Benefits of Short Story Contests

Posted by Jen on Wednesday, January 23rd, 2008 @ 8:47 pm

After I completed Round One of the NYC Midnight Short Story Challenge, I wrote a quick post about what I learned from the experience. After reflecting a bit, I decided I have a few more things to share about it and short story writing contests in general.

1. I Finished Something
Lately, I have been doing a really great job of starting writing projects, but when it comes to finishing…well, let’s just say I don’t have the best track record. I get bored with the idea, I get a better idea, school or work intrudes, I get stuck in the middle of the story, etc. There are a million different things that can happen, and I’ve run into most of them. The great thing about contests is that it forces you, or at least I feel that it does, to finish something. I entered. I paid a fee. I have to finish the thing. Since it’s a short story, I can actually go through the entire writing process. A brainstorming session, a quick plot outline, a rough draft or two, plot reworking, a severe editing and final revisions. It felt good to accomplish something, and it makes me feel more confident about those massive novel-length manuscripts I need to complete.

2. A Great Writing Exercise
Not only did it force me to actually complete something, but it threw me out of my comfort zone. For this short story contest, I was given the genre, subject matter and word count. This is the case for a lot of other contests as well. I was forced to write a comedy which is something I have never done. I didn’t have the luxury of picking my own topic. I really did struggle with it, but in the end, I think it was worth it. I honestly think it made me a better writer because of it, especially in terms of dialogue.

3. Getting Feedback
You only get feedback from the judges if you go on to the next round or if you win the contest. I did not enter the contest to win. It would be great if my story got me into the next round, but that honestly was not my sole reason for participating. However, anyone who does go on to the next round is receiving some serious positive feedback about their writing. They were good enough to be picked. This particular writing contest also has the ability to post your short story entry on a forum and other contestants can review your story and leave feedback. This is a great way to get some helpful critiques from fellow writers.

I really enjoyed this experience, and I have another contest coming up this weekend. I have only 24 hours this time so that is really going to be an exercise. I just hope that the subject has nothing to do with comedic material!