Among writers, there are two attitudes about contests. One either loves them or abhors them. I was talking with one of the featured speakers at a conference, a novelist, and he looked down his nose at me and pronounced contests to be puny attempts at self-affirmation.

Well, yes, there’s that. But personally I love the challenge of being able to write to another person’s specifications. To take whatever prompt you are given and create a story or poem out of it. Some of my best short works were originally for contests.

Regardless of what that self-important novelist thinks, those are significant abilities. Those little clicks keep a writer going when there is only a blank page in front of him, or when his editor tells him he needs a short piece about the person who cleans the trash off the side of the road every day between Elm and Fir Street. You have to understand what others might find interesting about the particular subject.

I view contests as a way to practice those skills. I review the items, considering the specs on each one to see if I have an immediate reaction. Many times an idea pops, full-blown, into my head. When I finish with those, I scan again, to see if I can take the ingredients and come up with a recipe.

Contests ARE money-raising events. There’s nothing wrong with that, as long as they deliver what they promise. I vet the sponsors. I am wary of ‘copies only’. This could be a way for the sponsor to get works for something they are going to sell, at the expense of the writers themselves. And run, don’t walk, from an offer to buy a book of the ‘best of the entries’. If not familiar with a contest, don’t be afraid to ask.  It’s YOUR time and entry fee.

Experience has taught me the same people win some competitions over and over again. Sometimes the rules are self-inhibiting. If attendance to an event is a requisite, then of course, the winners’ pool is greatly reduced. I’d rather pit my skills against a broader range of writers, so don’t enter those often, even if I do attend the event. But sometimes certain authors stand out because their writing is simply good. Our writing group features contests at our yearly conference, and even with blind judging, the same names pop up often. Some are friends, but many are not, and we have never met them.

 It’s nice to win, and I am thrilled when I do and yes, I brag.  But if I don’t, I’m not discouraged. There’s a reason there are so many books on the market. Different people like different things. You can submit the same piece to several different competitions, and get several different endings – from a grand prize to no mention at all. I’ve got lots of experience at losing – remember the run for class vice president, and the cheerleader tryouts?  Loss is as much a part of life as winning is. Not knowing why you lost is frustrating, but you CAN contact those winners – often they will let you read their work.

Shake it off, and keep on writing. Nobody is going to shout “Off with his/her head!” if you don’t win.  It just gives you more experience.