Tuesday, May 17, 2016

COMPETITION MONTHLY

Time again to welcome back Francesca Capaldi Burgess as she tells us about the current opportunities in the Competition Monthly.

How much is it worth paying to enter a competition? The answer isn't a simple one. If it's a high prestige competition, like the Bridport, it's naturally going to cost more. The prize money is usually much higher, and success in such a competition is excellent for the CV. Sometimes there are other bonuses like introducing the winner to a literary agency or promise of publication. Competitions that are free, or cost as little as £3, don't have the prestige of the bigger comps, but they have other advantages going for them. Since many are less well known and offer much smaller prizes, fewer people will enter them. That ups your chances of being placed.

This month I found a competition with shoe vouchers as prizes, along with money, which I thought rather appropriate for the RNA. (Anyone who's been to a party in the past or seen photos will know what I mean!)

In Bocca al Lupo ('In the mouth of the wolf' – good luck, in other words!)

**Closing soon **
Words with Jam First Page Competition
Theme: First page (up to 400 words) of novel published, unpublished, unfinished or written just for the comp.
Prize: £500 / £100 / £50
Competition deadline: 31 May 2016
Entry: £6 (£4 each for 2 or more)

**Closing soon**
Finchley Literary Festival Short Story Competition
Theme: Open. 1,000 word max
Prize: £100 / £50 / £25
Competition deadline: 31 May 2016
Entry: £5

Writing Magazine Crime Short Story Competition
Theme: Any crime. 1,500 - 1,700 words
Prize: £200 plus publication in Writing Magazine. Runner up £50 plus online publication
Competition deadline: 14 June 2016
Entry: £5 / £3 for subscribers

Moth Short Story Prize 2016
Theme: Open. 6,000 word max
Prize: €3,000 / Week retreat in France plus €250 / €1,000
Competition deadline: 30 June 2016
Entry: €12

Wells Festival of Literature Competition: Short Story
Theme: Open. 1,000 – 2,000 words.
Prize: £500 / £200 / £100
Competition deadline: 30 June 2016
Entry: £5

Wells Festival of Literature Competition: Children's Book
Theme: For Age 10 – 16, first 3 chapters or 30pp plus synopsis.
Prize: £500 / £200 / £100
Competition deadline: 30 June 2016
Entry: £5

The Impress Prize Novel Competition
Theme: Open. New writers. Book proposal plus sample chapters, max 6,000 words
Prize: E-Publishing contract with Impress
Competition deadline: 1 July 2016
Entry: £15

Doris Gooderson Short Story Competition
Theme: Open. 1,200 words max
Prize: £200 / £100 / £50
Competition deadline: 11 July 2016
Entry: £5

Writing Magazine Writing for Children Short Story Competition
Theme: 'Coming to terms with...' 1,500 – 1,700 words
Prize: £200 plus publication in Writing Magazine. Runner up £50 plus online publication
Competition deadline: 14 July 2016
Entry: £5 / £3 for subscribers

Olga Sinclair Open Short Story Competition
Theme: Must reference shoes somewhere in the story. 2,000 words max
Prize: £400 + £100 Van Dal shoes voucher / £175 + £75 VD voucher / £50 + £50 VD voucher
Competition deadline: 17 July by post, 31 July by email
Entry: £8

Francesca Burgess has been placed or shortlisted in a number of competitions including Twyford Writers, Winchester Writers' Conference, Chorley and District Writers' Circle, Flash a Famous Phrase, Meridian Writing, People's Friend and Writing Magazine. She's had stories published in magazines worldwide and in three anthologies, including Diamonds and Pearls and 100 Stories for Haiti. She is a member of the RNA New Writers' Scheme.



Links:

Thank you for another great selection, Francesca.

If you’d like to write for the RNA blog please contact us on elaineeverest@aol.com


2 comments:

@juliawildauthor said...

Great selection of competitions, Francesca, thank you!

Francesca Capaldi said...

Glad you like them, Julie.