I’ve entered a few writing contests in my short career as an author. I say short because I’ve only been ’seriously’ writing for a few years. I’m sure some of you out there are thinking it shows. LOL! That’s a blog for another day.;-)
The truth is contests can give you a pretty good idea of how you’re doing with your writing, whether you’re a beginner or an old pro. Some contests are better than others. (Lori Foster’s comes to mind, but then again, I am biased.) I’ve entered six writing contests to date and have been fortunate to final in three of them. If you ask me how, I can honestly say I have no idea. You never know how a judge is going to react to your work. If you’re lucky, you get someone who takes the time to give you tremendous feedback. If you’re not, you receive a score sheet that you need a decoder ring to decifer.
I suppose it comes down to personal choice. You have to trust in yourself enough to put yourself out there for others to do with as they like. In the end no matter what the comments or score say, you win. Why? Because you tried.
January 18th, 2004
