Romance Writing Contests--One Path to Publication

Something all unpublished romance writers should be thankful for is the proliferation of contests run by chapters of the Romance Writers of America and their counterparts in other countries, including Romance Writers of Australia. The finals of these contests are judged by agents or acquiring editors and they are a great way to avoid the slush pile or slip under the 'no unagented submissions' rule many publishers have now.

The sale of my first book, SCANDAL'S DAUGHTER, to Berkley Sensation was the direct result of my entry finaling in 2 different contests. At the risk of being labeled a contest sl*t, I've listed my contest credits for SCANDAL below.

Why enter contests?

There are a few reasons put forward for entering contests. One is to gain feedback from disinterested third parties. I'm skeptical about this. I've received some great critiques, especially from published author judges, don't get me wrong, but if you want feedback you should invest time and effort into finding one or two critique partners who will read all your work, not just the synopsis and first three chapters. Look for those rare individuals who not only appreciate your writing, but are willing to be honest about your shortcomings and prepared to spend time helping you make your work better. Such writers are rare and precious. Treasure them! Don't pay your $30 entry fee plus postage for 3 anonymous opinions on your partial and synopsis. Your money is better spent in other ways.

Another reason for entering contests is to see how your work stacks up against your competitors'. This is a perfectly good reason for entering one or two contests but be careful never to treat contests as the only arbiter of good writing. Many writers sell books which have bombed repeatedly in contests. Many writers can't sell books that consistently win.

Some enter contests to build up credits for the bio sections of their query letters. I've heard a number of agents say they don't take much notice of contest credits unless it's the Golden Heart. Long lists of credits can even affect their opinions adversely. Does this writer spend more time entering contests than writing? Why have so many judging editors seen her work and passed? So when you are querying, my advice is to be selective--just mention one or two credits, preferably wins.

My experience with finaling in the Golden Heart was very revealing. It probably got me past the query stage (which I had already managed consistently without the GH final--when my website is up and running, I'll post my query letter there) but no further. Once you're past that stage it's the writing and the writing alone that counts. Miss Snark says this time and again. If you haven't read her blog, you should. It's a gold mine of inside information about how agents operate. I have a respectable list of contest finals but in my query letters I only mentioned the Golden Heart and the ones that led to full manuscript requests. I also restricted the list to credits for the manuscript I was pitching at the time.

The best reason, and for me, the only reason to enter contests is to get your first 3 chapters and synopsis in front of an acquiring editor. This is how I sold my first novel, SCANDAL'S DAUGHTER. I finaled in 3 contests that resulted in the judging editors requesting the full manuscript. One of those editors read the manuscript quickly and came back with an offer to buy it.

As so many seasoned writers advise, I didn't immediately agree to sign. I involved an agent, the fabulous Jessica Faust at BookEnds Agency (read the agency blog here) who read the full manuscript the same day and offered me representation. I liked the fact that she responded quickly, but didn't immediately jump at the chance of a sure sale. She made sure she believed in the project first. Another agent offered representation having only seen the partial, which might well have meant that she loved the writing, but I was more comfortable knowing Jessica had read and considered the full manuscript before making the offer. Jessica then approached a few other houses, and the end result was a sale, but not to the first editor who offered. Leis Pederson at Berkley, who had requested my manuscript after placing my entry first in the historical category of the Emily Award, bought the manuscript in a 2 book deal.

So, my advice is to target contests judged by editors at houses where you think your work will fit. Make sure you enter when you have completed a manuscript or at least have written the first draft. There's nothing worse than receiving a request for the full with only one chapter written!

What about targeting agents through contests? Having seen how the submission process works with agents, I'd save my money on entrance fees and submit to them directly. Agents I queried all responded within about 48 hours to my email queries, within a week or so to snail mail queries, and within a couple of months to partials. You won't speed up that process by entering a contest--they often take around 3 months for the first round to be judged and a further couple of months before finalists are announced and you receive any request for the full manuscript. And then, sadly, there's the possibility that you might not final at all.

Contest finals for SCANDAL'S DAUGHTER:
*means manuscript/partial requested

Winner, RWA Golden Heart Award*
2nd RWAus Harlequin Mills & Boon Opening Chapter*
2nd Hearts through History Romance through the Ages
1st RWAus Single Title contest
1st WHRWA Emily Award*
2nd Sharp Synopsis*
3rd Golden Oak*
3rd Fire & Ice

For more information about upcoming contests and deadlines, visit the Contest Divas site.

Hm, some of those views might be seen as a tad controversial, but they are based on my experience. What is your experience of contests? Are they worth the time and money?