Just wondered if anyone knew what the advantage is with writing competitions, i.e. a writing competition that is judged by a literary agent, like the Bath Novel Award or the Mslexia memoir competition?
Is it better just to save the competition fee and submit straight to the agent, or is there some advantage to be gained by sending in to one of the competitions - other than possibility of prize?
Hi Lucy.
The upside of writing competitions is that should you be shortlisted, or better still win, then that goes straight onto your writing CV. By winning or coming close, you may perk up the eyebrows of a potential agent or publisher.
The downside of course, is that a large number of people enter the significant competitions, and there will always be a 'filtering' process. This can often be some fairly junior staff, who simply may not like the style or subject matter of your piece.
It is also possible that the final judge(s) may have some pretty stiff ideas about what they do and don't like. I entered quite a few competitions in the last couple of years, and I always paid close attention to what the judges were looking for, even researching their own work. But when it came to the winners being announced, I have frequently been astonished to read the pieces they have chosen.
Accordingly, I am restricting my involvement now to only those comp's with which I feel a great affinity.
But there's no harm in trying a couple. This publication has just announced its 2015 short story and other comp's. Why not have a go?
Good luck.
PabloJ.