Oh, but that's so far away....
It's logical, because it's a monthly event. So people start writing on the new month, and do some critics on the side (sadly, few people actually critic, sometimes even after receiving critics of their own). We also have a new voting. Each month we write, vote, and eventually critic, all on three different topics.
It's well spaced out and it works. I don't think people would be as involved otherwise. Most voters have not even read your story yet. Many will read and vote but not say what they thought of it. And maybe some would not bother to vote if they were forced to review.
It's also good because it gives you time away from your story. A whole month is long enough to distance yourself and see if you did so good a job, and also read the others' stories.
So it's a good system. Mostly people get what they want.