We are now accepting entries for the 2012 Prix Eau Faux, our not-annual contest to reward excellence in "creative fragrance writing", e.g., fake ad copy.
We have assembled a distinguished panel of judges for this year's contest, including a bunch of us from Now Smell This (me, Alyssa, Angela, Christine, Jessica and Kevin), plus this year's guest host, Musette from Perfume Posse.
The judges will select a group of semi-finalists, and then the readers will vote on a grand prize winner.
What's the point?
We love reading gloriously over-the-top fragrance ad copy. The ad copy that originally inspired our first contest back in 2008 was from By Kilian — in three short sentences, they managed to work in Faust, Rimbaud, Macbeth, 50 Cent, Snoop Dogg, Pharell Williams and Baudelaire, and then they opened a fragrance description with the wonderful phrase "Beneath the pseudoinnocence displayed by Bergamot from Calabria...". In the spirit of the Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest (aka "The dark and stormy night" contest), we wanted to know if our readers could do even better. In 2008, they did pretty well (take a look at the finalists and the winner) so we did the whole thing again in 2010 (here are the finalists and the winner).
What to do:
Think of a name for your new perfume house and your first perfume. Write a SHORT paragraph introducing your new perfume house to the world, and then a SHORT paragraph introducing your debut fragrance.
Try to stick to 5-6 sentences total. Entries that are more than 8 sentences or 175 words will be automatically disqualified.
The best entries will be funny and pretentious and at least vaguely plausible.
The prize:
The winner gets a $150 gift certificate from our friends at Aedes de Venustas.
The winner will be informed by email; the gift certificate will be sent via snail mail.
The rules:
You may enter as many times as you like.
Entries are to be sent via email to robin at nstperfume dot com (replace "at" with "@", dot with ".", and remove any spaces). It would help if you would put "Prix Eau Faux" in your subject line.
Include your entry in the body of the email (we won't open attachments).
Also include your name, and if you like, whatever pseudonym you'd like us to use should we post your entry online.
Entries must be original. We already know there is lots of funny ad copy out there, but please, write your own. Entries are to be text only: no images.
We will be accepting entries through the end of March, 2012. The semi-finalists will be selected in early April.
Questions? Post them in the comments.
I just finished re-reading the 2010 finalists, and my stomach muscles are still sore from laughing – I’ll have to wait a while before revisiting the 2008 contest. Eagerly anticipating this year’s entries!
Me too 🙂
Every now and then I think about trying this, but just yesterday I read the following description of the new Slumberhouse Norne fragrance, written by the perfumer himself, “… a connoisseur-grade fantasy/surrealist recipe of intensed coniferous woodsy resins inspired by the catharsis of self-worship.” I know when I’m beat.
LOL — it really is harder than it looks!
Yay for Le Prix Eau Faux
🙂
I don’t write so good:D. hehe.
Um, I think I’ll pass, I am good at other forms of creative art and prefer them for the most part. That’s why I don’t write so good:p.
LOL!
Oh, I’ll try again… I’ve never made it to the finalists row before but I had so much fun writing it and reading other people’s entries, that I cannot let it go by.. 🙂
Good, do try again!
So hilarious!!! I was working out at the gym while reading the 2008 finalist and couldn´t stop laughing, people stared at me like I was crazy…
I can´t wait for this year´s entries!!
You were reading whilst working out? That is a talent! 🙂
Between series of weightlifting I read fun stuff like this blog, makes the work easier!
Wow. Too funny! I don’t think I could complete with stuff like that. That would be a challenge. I look forward to seeing what people come up with this year. I have to go and read a few of those again….
Yay!! I love le Prix eau Faux!
Hi Robin!!
I just would like to now if you received my entry already.
Kind regards
Got it!
Did you get my entry as well? I was just worried it could end up in a spam folder, seeing as it sounds like an ad! 🙂
I have it!