What are the best writing competitions?

Hayley King - Ascent Novel Prize Founder and writing competition addict

How do you decide which writing competition to enter? And, of course, you only want to enter the best! Well, this depends on many things. Firstly, what are your reasons for entering? This may seem like a stupid question. You want the prize money, and to have your work before the eyes of an agent. You want to be able to query agents with a great list of competition listings. But what else can entering a competition give you? Seth Godin suggests that our only job as creatives is to ship the work. We have no control over the outcome, but we do control the process. Submitting to writing competitions is an act of bravery. It is announcing to the world that you believe your work is ready. Ascent Novel Prize reader, Venetia Constantine, author of THE LAST STARBORN SEER, believes in the power of manifestation. Before finding her agent and securing a publishing deal, she entered competitions to hone her craft. Submitting her work to the world was a way of signalling that she meant business.

Do you need a deadline? Writing competitions can be great for spurring you on. I once entered a competition with having only written the first five thousand words. I made the longlist and had two days in which to submit my next 20,000 words. And, you guessed it, those words didn’t exist. I love the thrill of a looming deadline and proceeded to write like a woman possessed. My novel didn’t win, but I did manage to add another 15k to my work in two days. Side note, my eyesight suffered for a week so I wouldn’t recommend this. I literally wrote myself blind. Who knew such a thing existed? (I can hear authors on contract around the world shouting, we did know! How could you not?)

The best writing competition is the one that aligns with you. If you’re strapped for cash, some of the expensive ones may not be for you. If you’re desperate for industry feedback, look for one that offers that. Ascent Novel Prize guarantees feedback to every entrant but I’m sorry to say competitions like this are few and far between. Some writing competitions are very well established, so have a look at how long they’ve been running for. In the UK, Bridport and Bath Novel Prize are well established and therefore have high levels of entry. Entering a competition has an element of risk. If you’re up against another 3,000 writers your chances aren’t as good as if you’re only up against 100. Literary festivals can have writing competitions attached to them and some of these competitions have lower number of entries. Personally, I would rather enter a smaller competition than one that has a huge jackpot and seems like a lottery. Weigh up the cost versus what you get in return. Think about how many people are likely to enter. Some competitions reveal how many entries they get. How long is the longlist? If 3,000 people enter and there’s only a longlist of 12, that’s a different scenario to entering a competition with 100 entries and a longlist of 20. Do the maths. What is the likelihood of placing on that list?

It matters that someone reads your work with care and, if you’ve done your job well, enjoys the world you’ve built.

A simple search online will give you a list of writing competitions. Alongside checking how established and competitive they are, consider their terms and conditions. I once didn’t enter a free competition because there was a clause in their terms that I didn’t like. I couldn’t bring myself to enter.  The best competitions are the ones that work for you. Look for competitions in your specific genre, or for opportunities that may be offered if you’re a writer from an under-represented background. In the UK, New Writing North provide many opportunities for writers from under-represented backgrounds. At Ascent Novel Prize, our Under-represented Writers’ Awards are free to enter with your main submission, simply tick the box as you fill in the submission form.

Look out for competitions that have a top 100, as it is more likely that your work will be acknowledged. My first ever listing, now many years ago, was in the top one hundred. It was a moment I’ll never forget. After years of hearing nothing, my work had been acknowledged. I was getting close. The following year, I made a longlist. The year after, I won highly commended. The sense of validation was incredible and something I wish I could give to every writer. Entering writing competitions gave me the confidence to keep going. Your story is worth it. Someone, somewhere is going to love your words.    

How does the competition celebrate its winners? Do they publish a list of their top 100? Do they have an awards ceremony. I once shortlisted for a competition with a highly reputable publisher. They didn’t notify me I’d made the shortlist, and I only found out because I emailed to ask when the winner was announced. The shortlist was never published. Their social media channels remained silent. It was as if my placing didn’t matter, and in the grand scheme of things, it probably didn’t. But I was an aspiring writer and to make it to the top six out of so many entries was like a dream come true. Look at how competitions value not only their winner but their long list. Do they send out trophies or include online interviews? Writing can be such a lonely process that these moments of achievement matter. Jericho Writers is a business in the UK that offers training to members and hosts an annual festival. Their competition is supported by the writing community it’s built. At these events, authors read out their work to a supportive and well-established community. Some competitions raise you up by the community they build. Look out for those ones, because when you win, it means so much more. You are part of something bigger than yourself: a community of like-minded people who can help raise you up.

Writers and Artists’ offer curated lists of writing competitions online. Like I said, the lists of competitions are not hard to find, but choosing the right ones to enter matters. Weigh the cost. What do you get back? Look at their terms and conditions: are you happy with them? How do they celebrate the writers who enter?

Red flags to look out for…

No competition will ever ask for or retain copyright of your work. This belongs to the writer. If you are successful, check how much of your work they will share online. I can’t imagine any writer wants their whole novel sharing, but many competitions will publish the opening chapter. Reading samples from previous winners can help you decide if the competition is for you. The writing style of previous winners will give you an insight into whether yours is comparable. There are some competitions I don’t enter as the style of past winners is literary with a capital L. As my work sits in the book club market, it is more suited to more commercial competitions.

More red flags…

If you can’t see who the judges are, you won’t know if they’re industry professionals. Writing competitions should have clear and transparent processes. There should be a list of FAQs and an outline of the judging process. Think about how much information their website and social media channels give you. Is there enough information available for you to happily enter and know your work is in safe hands. At Ascent Novel Prize, our reading team and judges are carefully selected from across the industry and it was vital that the team chosen reflected the diverse world we all live in.

Last of all, entering a competition can be a daunting process. And the reality is that most people don’t win. But it is one step in getting your work out into the world. There are doors waiting to be opened. Choose your competitions wisely and know that the real power and accolade is the novel you hold in your hands. If you are lucky enough to have typed the end, you made it. Everyone says they want to write a novel and you’re one of the few who did it. In my eyes, you're a winner already.