I once read an article in a writing magazine about how contests were simply preying on writer's hope, collecting the submission fees, and then . . . I don't know, going on a cruise? I forget what this person's point was, but I have determined they were completely retarded or jaded, or both. I cannot believe people give up the kind of time that must be necessary to read and judge piles of marginal work from would-be writers. Whatever they get paid, it's not enough.
I have submitted my novice manuscript to 2 contests thus far and also a synopsis of it to another. 2 of my "results" are back via mail and email, and I honestly didn't expect feedback from either. I cannot believe they take time to tell me anything beyond, "Thank you, you are not the winner."
In the Romance contest, I was disqualified, as I expected, for the book not being a Romance. It was a bit off the formula, and I knew this was a formula driven industry, but it was only $50 bucks, so I figured what the hell. However, even though it wasn't a romance, they still read the first 15 pages and judged it and returned the scores to me. Crazy, eh? My averaged score was 6.5 on a scale of 1 of 10. I am thinking, that's what? A C+? I'll take it! But more encouraging than my slightly above average nod from judges was the score from Judge #5 - a 9. This means the world to me because even if this person was drunk when reading they liked it. And if one person (who doesn't know me) likes it, well, I am on my way. :-)
The other contest was for a one sheet (for agents I might meet at a conference) that summarizes the book. For this I was told:
"Your one sheet represents a compelling story idea. There is a nice balance between text and white space on the page, making it very easy to read. You also organized the information in a way that helps editors and agents quickly learn what they need to know about your book.
The only improvements the judges recommended were:
- Consider adding more color and graphical elements to the page in order to set it apart.
- Consider replacing the current picture you have with something more contemporary. At first glance, they thought it was a historical novel.
- Consider setting your bio and headshot apart in a side column so that it doesn't distract from the summary of your story."
So my take away from that was that the writing on the one sheet was viable, but I need to work on formatting. No sweat. Incidentally, that feedback was given for a submission fee of $15. I mean, seriously. In my old job, I wouldn't answer the phone for $15. Anyway. That's the update. I should have feedback from contest 3 in July and then deadline for submission to contest #4 is in August. Then the last contest I am entering (for this manuscript) has an October deadline. This is all very fun for me! Yeah me!
I have submitted my novice manuscript to 2 contests thus far and also a synopsis of it to another. 2 of my "results" are back via mail and email, and I honestly didn't expect feedback from either. I cannot believe they take time to tell me anything beyond, "Thank you, you are not the winner."
In the Romance contest, I was disqualified, as I expected, for the book not being a Romance. It was a bit off the formula, and I knew this was a formula driven industry, but it was only $50 bucks, so I figured what the hell. However, even though it wasn't a romance, they still read the first 15 pages and judged it and returned the scores to me. Crazy, eh? My averaged score was 6.5 on a scale of 1 of 10. I am thinking, that's what? A C+? I'll take it! But more encouraging than my slightly above average nod from judges was the score from Judge #5 - a 9. This means the world to me because even if this person was drunk when reading they liked it. And if one person (who doesn't know me) likes it, well, I am on my way. :-)
The other contest was for a one sheet (for agents I might meet at a conference) that summarizes the book. For this I was told:
"Your one sheet represents a compelling story idea. There is a nice balance between text and white space on the page, making it very easy to read. You also organized the information in a way that helps editors and agents quickly learn what they need to know about your book.
The only improvements the judges recommended were:
- Consider adding more color and graphical elements to the page in order to set it apart.
- Consider replacing the current picture you have with something more contemporary. At first glance, they thought it was a historical novel.
- Consider setting your bio and headshot apart in a side column so that it doesn't distract from the summary of your story."
So my take away from that was that the writing on the one sheet was viable, but I need to work on formatting. No sweat. Incidentally, that feedback was given for a submission fee of $15. I mean, seriously. In my old job, I wouldn't answer the phone for $15. Anyway. That's the update. I should have feedback from contest 3 in July and then deadline for submission to contest #4 is in August. Then the last contest I am entering (for this manuscript) has an October deadline. This is all very fun for me! Yeah me!
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