August Contest Update

Hard to believe, but the Christmas Countdown Clock doesn't lie..


The Golden Heart and RITA are open for entries September 21 and the next few weeks are some of the busiest on the contest circuit.


Are you ready? Or are you OUT OF CONTROL?

To prepare you we've linked to some of our great contest posts from the archive:

Pimp Your Contest Entry

Staging Your Manuscript

Contests: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

The Savvy Diva's Guide to Contests

How To Win Writing Contests

And... the prize vault is open and today we're giving away a copy of Mary Connealy's Out of Control! Just comment! Winner announced in the Weekend Edition.




Heart-To-Heart Contest. Deadline August 15, Electronic. Enter the scene(s) in which the hero and heroine meet for the first time or for the first time in the book, if previously acquainted, up to a maximum of 15 pages. Each entry may only be entered in one category. However, you may submit as many different entries as you wish. Each new entry must have a contest entry form and payment. The top three finalists in each category will have their entries read by a literary agent, a traditional publishing house editor and an e-publishing editor. Categories: Paranormal, Contemporary, Historical, Erotic, Young Adult.

No editors names listed but for $15 bucks this may be a good test-the-waters contest to enter.



The Golden Palm. Deadline midnight, August 15th. All electronic (but allows mailing of checks).

Categories and Final Round Judges:

Short/Long Contemporary: Megan Long, Associate Editor, Harlequin Superromance
Single Title: TBA
Mainstream with Romantic Elements: Elaine Spencer, Literary Agent, The Knight Agency
Historical: Elizabeth Bistrow, Editorial Assistant, New American Library
Paranormal/Fantasy/Sci-Fi/Time Travel: Deb Werksman, Editor, Sourcebooks
Erotica (new this year): Kelli Collins, Editor-in-Chief, Ellora’s Cave




Golden Pen. Electronic Deadline August 15. This contest closely parallels the Golden Heart and is presented by the Golden Network of past Golden Heart finalists. Entry shall include a synopsis plus manuscript pages, together totaling not more than 55 pages. The synopsis may not be longer than 10 pages.

Judges and Categories:

Historical – Deb Werksman, Sourcebooks Inc.
Inspirational – Melissa Endlich, Steeple Hill
Novel with Strong Romantic Elements – Valerie Gray, MIRA Books and SPICE Books
Paranormal – Leis Pederson, Berkley Publishing Group
Romantic Suspense – Holly Blanck, St. Martin’s Press
Series Contemporary – Susan Litman, Harlequin Enterprises
Single Title – Katherine Pelz, Berkley Publishing Group
Young Adult – Regina Griffin, Egmont USA

Launching A Star. Deadline Midnight August 25th. Entry is the first twenty-five pages of your manuscript-no synopsis. Agent and Editor final judges.

Single Title (including WF) -Emilia Pisani,Simon & Schuster/Sara Megabow,The Nelson Literary Agency

General Paranormal-Meredith Giordan,Berkley/Marlene Stringer,The Stringer Agency

Futuristic / Fantasy-Leah Hultenschmidt, SourceBooks/Ethan Ellenberg,Ethan Ellenberg Agency

Historical-Amanda Bergeron,Harper Collins/Laura Bradford,The Bradford Agency

Series Contemporary-Susan Litman,Harlequin Special Edition/Roberta Brown,The Brown Agency

Romantic Suspense-Holly Blanck,St. Martin's Press/Chelsea Gilmore,Maria Carvainis Agency

Inspirational-Natalie Hanemann,Thomas Nelson/Suzie Townsend,Fine Print Literary Management

Young Adult-Kristin Daly Rens,Harper Collins/Becca Stumpf,The Prospect Agencyy



The Beacon Award for Unpublished Authors. Deadline August 31st. Electronic Contest. Open to all authors of romantic fiction, not contracted/published in book length fiction (40,000 words and over) in the last 3 years. RWA membership is not required for entry. Contest is limited to the first 125 entries. First 30 pages with optional synopsis (synopsis will not be judged, but should be included within the page count constraints).

Historical/Regency
Agent: Kevan Lyon of the Marsal Lyon Literary Agency
Editor: Holly Blanck of St. Martin’s Press

Single Title Contemporary
Agent: Michelle Grajkowski, 3 Seas Literary Agency
Editor: Leah Hultenschmidt, Senior Editor, Sourcebooks

Contemporary Series
Agent: TBD
Editor: Laura Barth, Assistant Editor with Harlequin

Fantasy, Futuristic, or Paranormal
Agent: Courtney Miller-Callihan of Sanford J. Greenburger Assoicates
Editor: Lauren Plude, Editorial Assistant of Grand Central

Romantic Suspense
Agent: Nalini Akolekar of Spencerhill Associates, Ltd.
Editor: Leis Pederson, Associate Editor, Berkley

Young Adult
Agent: TBD
Editor: TBD

Erotic
Agent: Laura Bradford of the Bradford Literary Agency
Editor: Ralene Gorlinsky from Ellora’s Cave

Inspirational
Agent: Mary Sue Seymour, The Seymour Agency
Editor: Rachel Burkot, Harlequin Love Inspired, Editorial Assist

Chick Lit, Women’s Fiction, or Mainstream
Agent: Lauren Ruth of Bookends, LLC
Editor: Tessa Woodward, Associate Editor, Avon/Avon Impulse




Melody of Love. Deadline September 1st. First 25 pages or less. All electronic.
Historical: Barbara Poelle, Irene Goodman Literary Agency
Contemporary: Latoya C. Smith, Grand Central Publishing
Paranormal: Angela James, Carina Press
YA: Leah Hultenschmidt, Sourcebooks Fire




Hot Prospects. Electronic Deadline and Postmarked Deadline September 1st. This contest is open to both published and unpublished authors. Entry consists of a synopsis (up to five pages) and the first 25 pages of the manuscript.

Categories and Final Round Judges (Editors/Literary Agencies):
1) Historical/Regency Editor - Katherine N. Pelz, The Berkley Publishing Group/Agent - Jennifer Schober, Spencerhill Associates

2) Fantasy, Futuristic & Paranormal -Editor - Deborah Werksman, Sourcebooks, Inc/ Agent - Jenny Bent, The Bent Agency

3) Romantic Suspense- Editor - Amy Pierpont, Editorial Director, Grand Central Publishing/Agent - Paige Wheeler, Folio Literary Management

4) Contemporary Long/Single Title- Editor - Jennifer Enderlin, St. Martins Press/Agent - Michelle Grajkowski, 3 Seas Literary Agency

5) Series Contemporary - Editor - Johanna Raisanen, Associate Editor, Harlequin/Editor - Leanne Morgena, Senior Editor, Sweetheart Rose, The Wild Rose Press





Finally a Bride. Electronic Deadline September 2. Each manuscript must have finaled, but not won in a previous RWA or RWA chapter-sponsored contest. Submit the first thirty pages of your manuscript. The first place winner in each category will receive a lovely engraved knife and cake server, suitable for cutting the cake in celebration of THE CALL. In addition, any book that is published as a result of this contest will receive a free entry into the National Readers' Choice Award the first year of eligibility. TWO EDITORS JUDGES EACH CATEGORY.

Traditional/Inspirational
Melissa Endlich -- Steeple Hill
Nicola Martinez - White Rose Publishing

Series Contemporary
Patience Smith -- Silhouette
Wanda Ottewell -- Harlequin

Romantic Suspense
Charles Griemsman -- Silhouette
TBA

Historical/ Regency
Deb Werksman -- Casablanca Sourcebooks
Carly Corcoran -- Harlequin Historical

Paranormal/Time-Travel/Futuristic/Fantasy
Margo Lipschultz -- HQN
TBA

Mainstream with Romantic Elements
TBA

Young Adult
Leah Wilson -- BenBella Books
Nicole Sohl -- St. Martin's Press



Gateway to the Best. Deadline September 9. Electronic only. The Grand Prize winner will receive US $100, a full reading and critique of her entire manuscript by a MORWA Published Author, a certificate, and a "Gateway to the Best Grand Prize Winner" electronic banner announcing the win for the author's website. Submit up to the first 7000 words (approx 25-28 pages) of manuscript.

The final judges for each category are:

Contemporary Series - Laura Barth, Editor, Harlequin

Historical - Esi Sogah, Editor, Avon

Single Title - Katherine Pelz, Editor, Berkley

Paranormal - LaToya Smith, Editor, Grand Central Publishing

Romantic Suspense - Margo Lipschultz, Editor, Harlequin

Young Adult - Adam Wilson, HQ Teen




No details yet, but the Mills & Moon New Voices Contest launches September 13.





The Laurel Wreath Award. Deadline August 31. The contest is judged exclusively by booksellers and librarians. The winners of each category are awarded a Laurel Wreath Award Pendant.

Categories:
Contemporary
Romantic Suspense
Historical / Regency
Paranormal / Time Travel / Fantasy/ Futuristic
Young Adult (NEW)
Inspirational (NEW)
Erotic Romance (NEW)

WOW: Women On Writing Fiction Quarterly Contest: June - August 31st, Midnight (Pacific Time). "WOW! hosts a (quarterly) writing contest every three months. The mission of this contest is to inspire creativity, communication, and well-rewarded recognition to contestants. The contest is open globally; age is of no matter; and entries must be in English. They are open to all styles of writing, although they do encourage you to take a close look at the guest judge for the season and the flavor of our sponsor, if you are serious about winning. They love creativity, originality, and light-hearted reads. That's not to say that the guest judge will feel the same... so go wild! Express yourself, and most of all, have some fun!"

Maximum: 750--Minimum: 250 The title is not to be counted in your word count. Use MS Word's word count to determine the submitted entry's word count.Open Prompt: Open to any style and genre. From horror to romance!

Entry Fee: $10.00 Entries limited to a maximum of 300 stories. Please enter early to ensure inclusion. At 300 entries, PayPal buttons are disabled.

Check out the great prizes, including cash! Final judge is Literary Agent, Kim Lionetti.





The Fourth Annual, Real Simple, Life Lessons Essay Contest.

When did you first understand the meaning of love? Maybe you were a child, witnessing a generous act by your father or mother. Maybe the lesson came later, as you grappled with the challenges of being a friend, a spouse, or a parent yourself. Whatever made you understand love—and yourself—better, tell us about it.

Enter Real Simple’s fourth annual Life Lessons Essay Contest and you could:

• Have your essay published in Real Simple
• Win round-trip tickets for two to New York City, hotel accommodations for two nights, tickets to a Broadway play, and a lunch with Real Simple editors
• Receive a prize of $3,000

To enter, send your typed, double-spaced submission (1,500 words maximum, preferably in a Microsoft Word document) to lifelessons@realsimple.com. Contest begins at 12:01 A.M. EST on May 3, 2011, and runs through 11:50 P.M. EST on September 15, 2011. Open to legal residents of the United States age 19 or older at time of entry. Void where prohibited by law. (Entries will not be returned.)




Good Housekeeping's Short Story Contest-Enter your story for a chance to win $3,000 and be published in the May 2012 issue! Submit a short story, no longer than 3,500 words, to fictioncontest@goodhousekeeping.com. Your story should reflect an aspect of women's lives today. Please include the title of your story in the subject line. Submissions must be an original work of fiction, not previously published or a finalist for any other prize or award. Please include your full name, address, daytime phone number, and email address. Deadline September 1. Rules are here.





That's it ...NOW GO CRAZY!@!!