The first order of business is to change the name of the challenge, partly because it's not easy to say or remember, and partly because an acronym search revealed the MGSC is already taken by the "Mouse Genome Sequencing Consortium."
The challenge shall henceforth be called: Short Story Genre Challenge.
The SSGC genre for the January story will be...[insert drum roll here]...
Fantasy
Short stories are due by the 25th of the month, which gives a nice three weeks in which to plot, research, write and edit. Good luck to all participants. You may begin...now.