There are a lot of writing contests and pitch events coming up, and I am going to enter every one I can. I love contests and pitch events! All the contests I have entered so far are the result of my participation on Twitter. I love contests with a Twitter feed I can follow. It is at times nerve wracking, but most of the time it is educational and fun. So, why do I enter contests? Let me tell you.
Friends and Community
I have yet to meet any of the friends I've made in contests in real life. But, having a growing network of people I know who I can root for and who root for me is awesome. I learn so much from other pre-published authors. We share cool stuff we find online and encourage each other through the #amquerying trenches and doldrums. It is great when one of the people I've been in a contest with who has gone on to gain agent representation comes back to encourage the rest of us in the next round of contests. Y'all rock!
Feedback
This is one of the main reasons I enter. The hope of getting feedback on my work is such a draw for me. I love getting feedback from other writers and people in the business. Friends and family are generous with their praise and criticism, and I really appreciate their words, but to get feedback from someone in the industry is priceless.
FREE STUFF and Discounts
Some contests are big enough and well known enough that companies will use it as a way to promote their products and offer discounts to participants. That is how I first learned about Scrivener a wonderful word processing software program that is for writers written by writers. I use it for most of my writing now. Along with companies, individuals often support the contests through give-a-ways of critiques or editing. I have benefited greatly from their generosity.
Winning
Yeah, winning would be nice, but the other stuff is good too. I've made it to the final rounds of a few contests, and that has been great and beneficial, but honestly, I think if I ever do gain agent representation, I will miss the excitement and camaraderie of these contests.
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