Write Ways to WIN WRITING CONTESTS: How To Join the Winners' Circle for Prose and Poetry Awards, NEW EXPANDED EDITION (Paperback)

~ John Howard Reid (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

John Howard Reid (a well-known author with over 50 years experience in writing and publishing) is Chief Judge of three annual literary events: The Tom Howard Short Story, Essay and Prose Contest, the Tom Howard Poetry Contest, and the Margaret Reid Prize for Traditional Verse. These long-established, prestigious writing competitions each offer cash prizes totally $5,350. In "Write Ways to WIN WRITING CONTESTS", John Reid tells every aspiring author how to achieve success. To research this book, he entered no less than eighty writing contests himself. His entries won prizes, or were short-listed, at least 27 times. That's better than a one-in-three success rate. "I would easily have achieved a one-in-two success rate if I had only entered the RIGHT contests," Reid declares. "I entered some of them merely to prove my theories or simply to obtain Judges' Reports." In this book, John Howard Reid will tell YOU how to select the RIGHT contests for YOUR essays, short stories and poems.

Product Details

• Paperback: 140 pages
• Publisher: Lulu.com (October 29, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0557023254
• ISBN-13: 978-0557023257
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #667,643 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Writing Contet Primer, May 30, 2009

By	Eve Chase "Poetrix" (Mesa, AZ) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Amazon Verified Purchase

This book is an first rate primer for anyone considering entry into the many essay and poetry contests offered by mail as well as online. It does not itemize these contests but gives basic procedural and format information. The author relates his experiences entering a number of contests as a basis for this publication. He also offers excellent cautions, such as researching the contest judges, their particular bias and works they have authored. First-time entrants might well consider this a prerequisite to entry.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Essential Guide for Writing Contest Competitors -- Revised, Re-Written and Expanded!, December 17, 2008

By	John Howard Reid (Wyong, NSW Australia) - See all my reviews

Writers have been asking me for years to undertake a revision of Write Ways to Win Writing Contests: How to Join the Winners' Circle for Short Story Awards, Poetry Prizes, etc.. I kept putting it off because, although the original book was published over four years ago, 95% of the information was still current. Finally, I succumbed to pressure by not only bringing all the information right up to date, but revising every word in the book and having every line re-set. I also added an extra chapter on "Maximizing Poetry Entries"; and to the original appendix of two winning prose entries and a winning poetry entry, plus the re-print of "A Pathetic Story" by Jerome K. Jerome, I have added five classic poems and some additional poetry contest guidelines. Thanks to the more compact line-setting, the book's actual page count has only increased from 120 to 140. And best of all, despite all the revisions and additions, the publisher has reduced the price!

I would emphasize that this book provides practical guidelines for achieving success in writing contests. This is not necessarily the same thing as learning how to polish and augment your writing skills. For instance, if you intend to submit stories or poems to competitions, you need to know exactly what the words, "open theme", mean. Many contestants obviously feel such words imply that all subjects and genres are welcome. In 90% of literary contests, however, this is far from the case. Humor, for example, is often looked upon with disfavor. In poetry events, intending entrants need to appreciate the distinct differences between "popular" and "university" poetry, as well as the divide between "modern" and "traditional" verse. In prose contests, there is likewise a gulf between what some sponsors regard as "literature" and what they reject as "popular". As most contests cloak their requirements under "open theme" or "contestant's choice", it's often impossible to tell which is which by simply reading the rules. Generally, one of the sure ways to make this essential discovery is to read entries that have won prizes in past events.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent advice, March 26, 2009

By	V Jules (Lawrence, KS) - See all my reviews

Last year, I entered the Tom Howard/John Reid Prose contest and was commended. This book gave wonderful insite into what I could do as I entered this year. We'll see if his advise worked for his own contest!