Too Good To Be True

Through the Aspiring Author search on Facebook, I came across a Publisher’s Writing contest link!  The blurb claimed that there is a 1 out of 50 chance of being published.  I liked those odds, so I clicked on the link, which unlocked the following message….

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Instead of what was printed, my mind’s eye read, “We’re sorry, but we’re only here to crush your dreams.”

Yes.  There are thousands and thousands of writing and poetry contests out there, promising that if you win (after paying the registration fee of $$$) you, too, can be published or win cash prizes. 

There are “free” writing and poetry contests, and, in my younger years, I entered those once or twice.  Each time my piece won its place in their distinguished book of poetry or short stories, along with all the other entries… oh, I mean, winners. 

My first letter always started off with, "We receive thousands of poems each year, and we choose only a very few for publication."

Then a second one would come stating that they were so impressed by my style and its “readability” that they wanted my permission to publish the work in audio form as well.

These promotions always ended up with the offer:  For $$$, you can purchase this amazing and one-of-a-kind anthology, in which your winning entry appears!  I can imagine that many felt compelled to purchase this physical evidence to prove to their friends and family that not everyone thought they were wasting their time with this nonsense.  They DO have talent! 

As for me, I never purchased one of those books.  Back then, just thinking that my pieces were published in some book, sitting on someone’s coffee table, was enough for me.

The Internet has made it easy for predators to take advantage of writers who yearn for prizes and recognition.  While there have been few cases of outright "scams" — where contests take a writer's money and refuse to provide the promised prizes or publication — there are others that aren't quite what they claim to be.

There are several "warning" sites that can help alert writers to potential problems.  For example, the Winning Writer’s website posts a list of contests to avoid (http://www.winningwriters.com/contests/avoid/av_avoid.php).

I came across another good article and resource on Writing-World.com (http://www.writing-world.com/rights/contests.shtml).

Don’t get me wrong.  There are legitimate contests out there.  You just need to ask the “write” (hehe) questions before getting involved.

• Who is running the contest?
• What’s the purpose of the contest?
• How often does the organization run a contest?
• How will entries be judged?
• Is everyone a winner?
• Is there an entry fee?  (Make sure the fee is relative to the prize money.)
• What do other writers in your network think?
• Is the payoff worth your time, effort, and entry fee?

Maybe, one day, Katherine and I will look more closely at writing contests as an option, but that day isn’t today.  Most of the writing contests I’ve come across are looking for novels, poetry, and short stories; and that’s not where our literary focus is at the moment. 

And at this moment, we have our hands full juggling the number of strategies we’ve already started.