Contests with Guest Blogger Christie Craig

Contests: A Chance to Reel in a Contract or a Sport of Diversion?

I often relate entering contest to fishing. No, I’m not a serious fisherman, “fisherperson” but the first time my dad took me on the banks of the Coosa River with a cane pole, within five minutes, I’d hooked a huge prize. A prize big enough to be mounted on the wall, or so my dad said, right before it “accidentally” slipped from his hands and back into the murky water. Truth is, it probably wasn’t big enough to be used as fish bait.

But what was important was I felt successful, like a real winner. And every since then, I’ve enjoyed fishing. Now through the years, I’ve done a lot of fishing when the only thing I caught was a sunburn and a hook in my finger. But deep inside, there’s that six-year-old little girl who knew it could happen – a girl who wanted to prove to her daddy she could watch a bobber and jerk a fish out of the water just as good as her brothers. And if I wasn’t that good, I knew my dad would give me a few pointers.

My point is that we fish for a lot of the same reasons we enter contests. We long for the chance to prove our skills, to improve our skills, to get validated, and deep inside we’re hoping to snag a contract from either an agent or a publisher. But the question still exit: Can contests really lead to publication? Or, are they a diversion, a form of resistance that writers use in lieu of working toward the real goal?


Lesson Number One: It’s not a myth, you can hook an agent and a publishing contract in the river of contests.

I not only sold my first book via a contest, but twelve years later, I sold my second, third, and fourth books via contests. My fifth book sold after being submitted by my agent, but guess what she used to pitch that book to the editor? Yup. She hooked that editor by using my contest finals.

Lesson Number Two: Entering Contest is a tool to help you reach your goal of publication, but it may not be the best tool for every book or even for every writer.

If you write a plots or characters that are “outside of the box”, understand there’s a good chance that you will get “in the box” judges who will call you on your style/technique. If your style is known to be what most of us consider a breach in the rules, i.e. multiple POV in the same scene, you probably will be counted down on it and contests may not be the best place for you to shine.

Lesson Number Three : Contests can offer some amazing, insightful, and helpful cold-read critiques, but they can’t take the place of a critique group.

I have gotten some amazing advice from contests that helped me improve my writing and plots. But I still have a critique group. Why? Because you don’t know, or can totally trust, that the person judging has enough experience to offer positive or constructive feedback. They don’t call contests “crap shoots” for nothing. If you enter often enough, you will probably get some crappy writing advice or maybe good writing advice that just doesn’t work for your story.

Lesson Number Four: Contests can validate you in a big way and the placements can help snag an editor’s interest even outside the contest arena.

Positive re-enforcement motivates us. Knowing that your story was read and enjoyed by your peers is an unforgettable high. Even if your entry doesn’t receive a request, baiting your query letters with your contest placements can help snag the interest of agents and editors.

Lesson Number Five: Contests can be costly.

I generally entered twelve to fifteen contests a year. I found that when I stopped looking at them as fun, and started budgeting for them as a writing expense, it helped me deal with the guilt factor that we women so often allow ourselves to feel. Looking at them as business deductions made me take a closer look at my investment.

Lesson Number Six: Contests are subjective and you will get judges who just don’t like your writing.

Just because a manuscript doesn’t final doesn’t mean it isn’t good and won’t get published. For that matter, a win doesn’t mean you are ready for publication any more than not placing means you aren’t. Score sheets and comments are meant to be filtered through. You, the writer, must find the truths and non-truths about your own work.

Lesson Number Seven: Contests offer you a lot of lessons that mimic those in the real publishing world.

Yes, it stings when you learn you didn’t final, but rejection is a part of this business. Get used to it. Other lessons include: meeting deadlines; giving your work that extra polish before sending it off; being able to deal with the “hurry up and wait” mode of operation that seems to drive this business, dealing with professional jealously of some of your peers, budgeting business expenses.


Lesson Number Eight: Contests can be addictive.
The highs you get from a win are great. They motivate and inspire you, making you more productive. But are you in it just for the highs? Below are some signs of contest addiction.


1) Your first chapter is fabulous. It’s also your only chapter.

2) You spend more time entering contests than you do . . . writing.

3) You enter every contest you hear about – even if the final judge is on the 20 Worst Agents List by Writer’s Beware. (You enter because you hear that the amount of entries is low. You enter even when the final judges are not someone whom you feel would purchase your book.)

4) You begin neglecting to pursue other methods of getting published

Lesson Number Nine: Write thank you notes.

Just because an editor doesn’t request your work after judging it in a contest doesn’t always mean they wouldn’t like to see the manuscript. Ask if they would like to see the manuscript after you make the recommended changes.

Lesson Number 10: Tips for improving your chances for snagging a final placement

1) Follow the rules. If you try to sneak something in, they will notice.
2) Just like in real publishing, the first page and a good hook get attention
3) Make sure you’ve entered the right category
4) Proof, then reproof you work.
5) Get your hands on the contest score sheet and see how you think you’ll score
6) Get someone who likes you, but is honest to see how they think you’d score using the score sheet
7) Don’t try cheap tricks to get attention –i.e. hooks that tease but don’t carry through.
8) Write the best damn book you can.

To celebrate the release of Divorced, Desperate and Delicious, Christie is giving away a t-shirt to one of our posters today. Be sure to look for Weddings Can Be Murder in May 2008.

And visit Christie at http://www.christie-craig.com/

or catch her blogging at http://killerfictionwriters.blogspot.com/
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Christie Craig is an award-winning writer, multi-published photo journalist,
motivational speaker, and writing teacher. With one novel to her name and
over 3,000 credits for her non-fiction, Christie's long-standing goal was to
break back into fiction. She achieved that dream when she broke that
long hiatus by selling four romance novels in one day. And Christie accredits her latest success to her contests wins.