is part of the challenge!
  • For security purposes, everyone’s first five posts on the site will need admin approval before appearing. After the first five, your posts will appear immediately when you submit.
  • The comment sections are for you to leave/receive feedback from others. This is not a space for you to enter your writing prompt response/submissions. Remember to be constructive and kind. We want everyone to have a fun and positive experience here.
What is 'Year of the Rat' and who creates the prompts?

When the monthly writing contests first began we would differentiate the current year’s contests/prompts from past year’s by using the animals of the Chinese zodiac. We’re now back on Year of the Rat!

Bamboo Buckeroo, founder Darrell Lum, and other Bamboo Shoots participants suggest the prompts or challenges monthly. You can leave your suggestions for prompts in the Offshoots section of the main Bamboo Shoots page. Buckeroo is often looking for fun ideas and interesting prompts to inspire people to write. So don’t be shy, if there’s an excerpt, word, image, or song you think would make a good prompt, then let us know!

Want Buckeroo to challenge everyone to write a piece with 100-word limit, dialogue only, or present tense haiku? Drop a challenge suggestion in the Offshoots comments.

How do I submit? Where do I go?

Open Prompts Section

You have the option to participate in any of the open contests but you can only submit once per prompt. Click on an “open prompt” to see what it entails, scroll down past the rules and you’ll see a space to type or copy & paste your submission piece.

Shoot Da Breeze Section

Non-contest and any-kine, this is an open section where you can post any piece of writing you want to share. It’s a free write area with no specific topics or prompts.

Offshoots Section

This is where you’ll find other announcements, like a call for prompt suggestions, contest reminders to everyone or news about BS, and announcements of the winners.

Right Side-bar

You can see links to others’ submissions for that prompt on the right side of the page under “submissions for this trigger.”

What do I win?

Sometimes Bamboo Buckeroo will give out Bamboo Bucks to winners or participants to spend at the online bookstore. (Bamboo Bucks have no monetary value outside of bambooridge.org)

If your piece is selected as the winner for the month/contest, your piece appears in the award section, and a medal icon will show up next to the link to your post.

*Don’t forget, the editors always read the Bamboo Shoots entries and yours could end up published in the next issue of Bamboo Ridge.

Need help?

If you have questions or need assistance please feel free to contact us at: read@bambooridge[dot]org