Writing Contest FAQ When will winners be announced? November
Original/Undiscovered Entries are not required to be exclusive submissions, however, entries are required to be original, unpublished, and un-contracted manuscripts. If you receive an offer of publication (a publishing contract) on your entry before winners are announced, please let the contest coordinator know and they will withdraw your entry. Offers of agent representation will not affect your entry status.
Previous Year’s First Place Winners If your manuscript won first place in a category in the previous year, you may not submit an entry into that same category (a one-year break). However, you may enter a submission into a different writing category.
Co-Authored Manuscripts All authors must submit a signed statement confirming that the manuscript has been submitted with their knowledge and permission. Only one prize is awarded for each winning entry, and the cover email should identify the individual who will be accepting the prize should the entry be named a winner.
Notification Participants will be notified of the winners by email and judging sheets will be emailed to all participants.
Entering Both Illustration and Writing Contests? Each member may submit one manuscript to the Writing Contest and one piece of art to the Illustration Contest each year — our writing and illustrating contests are two separate contests. (Do not send dummies, illustrations or photos to the Writing Contest, nor manuscripts or dummies to the Illustration Contest.)
What to Do Afterwards? After you receive your contest scoring sheets, consider the judges’ suggestions, go through the revising process again, and submit your fine-tuned work to appropriate publishing houses or agents. Note: Judges reserve the right to withhold prizes in any category with insufficient entries or scores.