Welcome To The North Texas Romance Writers of America Website.

CONFESSIONS OF A CONTEST JUDGE

or 10 Things You Can Do To Make Me Give Your Entry A Good Score ^©
by Judi McCoy

In my nine year writing career I've judged a lot of contests. I started doing so because I felt it was my duty to help the writing community I loved, as well as learn what my fellow writers were up to. I was published in April of 2001, and since then I've judged the Daphne, the Maggie, the North Texas contest, the Yellow Rose, several of the Houston chapter contests, Put Your Heart in a Book, More Than Magic, the Golden Heart, and the Rita, just to name a few. I will continue to judge as long as I think I have something to give to my fellow authors.

In the process, I developed my own criteria for what I consider a good entry. I'm not talking about characterization, plotting, or dialogue. I'm talking about the mechanics, the formatting, the general impression of a manuscript--what annoys me, why I mark an entry off, what would make me want to read more. Bear in mind, the following is just my opinion, but I hope that in sharing, I'll help unpublished writers achieve their goal.

1) Lines per Page: (lpp) 25 lines per page is the industry standard. Many contests say up front the lpp can be 24-26 and ask we not mark off if they're within that range. Fine, I follow the rules, but I will mark off is there are 24 lines on one page, 25 on the next, 26 on the following two, and back to 24. Consistency is one of the things that makes a manuscript professional.

2) Underlining vs. Italics: If you insist on italicizing the line in the manuscript, do so throughout the entire entry. Don't underline some and italicize others. Consistency is key to being considered a professional.

3) Spacing after a period: Two spaces used to be the norm, but some word processing packages make that difficult. It's acceptable to use one space, but I've read entries where the space after the period jump from 1 to 3 and all over the place. Consistency.

4) Run Spell Check: After you run the Spell Check feature on your system, print out your entry and read it carefully. Spell check doesn't differentiate between their/there/they're, here/hear, to/two/too. That's your responsibility.

5) Overuse of simple words: Read your entry and check how often you use the word that, or look, very, just, little, back, up, down, all, so, etc. Many times the word 'that' can be eliminated altogether, and the others can be replaced with something more creative (or eliminated).

6) Overuse of more important words: A banana is a banana is a banana, but I once read an entry where the author described it as an 'elongated yellow fruit.' That was a bit over-the-top, but if you're writing about a detective, find one or two other words to describe him (private eye, investigator, P.I., etc.) Same with colors. Blue can be sky, cerulean, sapphire, ocean, navy, etc. Variety in your descriptions will make the entry interesting and show you have a good vocabulary--something a writer needs.

7) Overuse of character names: John and Mary are talking to each other. We know who they are, so you don't have to keep using their names over and over in dialogue or introspection. Think about the way you speak to a friend. Do you continually call them by their first name when you talk?

8) Proper paragraphing: Each time a person speaks, they gets a new paragraph for their dialogue and thoughts. Do not put dialogue from two speakers into the same paragraph (even if Jennifer Cruisie sometimes does it. You're not a best selling author yet).

9) Pick a name for your character and stick with it: If your heroine is named Margaret and everyone calls her Maggie, use her full name at the beginning to introduce her, then use Maggie in the synopsis and story. Flip-flopping names can confuse an editor/agent/contest judge and they're the last people you want to befuddle.

10) Put down the comma and step away from the computer: The comma is probably the most misused punctuation mark in all the entries I judge, next is the use of ellipses (...) and the double dash (--). I've seen the comma added in so many creative ways I've been left reeling, and omitted when one is truly needed. Buy a grammar book and read it. Two that come immediately to mind are Woe is I by Patricia O'Conner, and Eats, Shoots and Leaves by Lynne Trus. Both are available on Amazon. Again, incorrect usage of something as basic as punctuation marks makes your manuscript appear amateurish and unprofessional.

Return to Writing Tips