Free entry competition news
Thanks to Carol Bevitt for the link to this short story competition which is 'open to all adults'. Carol says 'it's public voting, but the prize is good and there's no entry fee. Plus they've dealt with the AI issue in their T&C's. And have two categories to distinguish between the previously published, and the new writer.'
Here's a micro fiction competition. They define that as '1500 characters (not words)'. All entries must relate to Africa in some way, but it looks as though almost anyone can enter. (The rules are complicated eg you can't take part if you have - A blood relationship within the fourth degree of consanguinity or affinity within the second degree of consanguinity with any individual who provides services in the Consortium or with any of the members of the Jury that is constituted for the competition.) You'll be required to prove who you are in order to enter, eg with your passport.
I know some of you will be thinking it's too much faff. Fair enough. However, that might reduce the number of entries, giving you a better chance of winning the €750 first prize.
For this competition from the British Czech and Slovak Association you may write fact or fiction. There's a suggested, but not compulsory them and the prize is £400.
As with all competitions I feature on this blog, the above are free to enter. I do my best to warn people of potential issues (such as rights grabs) but it's your responsibility to check the rules, decide if you can comply with them, and wish to enter. I simply don't have the time to thoroughly investigate them all, and the companies behind them, nor to give detailed breakdowns of the rules - plus there's the risk I may misunderstand something and therefore mislead you.
As with all competitions I feature on this blog, the above are free to enter. I do my best to warn people of potential issues (such as rights grabs) but it's your responsibility to check the rules, decide if you can comply with them, and wish to enter. I simply don't have the time to thoroughly investigate them all, and the companies behind them, nor to give detailed breakdowns of the rules - plus there's the risk I may misunderstand something and therefore mislead you.
Womag news
There are a few details of the story lengths and themes currently wanted for The People's Friend here.
My news
The garden is looking nice!
I also have a new collection out. As you may have guessed from the title and cover the 24 stories in A Clean Bill Of Health all have a medical/wellbeing theme.
I'm still experimenting with book marketing and am taking part in these three promotions - April Cozy Mysteries Sales Event, Sweet April Stories and Mayhem & Motives.
16 comments:
I'm not a fan of competitions with a public vote for the winner. There have been several instances of people soliciting votes, so it almost depends on how many social media followers you have.
Congratulations on the new release.
A lot of hoops to jump through for that one contest, but you're right, that will limit entries, giving one a better chance.
@ Pamela – Yes, the results do very much depend on how many followers / friends the author can persuade to vote for them. A good entry will help of course, but it's far from the whole story.
The organisers do this on purpose. The more the competition is shared, the better the publicity for them. I suppose that if they're doing the work of running a free competition and offering prizes, it's not unreasonable for them to get something out of it, but I'd rather enter ones where work is judged purely on its merit, not the popularity of the author.
Thanks to you, as ever, Patsy, for the competitions and Carol for unearthing yet more. Primroses and forget-me-nots are abounding here - awaiting the violets. Good luck with your medical stories :)
Thanks for the beautiful flower photos Patsy and congrats on your new book.
And thanks for the competition links Patsy and Carol. Certainly a great variety this week, although I also give competitions with a public vote a miss - agree work should be judged on its merit.
Thanks Patsy for all the updates. I can thoroughly recommend Disguised Murder & Community spirit in Little Mallow, a great read.
thank you, Patsy.
Congratulations on getting a story into TPF annual, too.
Alyson
Thanks for the update, Patsy. The PF guidelines send my head into a spin! So many different publications, seasons (and now years!) to negotiate around.
I wouldn't worry too much about it, Dorinda.
Write the story you want to write.
People get themselves into a tizz about fiction requirements - and I've been one of them.
Some of the guidelines I've received are along the lines of: 'Don't forget, it's National so and so day'.
To be honest, most of the time, I've never even heard of it!
I have trouble writing about Easter, Mother's day and summer, let alone some wacky 'It's National pick your nose day' or whatever!
I'm afraid it puts extra pressure on me, so I tend to forget about it and write the story I think would appeal to the mag.
Thank you, Patsy and Carol, for the competition news and good luck, Patsy, with the book marketing.
Best wishes, Patsy, with the new collection. And congratulations to all who have stories included in The People's Friend Annual, especially Patsy, Alyson H., Sheelagh and Sharon H., all of whom, I believe, contribute comments to this blog. It's always nice to see the successes of people I now regard as online friends.
Just to add - I'm not Sharon h!
@ Marguerite – Thank you. I hope the violets are still in bloom.
@ Fiona – The popularity contests aren't for me either – but I still think they're worth sharing, as it gives people the option of whether or not to have a try.
@ Sheelagh – Thank you! I also think it's pretty good, but I could be biased.
@ Alyson – Thank you. That one was accepted over three years ago!
@ Dorinda – We are being given quite a lot of information! That's a good thing, but it can be a touch confusing too.
@ Sharon B – I think your approach makes a lot of sense. The suggestions might prompt an idea, but they are only suggestions and stories with other themes will be considered. (And you've made me want to write a pick your nose day story!)
@ Marin - Thank you. Writing them seems relatively easy compared with the marketing!
@ Eirin - I agree, it's great to see the names of my virtual writing buddies in the contents lists.
Hi, does anyone know if the results of the "Best" magazine pet fiction competition have been announced please? Sue
No, not yet. The results should be announced soon.
Just to add- Secret Attic have now changed the story length for their ongoing fiction competitions, and they are now free to enter.
They haven't got many entries for their 100 word story comp. The prize is a writing related book. The closing date is the last day day of April.
@ Sue – As far as I know they don't announce it anywhere, except in the mag when the winner is published.
@ Sharon – Thanks for the Secret Attic update. I'll copy that into my next post.
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