Hi all,
In general, I agree that writing contests that charge a fee are dubious uses of our time. But this one seems legit, the fee is only $20, and the prizes are decent.
I suggest we each decide to create a submission entry. I’m not concerned whether you actually submit it, but as an exercise it may serve to sharpen our focus. It might be a useful exercise in a couple of ways, and I don’t see how it cna hurt to have an example of good writing in our portfolios. In any case, the deadline is next May 30, so we have plenty of time. We’ll talk about it more in the group.
John
Eligibility: The Vocabula Well-Written Writing Contest is open to all.
Write 200 to 500 words of readable, well-written, even beautiful writing. Send your entries to HYPERLINK “mailto:editor@vocabula.com?subject=Well-Written Writing Contest“editor@vocabula.com. Along with your submission, you must include your name, address, and email address.
Contest Dates: Entries for the Vocabula Well-Written Writing Contest are accepted year-round. Each contest ends on May 30. The next contest begins the following day.
Selection: We accept nonfiction submissions only. Entries are judged on readability, beauty, and creativity — in that order. Submissions not meeting the word count requirements are disqualified.
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Winning entries will also be published in The Vocabula Review and may be considered for publication in a forthcoming anthology.
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I like the idea of using the contest to “sharpen our focus.”
My first experience with a writing contest was with a vanity press. That, unfortunately, jaded my view on contests enough that I have not been able to convince myself to enter more contests, even free ones.
I’m in therapy now. We meet every other Thursday.