I went out to the mailbox this afternoon and came back with a check and third place certificate from the San Gabriel Writer’s League for my flash fiction entry in their 2005 Writing Smarter Competition.
The check was modest, just $20. The certificate is cute–this isn’t exactly a huge notch on my writing resume. But, I make it a point to keep as many of my pieces out for submission and/or contest recognition as I possibly can. And, sometimes I reel in a big one, sometimes a minnow.
That said, the real prize in the envelope was the judge’s evaluation sheet. It listed the eight crafting points used to evaluate my entry, and how I scored in each category. There were also handwritten notes on the manuscript with additional advice for improving the story. That’s priceless, because the contest did not include any publication. So, I am free to submit it again in a contest(as permitted) or as regular submission in a solid market.
FYI–I lost the most points in the conflict category. Pulling off a solid conflict in a flash fiction piece is tough—I thought I had done a pretty good job with it, good enough to snag third place, but not first. But, like I said, they gave me the recipe, via their critique sheet, for fixing the problem—priceless I tell ya. Priceless!
The check was modest, just $20. The certificate is cute–this isn’t exactly a huge notch on my writing resume. But, I make it a point to keep as many of my pieces out for submission and/or contest recognition as I possibly can. And, sometimes I reel in a big one, sometimes a minnow.
That said, the real prize in the envelope was the judge’s evaluation sheet. It listed the eight crafting points used to evaluate my entry, and how I scored in each category. There were also handwritten notes on the manuscript with additional advice for improving the story. That’s priceless, because the contest did not include any publication. So, I am free to submit it again in a contest(as permitted) or as regular submission in a solid market.
FYI–I lost the most points in the conflict category. Pulling off a solid conflict in a flash fiction piece is tough—I thought I had done a pretty good job with it, good enough to snag third place, but not first. But, like I said, they gave me the recipe, via their critique sheet, for fixing the problem—priceless I tell ya. Priceless!
JAlpha!
It'll be the highest compliment you can pay 
You have inspired me to submit more, write more! Way to go, Janet!
