Truthfully, I’m a writer most of the time, sometimes I’m an editor and occasionally I judge writing contests.
I’ve judged numerous contests, but during the past few weeks of May, I’ve had the honour of helping judge both, a short story contest and a novel contest. I’ve discovered some important things that make a winning submission and also a few things that turn judges off immediately.
Here are a few things judges check for when judging a writing contest:
- Hidden Author Identity. Judging is usually anonymous. When you enter a writing contest, your story will be assigned a number, and the judges will identify your story by title and number only. Hint: NEVER include your name on a submission unless they specifically ask for it, otherwise you are disqualified, and no one reads your submission.
- Contest Rules. Did the author review the contest rules? Many writing contests have a specific word count, theme and/or guidelines that must be followed. No matter how good the story itself might be, if you disregard the rules, the judge will no longer read the submission. Hint: If it says 2500 word maximum, send less than 2500 words. Quite simple. Anyone sending 2503 words is automatically disqualified. Rules are there for a reason. Follow them.
- Errors. Does the entry contain numerous spelling and grammar errors? Hint: Proofread until your eyes hurt, and then give it to someone else to read for glaring errors you might initially gaze right over.
- Consistency. Does the manuscript maintain a consistent POV (Point of View)? Or does it change without warning?
- Clichés. Don’t use them, unless there is a real purpose.
- Titles. Your title is everything. It should be eye-catching and appealing. Your title is the judge’s first impression of your work. It should stand out and make the judge think it has some relevant reason behind it. Intrigue them.
- Uniqueness. Be different. Experiment. Try to write something the judge hasn’t read plenty of stories about already. Hint: If the theme is Thanksgiving, don’t write about eating turkey dinner, write about the napkin that is draped over your mother-in-law’s head. These are stories that will stand out to a judge.
- Additional Notes. Don’t add cute or silly notes to your manuscript for the judge to read. Yes, some people think this will make the judge laugh or remember them. The judge will remember throwing it in the NO THANK YOU PILE.
- Surprise Endings. The twist. Judges love surprise endings that make them think.
- Memorable characters. Fascinating characters that make the judge want to read more about, even if they are animals, witches, warriors or fire-breathing dragons. Long after the judge stops reading your submission, will they still think about your fictitious characters? They should.
- The Hook. A compelling opening that pulls the judge into your new world is exactly what you want. Make them sad to see the story end. Make them want more of your story.
- Feelings. Make the judge experience some emotional feelings for your character. Pull the sensations from them. If a judge smiles, cries or is angry about something that happens to a character, you’ve got a winning submission.
- Insight. Teach the judge something. Tell them a story from a place they have never heard of, or bring a fresh eye to a common place. Make something foreign become intimate with their minds.
Honestly, when you submit a story to a contest, it can be quite scary for a writer. These hints above will only get you to the top quarter of the pile. After that you need a little bit of luck.
You need luck for these kind of things:
- Hopefully, the judge is in a good mood. Bad moods are tough to overcome.
- Hopefully, the judge has a similar idiosyncratic taste in stories. In a perfect world, your weirdness matches their weirdness.
- Hopefully, the judge didn’t have an argument with their spouse, their kid or their parent that day. Grumpiness is definitely not good.
- Hopefully, the judge had a great lunch. Full bellies make judges smile… and sometimes sleep. Oops!
- Hopefully, the judge has had two cups of java, but not ten cups. You want them alert, but not over-excited.
You see, when it comes right down to it, you can’t know why you didn’t win if you followed the above hints and tips. Sometimes, it is all in the way the cards are dealt that day (or what the judge had for breakfast) and it has nothing to do with the quality of your writing. So, don’t be sad if you didn’t final in a contest. Just add it up as an experience and continue on, submitting to the next contest.
REMEMBER: You can’t win if you don’t submit. You can’t submit if you don’t write. So, in my opinion, keep trying… keep writing, keep submitting and continue until you win.
Good luck!
