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Post by veryblessedmom on May 22, 2009 13:09:36 GMT -5
I entered a writing contest, did not place but it was a great experience over all. My scores from two judges were 75/100 and 85/100. I'm pretty pleased since I started writing in August and studying the craft in January. The third judge bombed me with 57/100. I'm wondering if that judge was really a romance writer who got wrangled into judging speculative/allegorical. The comments from that judge were, "This is a very different premise for a story," and "You need more conflict to move the story forward. Maybe have the girl always in danger and the protagonist constantly rescuing her." (I laughed at that one. That's not the kind of book I want to write.) Anyway, the other two judges got that my conflict was internal had great comments and suggestion. If only that one bomb hadn't taken me out. Oh well, there's always next year.  |
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Post by duchessashley on May 22, 2009 14:09:20 GMT -5
What was the contest? How nice to receive feedback like that - even the negative has to be helpful!  Congrats on the high scores! |
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Post by veryblessedmom on May 23, 2009 17:29:38 GMT -5
Next year at this time, I would not be pleased with mediocre scores. I'm determined to improve.
Does anyone know of any other contests? I like having a deadline and feedback. It helps with motivation.
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Post by Spokane Flyboy on May 23, 2009 20:25:58 GMT -5
I know of one that has a deadline, but no feedback. Check out NaNoWriMo. It runs from November 1st to November 30th and you must write at least 50,000 words (word being 5 characters including spaces) to complete it.
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Post by torainfor on May 24, 2009 14:36:42 GMT -5
I participate in Bruce Bethke's weekly short story contests. They're wicked informal. Contestants read each others' stories and comment as they like. Bruce usually shares a short comment, then picks the winner. Winner gets a book from his bookstore. You can find them here: thefridaychallenge.blogspot.com/Deadline is midnight Thursday. New contest topic is usually posted (along with that week's entries) on Friday morning. Winner posted whenever he gets around to it. Most of the regulars (including Bruce) are Christian; all are sci fi geeks. |
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Post by veryblessedmom on May 24, 2009 18:11:16 GMT -5
Most of the regulars (including Bruce) are Christian; all are sci fi geeks. There might be a problem. I'm not really sci fi. I liked Star Trek and love Doctor Who. Other than that, I'm pretty ignorant. I like vampires and things just plain weird. Used to love the Twilight Zone. |
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Post by Spokane Flyboy on May 24, 2009 19:22:43 GMT -5
Sci-fi for the ignorant is the popular genre known as Space Opera. You're in luck! Starship Troopers, Buck Rodgers (and just about all 40s sci-fi shows really), Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, and Star Wars all fit into that category. It's very science light, with everything being more mystical. Everything works. No one knows — or at least cares — why. |
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Post by torainfor on May 24, 2009 21:39:04 GMT -5
Not all of the contests are sci fi based. Last week's was to create your own holiday--with greeting card. This week's is to say what Memorial Day means for you. It can be first-person real-life or completely made up in any genre. (For the Thanksgiving one, some wrote about a childhood memory; I wrote about a boy escaping a school run by aliens). They also have a were-creatures anonymous support group that "meets" on Sunday nights called Curse of the Were-Weasel. One person writes how things have been going on that week with their condition (ALPS--Acquired Lycanthropic Polymorphism Syndrome). Others comment. The given intent is: "Hence, Curse of the Were-Weasel: an intentional attempt to develop, over the course of two years, a shared universe populated by fascinating characters, and to use this universe to present a story in weekly, serialized, interactively developed, and not necessarily linear installments." It's a goofy, non-furry, just-for-fun deal, but they do accept vampires. The girlfriend of one of the resident members is a vampire. www.curseofthewereweasel.com/ |
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Post by morganlbusse on May 25, 2009 14:54:16 GMT -5
A contest I plan on entering next year is the Genesis contest put on by the ACFW (American Christian Fiction Writers). Its for first time authors who are not published yet. They have multiple categories including Sci-Fi/Fantasy. The only catch is you need to be a member. To check it out, go to www.acfw.com. |
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Post by veryblessedmom on May 25, 2009 15:30:08 GMT -5
A contest I plan on entering next year is the Genesis contest put on by the ACFW (American Christian Fiction Writers). Its for first time authors who are not published yet. They have multiple categories including Sci-Fi/Fantasy. The only catch is you need to be a member. To check it out, go to www.acfw.com. That's the one I just entered. I did enter the sci-fi/fantasy. So I was surprised when the low scored sheet marked me low because, it was "a different premise for a story." I certainly did not expect them to be anything-goes, but if you have a fantasy category, you should expect different. |
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Post by morganlbusse on May 26, 2009 9:29:27 GMT -5
Hmmm, I noticed Stuart Stockton was one of the finalists for last year and his book is pretty different. Oh well ;P
Quick question on your experience with the contest: You said in your beginning post that your last judge thought you should have more conflict in your story. Do they read the entire manuscript? I was under the impression you only send in the first 20 or so pages (but maybe I need to go back and reread the rules).
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Post by veryblessedmom on May 26, 2009 10:50:56 GMT -5
I only sent the first 15 pages. 2 judges had no problem with my story, just wanted me to tweak my writing. I expected comments like that since I'm like a newborn to writing.
From what I've gathered from other spec writers I've met on the acfw loop, romance is what most people there write. That's why I'm thinking from the comments on my low score that perhaps that judge was not really familiar with spec.
I know one writer from my local writing group writes for Steeple Hill, which is all romance and is the inspirational division of Harlequin. They have formulas the romance writers have to follow. One is that the romance must start in the first 5 pages, not just have the characters meet and usually a rescue of some sort.
I love my friend and she writes romance suspense. Her last book, the heroine walks into her house to find her roommate dead in a pool of blood. The handsome detective shows up before the uniformed police because he was in the area and heard the call. As she gives her statement with her friend dead in the other room she tries hard not to notice his chiseled features and sparkling eyes. He in turn tried to keep his mind off her luxurious waste length brown hair, though he kept wondering how it would feel to run his fingers through it.
A love connection over a dead friends body, with a killer/intruder on the loose within the first 5 pages--I read it and made gagging noises.
Those were the kind of notes that one judge suggested and were the elements I was scored so low on. The other judges scored me 4's and 5's where as that 1 judge gave me 1's and 2's on those same story elements.
That's the thing with writing, it's subjective. I know one lady who entered before to have 2 judges score her in the 90's and one give her a 47.
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Post by morganlbusse on May 26, 2009 13:22:42 GMT -5
Interesting. I have to agree that there needs to be something in the first few pages to make your reader continue on.
A couple years ago I was part of a Mt Hermon writing critique and the only thing my mentor commented on was that I needed that very thing: basically a hook to catch my reader with in order to get them to continue my book. I had that "hook" if you will, but it didn't show up until much later in my book. But by switching around a couple things, I realized I could "reel" in my reader by putting one of my big twists right at the beginning and get them wondering what just happened to my main character and how was she going to survive.
I don't know if you can do that with your story, but after switching my plot around, I gave my reader a reason to continue on.
As far as the description of that book you wrote above (no offense to anyone who likes that stuff) but gag me with a chainsaw! I love a good romance, but not a lustmance ;P
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Post by veryblessedmom on May 26, 2009 13:44:28 GMT -5
Well, the two other judges said I had the hook. One even said she forgot she was turning pages and was disturbed to reach the end of my chapter.
My comments from the two judges who scored me higher were, "You've got hook, and pacing and you know how to reel your reader in. Those are harder to learn."
They also said my conflict was clear and was enough to propel the story. Only the one judge scored me low in that. My main problem, according to them was establishing my scene and making my descriptions more organic to the story. I was aware of those problems and agreed with what they said.
My writing and word choices need work. I agree with that too.
That one judge did not like my story because it was too much like a vampire story and not CBA material. That was clear in all comments.
My main conflict for my protag is internal. There is external too, we can't just have him sitting in a room thinking about his problems. The external conflict mirrors the internal.
He does meet his future love interest on page one, but he does not realize an attraction for a couple more chapters, and only after some conversations. Those are the kind of romances I like, where who the person is-- is the #1 factor for attraction.
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Post by Spokane Flyboy on May 26, 2009 14:25:49 GMT -5
I've had similar in an English project my freshman year of college. I got docked by one judge for not having enough sources contrary to the sources I used because they felt if I had, I wouldn't have had the opinion I took and had their opinion on the subject.
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