Notes from a Contest Judge

Have you ever entered your work in a writing contest? These contests are organized by organizations like the American Fiction Writers of America (www.acfw.com) and Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference (www.blueridgeconference.com).

There are categories for each genre, so you can submit and be judged against other historical fiction writers. Some of you probably just shuddered when I said be judged. But letting others look at your work is one of the best ways to improve it. Plus, this helps you develop thick skin, a must in this business.

I always spot someone new to writing through a few telltale signs when I judge a contest. These speed bumps slow the story for me, and will eventually do the same for an agent or publisher.

Here are some common mistakes to avoid:

1. The beginning of a new chapter, or a new scene, should not be indented. Flush left treatment is the general norm for submission.
2. An ellipsis can express a mood change, hesitation, or a thought that trails off … Think of it as a word and leave a space before and after the three dots.
3. Hyphens, en dash, and em dash are horizontal lines of varying lengths and it matters how you use them.
   • A hyphen is the shortest line and used to generally hyphenate two or more words when they come before a noun they modify. They are not interchangeable with dashes.
   • The en dash is used when you refer to a span of dates or numbers, like pages 10-20.
   • The em dash creates a strong break in a sentence. It can be used in a pair¾like parenthesis (as I did here)¾to add more information. Although, the sentence should be able to stand alone without them and the extra info between them. You also use the em dash to detach the end of a sentence from the main body.
4. Capitalize the first letter in dialogue when it begins mid-sentence.
   • Johnny narrowed his eyes and spat on the ground before adding, “You just stay out of my way.”

Also, read your work out loud. You’ll trip over sentences that need to be fixed and catch more typos. Enter the cleanest copy you can so you don’t lose points. Simple errors could cost you the contest.

There are many great contests for unpublished authors and a Goggle search will list several. But here are a few I know of:

*ACFW First Impressions Contest is open now and you can have your first five pages evaluated by professionals.

*ACFW Genesis Contest has many genres to enter for fiction writers and you get unbiased feedback from the judges. It opens January 2.

*BRMCWC Foundations Award is now open.

Visit their websites, look over the guidelines, and submit your work. Finalists and winners often draw the attention of agents and publishers.

Good luck becoming an award winning author!

K. D. Holmberg is an author, blogger, and freelance writer. She is a member of ACFW, Word Weavers International, and a founding member of the Jerry Jenkins Writers Guild. She is represented by Hartline Literary Agency. A retired flight attendant, she has traveled and lived all over the globe. She and her husband, Keith, love to golf and live in South Carolina. You can find more about her: Facebook @authorkdholmberg, twitter @kdeniseholmberg, and website authorkdholmberg.com/