The Big Brown Box-Contests

      As my writing career is winding down, I started going through drawers and closets weeding out things I saved that are only taking up space and will never be used again like ancient listings of agents and old contest entries. Why I saved the last, I do not know, but I counted them up, about thirty over a period of five years which probably cost me several hundred dollars in entry fees. In all that time, I garnered one second place for Queen of the Mardi Gras Ball and a third place for Goals for a Sinner which turned out to be the first book I would sell. In both case the prize was a certificate and a full read by an agent. The agent who perhaps skimmed Goals at best, replied she did not want to represent a sports romance and to see her web page for suggestions on how to become a better writer. I think maybe she should have become a better agent and don't know if she still is one. The agent who read Queen was gracious and gave real feedback, said it was a very good book, but alas she only represented young adult novels, not historicals. To this day, she is a Facebook friend that I cherish. The next year, I sold Goals to the Wild Rose Press, and it was the start of a fifteen book series

     So, is entering contests worth the time and money? Many writers' groups sponsor these in order to raise some money for chapters in order to bring in guest speakers and hold events. My now defunct group, HeartLa, did this for several years, and I served as a judge. Our form for judging was quite detailed. We were required to fill in comments from everything from grammar and spelling to character development to plot judged from a synopsis. We were asked to end with a positive comment. Usually, I could think of a few kind words though one historical novel was so bad the only comment I could make was "This needs lots more work." Today, when I give a talk of writing historical novels, I use this as an example of what not to do--for instance spend five pages of the first chapter where a dying woman gasps out a very long back story to her daughter. I never did figure out the time period. At first I thought it was medieval, then early Victorian, then late Victorian. For goodness sakes start with a year and place above the first chapter. As entries were anonymous, I have no idea who submitted it. For all I know, she went on to become a great writer. I don't think contests are a waste of money as you sometimes get good advice, and sometimes not. You have to parse that out for yourself. But don't pin your publishing hopes on winning one of these. Continue submitting to agents and editors no matter how discouraging that is.

     As I took a last look at all my entries before consigning them to the trash bin, I came across an extraordinary final sentence appended to a full page of good advice.  "I would really like to read this book when you get it (The Earl's Ugly Mistress) published." She gave me her email address italy9@cox.net. I tried to contact her but at least fifteen years has passed and the address was no longer any good. I did not come close to winning that contest as another judge gave me very low scores. I seem to be a love me or hate me kind of author. Shortly after, I got busy writing the Sinners series and other books. The Earl's Ugly Mistress was put aside for years even though it was the first book in which Lady Flora, the meddling matchmaker, appeared. I later began at the beginning with Lady Flora's origin story in Lady Flora's Rescue, and the Longleigh Chronicles became somewhat popular as she married off her ten children. As I neared the end of those, I thought what a challenge marrying off the homely and very sharped-tongued heroine of Ugly Mistress was, took that story out, rewrote it to blend into the series. It came out three years ago as number eight of that ten book series and is one of the most popular of the stories. So thank you, italy9, contest judge, who gave me the boost I needed to save that manuscript and not burn it after reading the other judge's comments.

     Just one last caveat. Not all contests are honest or helpful. I rarely enter any now, but was sucked into one for published authors. Sent off my pages with the entry fee--and never heard from them again. Cover contests are often merely popularity contests-who has the most friends or relatives-and are run merely to draw people to the site sponsoring them. All you get if you win is a tiny picture in their newsletter. But good luck to all of you enter real and helpful contests.

The Bottom of the Drawer

      For lack of anything else to do between waiting for the next book, The Benedict's Bride, to come out and starting to write another, I decided to clean out a desk drawer where I'd dumped rejected or unsold pieces of work over the years.  What a jolt of unpleasant memories.

     In college, I fancied myself a poet and wrote several angsty poems full of classical allusions-and they rhymed.  I sent them off to several literary magazines. They returned fairly promptly wit the usual rejection note appended. One stood out, a personal message.  "We are not returning yours poems because they are awful." I did not submit poetry again and should have thrown them out long ago.

     I moved on to short stories and submitted one to Seventeen magazine for a contest.  The Sweetheart Tree did not win and got the usual thanks for submitting message. But up in a corner, someone has penciled in "Keep Writing."  I thought they were just being kind. I guess I threw it out because it is not in the drawer of defeat though I wish I had kept that penciled remark as I learned that such encouragement is rare in publishing which is a hard world indeed.

    Then, I unearthed several Twilight Zone stories as I called them. each with a twist at the end. I submitted one to a fantasy magazine and the same one to a sci-fi magazine. Both rejected it, but I thought I'd at least made an impression with a rejection slip saying my story did not meet their standards of deep fantasy. I was thrilled to see it signed  by Marion Zimmer Bradley who continued on with a sweet apology for not not being able to comment on all submissions because they had so many. Hey, I was happy to have her autograph and promptly submitted another to that magazine which I think no longer exists. My story was also rejected by the sci-fi magazine and did encourage me with "This is charming, but not right for us" not a standard blow off.  The next rejection from Marian Zimmer Bradley came back with the same two messages and what I now realized was an autograph stamp, not a signature. I did attract notice, however. At the bottom of the page was a handwritten message, "We would never, ever print something like this. It is a horror story even though the bad guy gets what is coming to him!"  This last is not an exact quote, but close. Last time I submitted there. The good news is that I sold both of stories for ten dollars each to an anthology of ghost and horror stories. That, too, has gone out of business and was only ever available as an e-book. Don't bother looking for it, but I think it was entitled Horrors and contained my "charming" ghost story.

    Beneath these, more short stories, some never submitted, mostly Twilight Zone stuff again.  For lack of anything else to do right now, I've taken them out and rewritten them. You learn a lot in a lifetime of writing and rejection. Maybe, someday, I'll print a collection of these.

     As time passed, I did learn that my real strength was in writing atypical romance novels, number thirty-nine coming out in May, none of them self-published which a collection of short stories would have to be. That would be a new learning curve for me, and I don't think it would sell anyhow. So keep an eye out for what I am good at, and even those accrued 79 rejections before the first one and fifth novel I wrote sold.