tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4498845843905507548.post675615317259594444..comments2024-03-28T00:24:39.106-04:00Comments on ROMANCE WRITERS OF AMERICA NYC: CONTEST SEASON IS UNDERWAYNative NYerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16239230892287943136noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4498845843905507548.post-8222113807094298942010-04-26T22:55:33.861-04:002010-04-26T22:55:33.861-04:00After reading Shirley's blog, I took a look at...After reading Shirley's blog, I took a look at what contests were currently running, carved out 25 pages of one of my manuscripts, and emailed my entry along with the Paypal confirmation number and deep bows in front of my household gods. One of my goals for this year was to enter at least one contest...so we shall see. Thanks, Shirley. I know there are pros and cons to entering contests, but you motivated me to actually do it. Elizabeth PalladinoAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4498845843905507548.post-78070476200579779242010-04-26T14:16:15.422-04:002010-04-26T14:16:15.422-04:00INMHO I feel contests are good only if you get hel...INMHO I feel contests are good only if you get helpful advice. One judge did give me good advice in between snarkiness, the other two were like yeah, great without pointing out exactly what was good and worked for them. Sure, hearing "yeah great" is wonderful, but w/o specifics it amounts to little more than a pat on the back. The effort I put into it was poorly met by the lack of effort the judges put forth. I thanked them anyway. :) <br /><br />The whole thing for me was mitigated by the fact a publisher had already requested a "full" based on my "grammatically incorrect" "weakly written" synopsis and partial that had been my contest entry. Still wating to hear back from the publisher. But I have to laugh a little at the subjectivity of it all.<br /><br />Again, just my opinion but WHY are you entering contests? If all you want is good advice and substantive critiques, there are multiple opportunities online w/o the hassle and pressure of contests. However, if what you really want is the notice of the professionals that judge the final round, then go for it. This was my reasoning anyway. Didn't pay off but o well.Mari Miller-Lambnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4498845843905507548.post-6335678823194464522010-04-25T14:10:14.270-04:002010-04-25T14:10:14.270-04:00Shirley - I think you've learned some valuable...Shirley - I think you've learned some valuable lessons from your contest experiences. I know I did during the year and a half that I went contest crazy. I have been both an entrant as well as a judge in dozens of contests and a coordinator for these contests. There is a great effort made by most RWA chapters' contests to educate their judges and to stress that these are to be helpful and productive experiences for the entrants. Unfortunately, you'll come across a snarky judge here or there, a judge who makes major errors in their criticisms, and sometimes judges who don't even know the genre they're judging. Most contests try very hard (with "emergency discrepancy" judges when they feel an entry has not been judged fairly, and with coordinator assistance to attempt to get a judge to provide more information to an entrant. Sometimes, though it is just a matter of opinion, and all you can do in the end is - as I did with one contest where 2 judges had very similar comments, very helpful and productive for me, is take it all in stride. In that contest? The 3rd judge trashed me, my dialogue, my characters and made fairly strange comments throughout without giving me any pointers (i.e., said my entry was riddled with grammatical mistakes, but didn't point them out!). So use the contest experiences with that grain of salt. Congrats on finishing your first in 2009 (me too!) and keep 'em coming!Lisehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13315265091119634416noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4498845843905507548.post-23071731611510441662010-04-23T16:54:19.818-04:002010-04-23T16:54:19.818-04:00Great post Shirley! I'm so glad contests have ...Great post Shirley! I'm so glad contests have been so good for you. I've been on the other end, judging, and you never know if the writers find your feedback helpful. It's good to hear about positive stories like yours!Isabo Kellyhttp://www.isabokelly.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4498845843905507548.post-50804382802192816442010-04-23T13:06:00.454-04:002010-04-23T13:06:00.454-04:00This is a great reminder of another option that wr...This is a great reminder of another option that writers have to get feedback on their work and is great way to practice submitting their work. There's a lot to learn and contests can be very helpful. Thanks for the reminder.<br />AnneJStewarthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18224700351361824518noreply@blogger.com