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Novel Writing Contests: A Guide to Competitions for Authors
For an aspiring author, the journey to publication can feel long and isolating. A novel writing contest can be a powerful and exciting way to break through the noise, gain industry recognition, and potentially even launch your career. These competitions, run by publishers, literary magazines, and author organizations, offer a unique opportunity to have your work read by industry professionals.
But not all contests are created equal. It’s crucial to be strategic, to choose reputable contests that align with your goals, and to understand what you’re hoping to achieve. This guide will walk you through the benefits of entering a novel writing contest and where to find the best ones.
Key Takeaways & Summary
A Path to Recognition: A novel writing contest is a competition where writers submit their manuscripts to be judged by a panel of experts, with prizes awarded to the winners.
The Benefits are More Than Just Cash: While many contests offer cash prizes, the biggest benefits are often the industry exposure, the validation of your work, and the credibility that comes with a win.
Two Main Types of Contests: Contests are generally for either unpublished manuscripts (to help you get an agent or a publishing deal) or published books (to award literary merit).
Research is Crucial: You must carefully vet any contest to ensure it is legitimate and a good fit for your specific genre and career goals.
The Powerful Benefits of Entering a Novel Writing Contest
1. Gain Industry Recognition and Visibility
This is the single biggest benefit. Winning or even being a finalist in a prestigious contest is a huge “stamp of approval” that can make your query letter stand out to literary agents. It signals that your manuscript has already been vetted and deemed high-quality.
2. The Potential for a Publishing Contract or Representation
Many of the top contests for unpublished novels are judged by literary agents and editors. The grand prize is often a direct offer of representation from an agent or a publishing contract from a press.
3. Build Your Author Resume
A contest win or a “finalist” placement is a significant writing credit that you can and should include in your author bio. It builds your credibility.
4. Motivating Deadlines
A contest provides a hard deadline, which can be a powerful motivator to finally finish and polish your novel. This is a great way to accelerate your novel writing process.
5. Cash Prizes
While not the primary goal for most, many contests offer significant cash prizes that can help fund your author career.
Where to Find Reputable Novel Writing Contests
It is essential to find legitimate contests and avoid scams. Here are some of the most trusted resources for finding reputable competitions.
Poets & Writers: The Poets & Writers database is one of the most respected and comprehensive listings of legitimate grants, awards, and contests for writers.
Reedsy’s “Best Writing Contests”: The popular author services marketplace maintains a curated and regularly updated list of the best writing contests, which you can filter by genre and entry fee.
Your Genre’s Professional Organization: Many genre-specific organizations, like the Romance Writers of America (RWA) or the Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers Association (SFWA), run their own highly respected contests.
Red Flags: How to Spot a Bad Contest
An Exorbitantly High Entry Fee: While small entry fees (
30) are common to cover administrative costs, be very wary of contests that charge an excessive amount.Rights Grabbing: Read the fine print. You should never have to give up the rights to your work just to enter a contest.
A Lack of Transparency: A legitimate contest will be very clear about who the judges are, what the prizes are, and who the past winners have been.
Entering a contest requires a polished, professional manuscript. Our book editing services can give your novel the expert polish it needs to stand out to the judges.
Short FAQ
Q: Should I enter contests for unpublished or published books?
A: This depends on your publishing path. If you are seeking a traditional publishing deal, focus on contests for unpublished manuscripts. If you have already independently published your book with a service like our Amazon KDP publishing services, you should look for contests that award excellence in published indie books.
Q: Do I need a full manuscript to enter?
A: It depends on the contest. Many “first chapter” contests only require the first 10-25 pages and a synopsis. Contests for a full novel will require the complete, finished manuscript.
Q: Can winning a contest guarantee I’ll get an agent?
A: While it’s not an absolute guarantee, it is one of the single best “leg-ups” you can have. Many agents actively scout the winners and finalists of major contests. It puts your query at the top of the pile.
