Writing Contests

I'm not into writing contests. Mainly because they are so subjective and you never really know what the judge is looking for.

However, I've found one contest I love. It's over at Reading Writers and I want to urge all of you to check it out and enter.

Each quarter, a new prompt is posted along with guidelines and date to enter by.

This quarter it's a "Dynamic Dialogue" prompt. How cool is that! Be sure to read all the guidelines on the site but here is a glimpse to whet your appetite.
Write a complete story—not a scene—that consists of pure dialogue. No narrative whatsoever, not even a he said or she replied. If it isn't spoken, and within quotation marks, it can't be on the page.
Now, why I like this contest...

1. No entry fee.

2. Winner gets nice stuff, a cash prize, a book and a critique of their entry.

3. I can read previous winners and see what judge is looking for, her likes and dislikes.

4. Working on the prompts help me learn my craft while having fun, trying new things and genres.

5. Prompts vary from quarter to quarter and you can twist them to whatever genre you are writing.

6. They let you know that your submission was received. (I hate not knowing.)

Now, click on over, check it out and get writing.

Oh, in the last contest, there were 318 entries. They pick one winner and several Honoarable Mentions, this time ten of them.
I managed another Honorable Mention. I call it a "tie for second."

Contests

Contests are a great way to "play" with your writing. You can try new genres, stretch your imagaination and just have fun. Sometimes you can even win a couple bucks. So, give these a try.

First, a contest sponsored by The Writer magazine. This one has a $10 entry fee but first prize is $1,000 and publication.

Deadly Ink also has a contest. No entry fee but the "deadly incident" must take place in New Jersey.

Golden Visions Magazine has a nifty contest too. They are a speculative fiction publisher but as long as your story has a spec. fic. nature, it can be mystery or even horror. Be sure to read the guidelines as there is a theme to this one. And, while you're there, read my story Prey, and give it a vote if you enjoy it. Thanks!

The Verb has a quarterly prompt based contest. I really like this one:-)

Again, be sure to read the guidelines.


One of the blogs I read on a regular basis is Hey, There's a Dead Guy in the Living Room. I heartily recommend you check it out. One of the regular contributors is Jeff Cohen. I stole his YouTube video and posted it here for your enjoyment.



Lastly...

I've given in and started twittering. If you'd like to keep up with what's happening on the blog and such, the please follow me. There's a link on the right side of the blog...somewhere up close to the top. I promise not to bore you with what I had for lunch or how I'm having a bad hair day. In fact, to avoid boring my followeres, I'm tweeting writing and motivational quotes.