Writing to a Theme For Contests

 

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NOTE:  This is a post from several years ago about writing to a theme. Many contests require that entries be theme centered. So, perhaps a reminder of what to keep in mind, as well as my own experience with this topic will be worthwhile. 

Many writing contests have a theme. It might be a quote, a phrase, or even one word which the entrant is  to consider in their entry. Sometimes, it's rather nice to have the path you're going to walk already selected for you, since we often find the beginning the most difficult steps. It also limits the writer, but only in a small way.

Hope Clark runs an annual themed contest connected with her marketing newsletters. This year the theme is one word--diligence. The word allows you to go in myriad directions, but which one will come up a winner? I've been mulling it over for weeks now and I haven't come up with an idea yet. There's still time left.

Our state authors group has an annual contest which offers several categories a writer can enter. There is an overall theme each year which is a category all its own. It offers the greatest amount of prize money. The theme generally has something to do with writing, but occasionally it reflects our state heritage. Kansas has a rich history in the pioneer movement in the nineteenth century.

One year, the theme was"Pen Life As Art" and I thought and thought about it while I did household tasks, while I waited in line at the checkout counter and when TV was so boring I couldn't concentrate on it. I had a choice of entering either poetry or prose for this theme, or both, as they were separate categories. I ended up entering a poem and was pleased when it won third place. The poem is below, so you can judge for yourself if I wrote to the theme.

Artists All

Painting with oils,

watercolors brushed across canvas,

clay molded by loving hands,

marble chiseled to exquisite form

Artists ply their trade,

by the golden light of day

and velvet depths of night,

with passion and verve.

One more artist joins the rank.

The writer brushes words over paper,

molds a story bit by glittering bit,

chisels a novel to survive the ages.

The writer gathers life’s stories

from country roads to city streets,

written from the depths of a heart

bursting with intensity and rapture.

Artists all, masters of creation,

be they painters, sculptors or writers,

leaving footprints on canvas, marble and paper-- 

heartfelt tributes embraced by mankind.

Encouraged by placing, I entered a lengthy poem about the wild west the following year. It was so contrived, so terrible that I should not have even entered it. It may have been written to the theme, but it was just plain awful. Keep the theme in mind, but also concentrate on good writing.

If you can't come up with something related to the theme, move on to another contest. Not every theme given is going to inspire us. Our state contest theme this year is "Kansas:  Freedom Frontier For 150 Years"  This is our state's 150th birthday so it was a good choice. I never came up with anything to write for it, however. Rather than entering something awful, I skipped on to the other categories.

Writing to a theme can be interesting. If you haven't tried it, give it a whirl. Google writing contest with theme and see if you can find one that appeals to you.

A Link To Writing Contests and More

May Flowers--Just because...

Besides publications, writers should consider entering contests. If you place, you will get a prize or publication and a credit to add to your file. If you lose, you still gain by preparing an entry and submitting. That in itself is good experience.

Yesterday, I accidentally ran across a link to a blog written by author, Erica Verillo. The title is Publishing...And Other Forms of Insanity. Clever. The post I found was one that had a list of 16 recurring writing contests to enter that have no fees. Sixteen in on fell swoop is a treasure trove. Check it out here. Be sure to read what Ms. Verillo has to say about entering contests. I couldn't have said it better myself. 

I've heard writers ask where one finds information about writing contests. It's not difficult to put writing contests in a search engine and wait seconds for the list they'll send. You can refine your search by using keywords like writing contests with no fees or writing contests with cash prizes. I'm amazed at the number of people who don't take advantage of a search engine to help find whatever it is they are seeking. 

Keep in mind that many no-entry-fee contests give smaller prizes or just publication as a prize. For many writers, that's just fine. If you're aiming for the big prize money, expect a large entry fee. It's the way these contest managers accumulate the funds to award to the winners. 

Does your state writers association have an annual contest? Maybe the individual districts run writing contests, as well. Our local library sponsors a writing contest for school children to commemorate Martin Luther King Day. Check your own local library for contest possibilities. 

Many writers shy away from contests because they have little confidence in their own writing ability. You'll never know if you are a winner if you don't enter. Pump yourself up a bit and send in a piece you feel good about. The very first poem I submitted to a contest won 1st place. No one was more surprised than I. At the time, I had written very little poetry, knew next to nothing about writing poetry. Even so, I came up with a winner. So, I know it can happen. It doesn't matter if it is a poem, an essay. a memoir piece or fiction. 

I think that we enter contests because we have nothing to lose and everything to gain. Well, maybe you lose the entry fee, but you wouldn't have entered if you had a problem with losing that bit of cash. For the winners, what better boost of confidence can a writer have? 

Check the list in the link above to see if there are any contests you might consider entering. Then look for others via a search engine. As for me, my state writing contest deadline is only a month away. I have several pieces in mind to submit, but it's time for me to get them in final form and entered. 

Pros and Cons of Entering Writing Contests

Writers are often urged to enter contests. Somebody has to win so why not you? Take a chance along with a thousand or more other writers. What are the odds you'll win? Should you try? Or not? 

There are things to consider when you enter your work in a writing contest. Here are just a few:

• If  I enter my story in the contest that will not announce winners for 6 months, then I cannot submit it for publication. Do I want to tie up my work for that long?
• How do I know the type of writers that enter this contest? Can I actuall compete with them?
• Is there a fee to enter?
• How much is the fee? Is it exorbitant? 
• If I enter 5 contests and pay an entry fee for each but win nothing, where am I? 
• Do I know if the contest is legit?
• Have I checked for validity of the group behind the contest?
• Does the contest pay winners? Or just publish the winning entries?
• If they only publish, not pay, winners, why am I paying a fee to enter?
• How high a fee should I  be willing to pay? 
• How many contests per year should I enter? The free ones? The ones with entry fees?
• Should I enter smaller contests first and progress to the bigger ones? 
• Should I skip the small potatoes contests and aim for the big one with the big prizes? 

/There are also good reasons to enter your work in a contest. Consider these:

• If I place, it's a good thing to be able to tell an editor later when I submit the same story for publication
• It's good practice for submitting to editors later
• You might actually win first, second, third or an Honorable Mention
•  Enter the no fee contests and you have lost nothing, but they usually have lower amounts for prizes. 
• You can't win if you don't enter
• Winning a writing contest looks mighty nice in your bio
• It's fun to take a chance and see how your work stands up to others (We sometimes forget that writing should have some fun in it)

As for no-fee or fee to enter, that is something each person needs to determine. I have entered both types of contests, have placed in some, and got nothing in many. If you do enter your work in a contest, be sure to read the guidelines and know for sure that your piece fits. Best of luck to all who give it a whirl.

Writing Contests to Enter

Have you ever seen your name listed as a writing contest winner? Have you ever entered a writing contest? If you answered no to both these questions, take a moment and consider why.

1. Do you feel overwhelmed at the thought of competition?

2. Is your self-confidence level lower than you'd like?

3. Are you just plain afraid to enter a writing contest?

4. Do the entry fees hold you back? 

5. Would you like to enter and win?

6. Do you not care about entering writing contests at all? 

If you don't enter, you can't win. Plain and simple. But step 1 is finding writing contests to enter. I can help in that respect. I have three contests for you to consider. 

1. The first one is from Blue Mountain Arts. Every so often, they run a contest looking for verses to use on their line of greeting cards. The present contest has a deadline of June 30th with prizes of $300, $150 and $50. There is no entry fee. Check out the guidelines and submission form page. 

2. The Northern Colorado Writers have a contest open to Personal Essay/Creative Nonfiction and Poetry with a June 30 deadline. You can be as wordy as you like here as the word count runs all the way to 5,000 words. The entry fee is $20 which seems steep but the prize money warrants it. The three top prizes are $1,000, $250, and $100. Check details here. You do NOT have to be a member of this group to enter.

3.  This one is for Kansas writers only. I'm including it as I have a good many Kansas readers. The Kansas Authors Club has an annual contest for members and nonmembers. Entry fee is slightly higher for nonmembers. Go to the website and click on Contests on left side of Home Page. Be sure to follow guidelines as they are pretty specific. 

I have no affiliation with any of these contests, other than the fact that I am a member of Kansas Authors Club. I am simply giving information on the three contests listed.

Use a search engine like google to find lots of contests. Specify 2015 in your search or else you'll get contest info for ones long done. 

Give yourself enough time to write your entry and edit after it sits a few days. Then a few more days and a final edit. Check and double check the guidelines so your entry counts. It's really not much different from submitting to an editor. 

You have nothing to lose (except perhaps your entry fee, so look for no fee contests if you prefer) and everything to gain. Give serious consideration to entering a writing contest. Your chances of winning are as good as any other writer.

Literary Contests--For Kansans and Writers In Other States

Here we are in a brand new month. The shine has not left June as this is only its second day. When I was growing up, June meant the end of school was near. We usually got out sometime in the second week of that month. Later, June meant graduation and still later, my wedding. It also meant summer had arrived. The pools were open, ice cream shops did lots more business that usual and it was watermelon time.

In my writing life, June brings a deadline for our state authors club literary contest. It's June 15th this year. Open to both  members and non-members of the Kansas Authors Club (a statewide organization), the contest gives opportunities to both poets and prose writers. Several categories are available in each section. 

Fees are $4 for members and $6 for non-members per entry. The theme category gives prizes of $100, $50 and $25 while the other categories award $25, $15 and $10 prizes plus Honorable Mentions. It's not a high cost entry fee. 

For the rules and guidelines, go to this page . Please note that the contest is for those who are Kansas residents whether they belong to the Kansas Authors Club or not, and also to any member of the Kansas Authors Club, no matter where they reside. 

The Theme category this year is "Salt of the Earth" with the reason being that the state convention will be held in Hutchinson, KS in October, 2014. Hutchinson is home of a renowned underground salt mine. I have not been able to come up with an entry that fits the theme, but I have two weeks left for a revelation to hit me. 

Many of my readers don't live in Kansas. Not to worry! Google your own state literary contest and see what you come up with. It's fun to write to a special theme and easy enough to go through your files to find unpublished work that might fit a particular category. Don't get discouraged about contests. Somebody has to win and it might as well be you. Don't enter? Can't win! 

I wrote a blog post a little over 2 years ago that addressed writing contests. Might be worth a read to give you the inspiration to enter one. Check it out here.

Whatever contest you enter, remember to follow the Guidelines to the letter!

Writing Contests--Questions and Answers

Have you ever entered a writing contest? Have you ever considered it? How do you find the contests? What's holding you back? Are you willing to give it a try? Lots of questions that maybe today's post can help answer.

Have you ever entered a writing contest?  I'm guessing that more writers will say No to this question than Yes. Why? It takes time, self-confidence, and sometimes money to enter a contest. Most contests will take only unpublished work and that ties up a story, poem or essay that you feel is one of your best. Do you want it languishing in a judge's stack of entries or would you rather it be submitted to someplace that might publish the piece soon?

Have you ever considered it? Far more people consider entering a writing contest than actually do. For many of the same reasons as stated above. I see notices about dozens of contests and I scan the guidelines and consider entering but I let most of them slide by. Competition can be scary. Think back to your school days. Sports competitions were tough for some of us, while others excelled. If you weren't an expert, it was pretty frightening to try out when you knew the risk of being cut was mighty high. In the same way, entering the writing contest may come down to how badly you want to compete and come out on top. Or how much money you're willing to invest in the entry fees.

What's holding you back?  Self-confidence may be one of the biggest things that keeps you from entering contests. Especially so if you are an unpublished writer. Or maybe you've been published a few times. Maybe your muse whispers in your ear what makes you think you can compete with hundreds, maybe thousands, of other writers and come out on top? A writer's muse isn't always there to help, they sometimes like to play devil's advocate or shock you a bit. Then, there's the question of money. Some contests are free to enter, some have minimal amount entry fees while others have sizable amounts for entrants. The fees collected end up being prize money in many cases. Each writer must decide on what they are willing to pay and how many times each year. One thing to remember--the contests with the highest entry fees usually award the highest amount in cash prizes.

How do you find the contests?  Watch your writers' newsletters for announcements and use your favorite search engine to find current contests.

Are you willing to give it a try?  Only you can answer this one. I would encourage you to enter a contest but with a word of caution. Don't aim for the big contests with big awards for your first try. I've said it many times in relation to submitting your work to an editor/publisher--start small and work your way to the top. There are many smaller contests. Look at your state writers group--many of them run annual contests via districts or the entire state. It's a good place to begin your contest journey.

At the end of this post, I've pasted an announcement page for a District Contest in Kansas as an example. Please note that it is not limited to members only. If you live in Florida, you can enter. Nonmembers pay a slightly higher fee to enter. Always measure the amount of the fee versus the possible prize amount to determine the worth of entering. Winning a writing contest will be a nice addition to your writing resume and something positive to add to your cover letter when you submit your work for publication.

Look at the guidelines in this announcement carefully. Just as in submitting your work to a publication, you must follow the rules to the letter or your story may be tossed out without a backward glance from whoever manages the contest. Every contest entry form will be different. Read it, study, and double-check once your entry is ready to send. The bigger the contest, the more difficult it is to be a winner and the reverse is true, too.

* More on writing contests can be read here.

Writing Contest Judges

Writers enter contests for several reasons--to win, to get their name into the writing world, perhaps to test themselves, to take a chance they might win or place. As I told you on Friday, our state authors convention was held this past week-end. The Awards Luncheon is the final part of the week-end. Contest entries were sent between April and June and entrants had to wait until October to find out if their work placed, won big, or got no recognition at all. That's a long wait which results in great joy for some and disappointment for others.

This particular contest has several categories in both poetry and prose. It's up to the writer to decide how many entries to send. There were some happy faces on the people who walked to the front to accept their award. The woman handing out the certificates and checks made a rather startling (to me anyway) statement as one person was on her way to receive an Honorable Mention. She said that the judge had penned a note on the entry that told the writer that her work probably would have placed much higher if the judge had been younger and more hip. 

Maybe that comment would have been better left for the individual to read herself rather than hear it publicly. But, it also got me to thinking about contests and the judges. Maybe the judges personality and stage of life plays a bigger part in winning contests than we realize. I feel, though, that a judge should not consider lifestyle, age group, or other specifics when judging a writing contest. Judge the writing, not what he/she relates to as far as those item are concerned.

If a 24 year old judges a memoir about WWII, he/she would have a difficult time relating to that era, but they can judge the impact of the writing, the passion behind it, the good or bad mechanics. If a 70 year old judges a piece on the rock bands lifestyle, he/she should consider those same things. Consider the writing above the subject matter. 

So, if you didn't win anything in a contest you entered--whichever and wherever it might be--don't give up. Enter your work in another contest or submit it to an editor for possible publication. I've often told writers that an editor is only one person. If the first one doesn't accept your submission, then move on to the next one. Her opinion could be altogether different. Judges are the same--all individuals.

An ideal situation would be to have 3 judges make their choices from a group of entries, then see which entries get unanimous votes, which have differing views etc. Note that I said ideal because in the real world, it's not easy to find people willing to commit to the time it takes to judge a writing contest. 

Should You Enter A Writing Contest?

I've been seeing a lot of calls for contest submissions lately. It brought to mind an article I wrote for a writers website awhile back. Thought it might help you sort out whether to submit your work to a contest or not.

 Contests Calling—Should You Enter?

By Nancy Julien Kopp

 Have you ever wanted to enter a writing contest but talked yourself out of it? Ever convinced yourself you weren’t good enough to enter a writing contest? Maybe the answer is yes to at least one of these questions, possibly both.

But why enter? What’s in it for you if you don’t win? What happens if you do win?

Many considerations come into play when I send my finest work to a writing contest. I’ve entered a good many contests, and I’ve won in several--not always first place, but a

place. Even Honorable Mention is a winner. You may have noticed that I stated

“…sending my finest work….”  I try to send the best qualifying piece for that particular contest.

I look for writing contest announcements in writer’s newsletters, magazines, and newspapers. Some require a fee and others ask for nothing more than the prose or poetry I plan to submit. Many offer terrific prizes, while others promise only publication of the winning entries. Publication may be prize enough, especially for beginning writers.

I didn’t enter any writing contests in the early stages of my career. For one thing, I didn’t have enough confidence and secondly, I knew my work was not professional enough at that point. As time went on, I began to get acceptances for some of the articles, stories and poems I submitted to editors. Oh sure, I got plenty of rejections, but my confidence level moved up a notch with each acceptance. Once my work began to sell, I thought more seriously about entering contests.

I submitted my first contest entry at the district level of my state authors’ organization. I competed against only a couple dozen people. It proved a good place to begin. I entered something in several categories, and to my great surprise, I placed with everything I’d entered and won small amounts of cash. The state contest offered bigger cash prizes, but also greater competition. I entered my prize-winners from the district contest, and when the winners list arrived, my name was absent Though disappointed, I continued to enter the district and state contests in successive years, and while I nearly always won at the district level, it took a few years before I saw results at the state level.

 One year, I entered a poem in the theme category of the state contest, even though I have no formal training in poetry. When I sent it in, I wondered why I even bothered. I feared it was a waste of money as I had to pay a small fee for each entry. Imagine my surprise when my poem won first place. If I’d talked myself out of sending the poem, hadn’t wanted to waste that entry fee, I’d never have had the pleasure of winning nor of cashing the very nice check that arrived with my Award Certificate.

I’ve entered poetry contests at a couple of websites. They required no entry fees so I had nothing to lose. I won first place with a poem about my granddaughter at a writers’ website, and I won third place and two Honorable Mention awards at another website’s poetry contest three successive years. I learned that you can’t win if you don’t enter.

Besides the prizes, recognition comes with publication of the winner’s work. Editors sometimes look at winners in contests and offer to purchase the entry for their own publication. The first time I attended our state authors’ convention, more than one person remembered my name from the prize winners lists of the previous years.

Some contests call their entry fee a reading fee, but it’s the same thing. Some are nominal, and others seem quite high, but usually the higher the entry fee, the greater the prize at the end but also stronger competition. Each writer must decide if it’s worth the fee to enter. If I enter a contest every week, those fees will add up to more than I might win. But if I’m selective, an occasional entry fee would be worth considering.

Adhering to contest guidelines is important. I know if I don’t follow them to the letter, it’s more than likely that my story or article will get tossed. Time and effort go into

the entries, so I check guidelines carefully and give my work a winner’s chance. If there is a theme to the contest, I try to make sure the entry fits. If single-spaced, non-indented paragraphs are called for, I don’t send a double-spaced manuscript.

Want another reason to enter contests? If I pen a winner, it’s a great addition to my cover letter when I submit the piece to an editor. Most will take note of such an announcement and may look a little more closely at the submission since it proved to be a winner. It’s helpful but doesn’t always ensure a sale. For example, one of my stories for children won at the district level of my state author’s group, it won at the state level, and it won at another online contest. A couple of critique groups praised the story, too. But, so far, it hasn’t sold.

So what are you waiting for? Check out the myriad writing contests and send your best work. If you don’t make it the first time, try again. Read the winning entries and ask yourself why it won and yours didn’t. Entering contests is no different than submitting your work to an editor. Both require patience and persistence. Start with the smaller contests and before you know it, you’ll be ready to enter bigger ones. There’s nothing to lose, and the payoff may be a prize or an impressive clip for your portfolio.

Give Yourself Some Time For Contest Entries

Have you ever entered a writing contest? I send off several pieces to my state authors annual contest on a regular basis. Besides following guidelines carefully, there's something else to be considered--getting your contest entry done well ahead of the deadline date.

One thing I've learned along this road is that you should not rush your contest entry. We all know what the deadline date is for entering any type of contest. We know we should get cracking and work on the stories, poems or articles you want to send in. But Life tends to get in our way, and we put the contest entry on the back burner to keep warm.

Suddenly, the date is only a couple days away, and there sit your entries, still in first draft condition. So, you hurry through the revisions, get them ready with the cover letter, rush to the post office to have the postage calculated and send them on the way. Whew! You did it.

But you've done yourself a disservice if you enter the contest in that particular way. Your work will not be your best writing. Hurrying a project seldom brings outstanding results. Note that I said seldom, because sometimes the perfect piece comes quickly and easily.

Make getting those writing projects done in a timely manner. Allow yourself plenty of time to write a first draft and then make revisions. Sometimes those revisions require more than one sitting. Don't send your work in if you're not satisfied with it. If you aren't the judges probably won't be either. .

A hurry-up job ends up looking like a writing roadrunner barreled through.

Contests Are Calling

Have you ever considered entering a writing contest? If not, why not? You have nothing to lose and everything to gain. Maybe I should qualify that a bit. If you enter a no-entry fee contest, you have nothing to lose. If the contest requires an entry fee, you still have something to gain. It's up to you to determine if you're willing to risk losing the entry fee in the event that you don't win.

So, how are you going to decide whether to send that $5, $10, or even (gulp!) $25? You need to look at the prize money being offered and another factor. Is the contest a small one or a big one? In other words, are you going up against a hundred other people or ten thousand? The bigger the contest, the greater are the odds that you won't come out on top. Some contests consider all entries as regular submissions to their publication, so even if you don't win the contest, you might have your work accepted.

My suggestion for entering contests is to begin small and work your way up. Most state writers organizations run contests, and some districts within a state will also have an annual contest. Or even a local contest that your community newspaper runs would be a good starting point. A mountain climber doesn't climb the Matterhorn on his initial climb. So, why should writers be any different?

Just like sending your work to a magazine or anthology, entering contests requires following guidelines carefully. If you ignore the guidelines, there's a good chance your entry will be tossed before it's even read. It's definitely to your advantage to follow the guidelines to the letter.

So where do you find these contests? Writers newsletters that include markets will announce new ones as they come along. You can also use keywords like writing contests or contests for writers in a search engine.

I have contests on my mind since my state writers organization opens theirs April 1st. Winners are not announced until early October, and the entry cannot be published prior to then, so that means writing something new or something not published already.

Convention Report

The Kansas Authors State Convention offered many good workshops and panel discussions. Enough to inspire me to want to hurry home and write! And that's one of the real reasons to attend conferences and conventions with other writers. Another is to be able to talk with other writers and see what they've been doing with their work. 

Those who have published books had copies to sell in the Book Room, and it was most interesting to browse there among the many different types of books. Everything from poetry books to recipe books with a whole lot of in-between.

Nancy Pickard, award-winning mystery author, was the keynote speaker after the Saturday night banquet. She spoke about her writing career, the eighteen novels she's had published and ended with some encouraging words to the many writers in the room. Nancy lives in Kansas City and her last two novels have been set in Kansas, as will the next two. It amazed me that she has the next two already planned. 

Sunday, I left the awards luncheon a happy woman. I'd entered my work in eight categories and four placed in the state contest. The entries had to be in by June 18th so it had been a long wait to see if I had any winners. The rule states that they cannot be published prior to the convention time, so it's also a long wait to hold up new work before submitting it to publishers. I won two Honorable Mentions, a second and a first place. 

Now, I have to decide where to submit each of those winners. If any of your work has won an award, be sure to state that in the cover letter you send with your submission. It just might make an editor look a bit more carefully at the submission. And do send your work to contests. You can't win unless you do!

My Balloon Is Leaking

I had a real Good News/Bad News experience yesterday. An editor of a website that deals in memoirs written soley by women notified me that I'd won an Honorable Mention in their memoir contest that had a food theme. The entry was to be accompanied by the recipe that coordinated with the story.

I sent a story I'd written a long time ago about my grandmother's date muffins. The editor took the time to point out some phrases in my entry that she particularly liked. Winning the Honorable Mention and receiving personal comments from the editor filled my confidence and accomplishment balloon quite nicely. The story will be published on the website in early June.

I clicked on the link to read about the first place winners (two people tied) and any other information about the contest. As I read, my balloon began leaking! There were only 7 entries, 2 tied for first place and the other 5 all received an Honorable Mention. I didn't feel like a winner any longer. I felt like the kids in the class whose teacher gives everyone a blue ribbon for their art project, not wanting to hurt anyone's feelings.

Life is about competition. Careers are made or lost via competition. Kids in sports face competition. And writers enter contests with the hopes of rising higher on the ladder to writing success, passing up others who weren't prize winners. Even if there were only 7 entries, I would prefer seeing one 1st place and maybe 1 or 2 Honorable Mentions. The editor did stress that all the entries they received were worthy of publication, that all were well written. Even in a contest with hundreds of entries, you might find the majority well-written, but some should stand above the others.

Yes, that balloon of confidence and accomplishment sprang a leak, but it's still inflated enough from other contests, other publications. And best of all, I learned a lesson. All contests are not equal.