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I won my first writing competition in the second grade. The prize was several two-dollar bills in a white envelope from the football-crazed nuns at my elementary school, for writing the best poem about the Washington Redskins.
I'm a serious sports fan now, but I knew nothing about football at the time, which just goes to show that back then, I would write about just about anything for the promise of minor glory and a few bucks.
I abandoned journalism in college for a career in counseling, and it would be years before I would win another writing competition. My eyes were still drawn, though, to contest announcements in the library and bookstores. I still picked up copies of Writer's Digest and Poets and Writers, scanning markets and competitions in the back that I never seemed to enter, mostly because I was sure I'd lose.
Then, in the late 90s when I was living in Dayton, Ohio, I entered the Erma Bombeck Essay Competition, sponsored by the University of Dayton -- where both Erma and I had graduated. I would go on to win an honorable mention, which scored me a certificate, I think, and I may have gotten a small cash prize, but I honestly can't remember. I was focused on having to read my essay at the awards ceremony, which is always nerve-wracking, but something I make myself do when given the chance.
And I honestly believe that is when I returned to writing for real.
And there you have why I enter writing contests. I get a strange inspiration born, not just of competition, but of some kind of motivation that I only get by throwing my words in the ring.
Hints For Writing Contests
- First, check them out carefully. Some contests can surely be scams, or just not worth your time. I don't like having to pay too much money to enter contests for no known reward, which is another reason why I've hesitated when I have. But if it seems like a reasonable fee (which may be different for you than it is for me -- I'm pretty stingy about entry fees) then I'd go for it. I'm not giving someone $50 to read my stuff, but I may send $20 if the prize and the organization hosting the contest seem worth it. I have no specific formula for this. I just know what feels right to me.
- Send something you've worked pretty hard on and edited to a place where you feel like it's solid. Contest submissions, like any kind of pitch, can be nerve-wracking. Have a couple of people read it who you trust to tell the truth, and if it feels like it's ready to go, send it.
- Make sure everything is in good order. In the rush to meet deadlines and the anxiety of entering contests like this, it's entirely possible you'll name files incorrectly, forget to attach or do something else that will disqualify you even though you are a genius who clearly deserves to win every contest you enter, right?
- Also, spell everything correctly. Who knows who's judging what, and first and surface impressions matter, like it or not.
- If you don't win, take it in stride. The truth is that you will lose most of the time, so contests shouldn't carry too much weight. I'd balance entering them -- if you choose to at all -- with pitching to paying freelance gigs, which require a similar gift for marketing yourself and polishing your work without the contest structure.
Contests That Might Be Worth Your While
Writer's Digest runs several contests in different genres yearly. The largest contest is closed to entries but the short-short fiction contest is open until December. For shorter efforts, there is also a monthly "Your Story" prompt that can still get you published in the magazine.
Are you a poet? The Tennessee Williams/New Orleans Literary Festival is accepting submissions to its first annual poetry contest until August 15. If you win, you get $1,000, admission to the March, 2011 festival, and the chance to read your work when you get there.
The She Writes Community is hosting the Passion Project -- an opportunity for one lucky prospective female author to gain substantial editorial and marketing support for a book project and get a "literary makeover."
