Information Scotland

The Journal of the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals in Scotland

June 2005 Volume 3 (3)

Endpiece

Writ large

Colin Will rounds up writing competitions, with all their suspense.

The number of writing competitions seems to be growing these days, or maybe they've just become more noticeable. It seems that each issue of the literary magazines I subscribe to is stuffed with flyers for competitions. For the new writer they're a good way of becoming known, or better known. And for an established writer, getting on the judging panel of the bigger ones can be a nice little earner. Very few writers make their sole living from their own writing; they have to develop multiple income streams. (Sorry about the use of management-speak, but I'm using it as shorthand.)

I've just finished my stint as one of the judges for the Tyne & Esk Writer of the Year competition, supported by the library services of East Lothian and Midlothian. I hasten to inform you, Gentle Reader, that this is unpaid, although last year we received liquid appreciation for our efforts. This is a local competition open to all those resident or working in the counties, with poetry and prose categories. Prizes are offered, courtesy of sponsorship from a local bookshop, and the winners get the chance to see their work published in a magazine, and to read their work in public at the awards ceremony. The competition is popular in both counties and is covered by local press, giving publicity to writers of quality living in the community. It's maybe small-scale, but it's ours, and we like it.

The quality of entries this year was very high, making for extremely stimulating and forthright discussions at our meetings, as each member of the panel spoke up for their particular favourites. We read and marked all of the entries, and then we discussed each one, before drawing up a short list from which the category and overall winners were selected. We're now looking forward to the awards ceremony, when the deserving winners will be announced – the suspense is terrific, and we ourselves don't know the identity of the winners.

Turning to the wider scene, there are many competitions for short story writers, of which the annual one run by The Scotsman will be well known to readers of this journal. One of the most prestigious UK competitions is the Bridport Prize (www.bridportprize.org.uk), which has poetry and short story categories, and serious prize money for the winners. A good web resource I've found recently for all kinds of writers' competitions is www.prizemagic.co.uk/html/writing_comps.htm, which is updated regularly. It's annoying when you see a competition listed with a closing date in 2003, but that doesn't happen here.

Many competitions are specialist as to entrants and/or subjects – war poetry, poetry by women, poetry by the over 50s, young writers or whatever. If they become really specialised I look forward to one for short, white-bearded, bespectacled ex-librarian ex-clarinettist poets born in Scotland in 1942. Douglas Dunn would win, and with a bit of luck I might be the runner-up. (Did I ever tell you about meeting Douglas for the first time in the State Bar in Holland Street in 1965 when I was supposed to be working for my ALA? Remind me next time I see you.) Genuine specialist poetry competitions include those run by Mslexia, The Rialto, and Blinking Eye Publishing. The Strokestown Poetry Prize is for Irish or Gaelic writing.

Of the general poetry comps, the National Poetry Competition run by the Poetry Society (www.poetrysociety.org.uk) is probably the biggest. The Poetry Society's website also contains links to other competitions, as does the Scottish Poetry Library's site (www.spl.org.uk), and the wonderful Poetry Kit site (www.poetrykit.org).

Some booksellers and publishers also run or sponsor writing competitions. Ottakar's join forces with Faber to run one annually, linked to National Poetry Day. The Poetry Business runs a competition for collections of poems, and the prize is publication of the collection. Poetry pamphlets can be entered for the Callum Macdonald Memorial Award (www.scottish-pamphlet-poetry.com). Magazines are another great source. Writing Magazine runs its own competitions, and contains adverts for others. Poetry magazines such as Poetry London feature really worthwhile competitions, as do many more. Closer to home, members of writing groups affiliated to the Scottish Association of Writers have access to that organisation's competitions.

Some of the major literary festivals also run competitions – Aldeburgh, Ledbury and Torbay are examples. Towns and cities also hold them – Ayr has one this year to mark its 800th anniversary.

One downside of competitions is that they are prone to scams. Beware of adverts and websites which promise $thousands in prizes and ask you to cough up a sizeable entry fee. Most genuine competitions ask for up to £10 per entry (up to £20 for collections), and that's fair enough.

Some competitions, particularly the local ones, seem to suffer from the law of diminishing returns – fewer entries in successive years, and I'm trying to tease out some of the possible reasons for this. It may be that some writers become disheartened by not winning year after, and feel the odds are stacked against them.

The best advice I can give to those considering entering is to read the rules carefully, then, when you think you are ready to post off your entry, read the rules again. Don't use coloured paper, unusual fonts, or 'eye-catching' layouts, and don't send manuscripts in laminated folders or fancy binders. If the judges are anything like me, they'll be impressed by the quality of the content, not the appearance.

Colin Will
colin.will@zen.co.uk
www.colinwill.co.uk

Information Scotland Vol. 3 (3) June 2005

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Last updated: 21 July 2005