Wednesday, November 24, 2004
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CHICK LIT, KITZI STYLE
Back in August, Caren linked to a contest for amateur chick-lit writers, sponsored by the Chick Lit Writers of the World chapter of Romance Writers of America. My friend Kas was engrossed in a research paper, so I had time on my hands, and I couldn’t stop thinking about the contest.
I figured Caren wouldn’t steer us toward a scam and the $35 entry fee (roughly the cost of a bottle of Absolut) seemed reasonable enough, so I got busy. My novel is set in Montana, with the theme of a young woman getting dumped. (Remember who's sponsoring this contest.)
There were five categories for entries and mine seemed to best fit in Chick Lit on the Edge, one cited example being Carrie Pilby. I completed an entry, to my uncritical satisfaction, and submitted it a week before the cutoff. I couldn't let a whole week go to waste, so I decided to try another story, this time set in Hawaii - what a stretch! - for the contest’s Mystery category. I finished the synopsis and three chapters and submitted them a day before the deadline. Whew!
Can't say I was surprised that my name wasn’t among the finalists, but in looking at the websites of some of the writers who did appear on the list, it was clear that the competition was stiff. These are serious writers and a number of them have won several similar contests. The real value for me is in the critiques. The judging appears to have been thoughtfully and conscientiously carried out, and their advice well worth the money spent.
Recognizing that a lot of bloggers are part-time novelists, I’ll try to summarize and share the advice given to me. Watch this space.
Back in August, Caren linked to a contest for amateur chick-lit writers, sponsored by the Chick Lit Writers of the World chapter of Romance Writers of America. My friend Kas was engrossed in a research paper, so I had time on my hands, and I couldn’t stop thinking about the contest.
I figured Caren wouldn’t steer us toward a scam and the $35 entry fee (roughly the cost of a bottle of Absolut) seemed reasonable enough, so I got busy. My novel is set in Montana, with the theme of a young woman getting dumped. (Remember who's sponsoring this contest.)
There were five categories for entries and mine seemed to best fit in Chick Lit on the Edge, one cited example being Carrie Pilby. I completed an entry, to my uncritical satisfaction, and submitted it a week before the cutoff. I couldn't let a whole week go to waste, so I decided to try another story, this time set in Hawaii - what a stretch! - for the contest’s Mystery category. I finished the synopsis and three chapters and submitted them a day before the deadline. Whew!
Can't say I was surprised that my name wasn’t among the finalists, but in looking at the websites of some of the writers who did appear on the list, it was clear that the competition was stiff. These are serious writers and a number of them have won several similar contests. The real value for me is in the critiques. The judging appears to have been thoughtfully and conscientiously carried out, and their advice well worth the money spent.
Recognizing that a lot of bloggers are part-time novelists, I’ll try to summarize and share the advice given to me. Watch this space.
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