10 crucial errors authors make when writing competitions
You work hard to write your best story – and if you're honest, you're pretty sure it's amazing. They share it with other authors to get their feedback, and they agree. You gather your courage and click the "Submit" button to forward it to a mysterious jury of writing competition judges.
And then . . . Wait. What will the judges think? Do you agree that your story deserves to win everything? Have you written a story that will draw judges' attention? What kind of story is that anyway?
I will take you behind the scenes and show exactly what judges are looking for when they choose the winners of writing competitions.
The confusing challenge of judging a writing competition
In the last round of our writing competitions, the judges face an almost impossible challenge: How will they decide which of a small group of excellent stories wins a prize?
In order for a story to make it this far, it has already been carefully checked by the entire panel. Every single judge has read and considered it, and enough have spoken out in favor of joining an elite selection of stories.
We all know that there are fans among the judges. We all know that it has great merits. The problem is . . . So did the other ten, fifteen, or twenty stories chosen for final consideration.
How do judges choose? What distinguishes the winning story? And if a story that has made it this far doesn't win (and mathematically, that's always the case), what's the fatal mistake that wipes it out?
10 storytelling basics that inspire judges and win writing competitions
I've rated The Writing Practice in nine writing competitions and I'm preparing for my tenth. (Do you want to have fun? Take part in our next writing competition here!) My favorite part of every competition is the discussion among the judges. I love to hear what they see in their top picks, what sets them apart from their strongest competitors.
I picked up a few patterns during these competitions. A handful of critical mistakes keep cropping up – and in the finals, these are the mistakes that judges take into account when making the most difficult decisions.
I have summarized long hours of judge discussion into ten elements that must include the winning stories. I have seen that each of these essential elements is the deciding factor in whether a story takes home a prize or not.
Would you like your story not only to reach the final tournament, but to win the entire competition? Take a close look at these ten elements and make sure your story includes them all.
1. Be inspired by the topic.
If the competition has a topic, make sure you adhere to it. You could write a brilliant story – but if you ignore the topic, skip part of it, or in any way violate the competition guidelines, you can quickly disqualify your story.
2. Concentrate on a bite-sized story.
Here's the thing: A short story is not a novel. You can't tell an epic fantasy story in less than 1,500 words.
Choose a story idea, the scope of which corresponds to the requirements for the number of words. The life story of a 103-year-old may be too long, but an unexpected detour on the way home from the grocery store could be just the right length.
3. Structure your story with clarity in mind.
This goes along with step 2. Yes, you can write a short story over two time periods with five scene changes and three points of view and summarize everything in just 1,500 words. But should you? Maybe, maybe not.
If you work within a tiny number of words, over-complicating your story can quickly confuse your readers. Make sure the transitions are clear and that every new element you introduce – a new scene, a new character, a new plot – drives the story instead of cluttering it.
It can be difficult to judge what is confusing in your own writing. So have someone read your story before submitting it.
4. Involve your readers (and the judges!) With a brilliant first line.
The first sentence of your story is your chance to make an amazing first impression. A powerful, surprising, and fascinating first line will arouse the judges' interest at the beginning and make them look forward to reading the rest.
The judges of the writing competition quickly read hundreds of stories. Make sure your first line causes them to trip over yours.
"
Would you like to win a writing competition? Start with an amazing first line.
5. Come straight to the action.
In a story with 1,500 words, you have no place to write long passages of world buildings or pages with background stories. And the truth is that that's not the interesting part anyway.
Don't open the story with three paragraphs that define the scene. Instead, start your story the moment "normal" ends.
What is the first sign of anger? The first indication that something will be different today? The irritating incident that triggers the action? Skip the descriptive introduction and start your story there.
6. Give your character a goal.
"Let your characters want something right away, even if it's just a glass of water. Characters who are paralyzed by the futility of modern life still have to drink water from time to time." – Kurt Vonnegut
Everyone wants something. It could be as little as another hour of sleep or as deep as another day with her terminally ill grandfather.
Whatever it is, their desire – and the things they do to get it – determine the story.
Make sure your character has a goal he is pursuing. Stories about untargeted characters keep buzzing, leaving readers confused as to why they're reading at all. Stories about characters who have clear goals and make decisions to pursue keep us busy and flip to see what happens next.
Pro tip: Everyone needs something too. Sometimes what you want and what you need is not the same. If your character achieves his goal, does that really make him happy? Or do they have to deal with undesirable consequences?
7. Cut off excess words so you can focus on the story.
Are you 500 words over the limit and don't know what to cut? Search:
Background story. Yes, you need to know everything about your character – but your readers don't. It's tempting to include every detail of your story that led you to this moment, but it will actually slow down your story and burden readers with unnecessary information. Get everything on the page in the first draft. Then challenge yourself when editing to cut as much background story as possible. Pro Tip: If there's any important piece of information that readers (and characters) need to know, use it as a surprising revelation to drive the plot forward.
Florid description. Does a detail move the story forward? Does it show us anything about the character or action we need to know? If so, great! If not, cut it. Unless your story is about rogue painters destroying the neighborhood garbage collection route, we don't need to know what color your character's trash can is.
Adverbs. Cut them ruthlessly. "The road to hell is paved with adverbs," writes Stephen King. This is especially true if you are limited to only 1,500 words. While you're at it, cut those seven words off as well. Save your space for words that drive the plot, and don't burden the reader with clunky prose.
(Did you understand all the adverbs I used in this paragraph? Ouch. We all miss the editorial perfection.)
8. Let your characters choose.
This is the core of the story, the crucial moment to focus on. Sometime in history Your character has to make a decision.
The tension builds up throughout the story. The action condenses, the stakes increase and the risks increase.
As the story approaches its climax, you put your character in a critical dilemma where they have to decide how to react.
If your character limps without making a choice, or if he lets the people around him decide for himself, the story will feel unsatisfactory and incomplete.
But if they choose something and then face the consequences of their decision, we will be excited and wonder how they will deal with what happens next.
9. Make sure something changes.
This moment of crisis, the decision your character makes, has ramifications. Maybe they took a risk and it paid off – or they crash and burn. In any case, something has to be different due to its choice.
Remember stories are about change. If your character ends the story in the same place where it started, readers will wonder why they bothered to read it at all.
Make sure that the trials your character is experiencing and the choices they make change someone or something irreversibly at the end of the story.
With that in mind, be careful not to write a story in which the main storyline is a dream sequence. If the waking world doesn't differ in any way because of the dream, it feels insincere. Any change in the dream world is erased when the character wakes up. Why read a story where nothing changes?
And yes, this also applies to daydreams. Make sure the story isn't just in the character's head.
10. Nail the end.
The first 1,450 words in your 1,500-word story are fascinating. You don't have a lot of room to wrap it up, but if you just do some kind of graduation, it will be fine, right?
Not correct.
It is very, very difficult to write the perfect ending of a short story, the conclusion that holds the loose ends together neatly but not too neatly and that makes the story appear resolute and a bit mysterious. The judges know that.
You are still looking for the perfect ending.
What does this story need to finish? What will resolve the conflict? What enables us to be satisfied that we have really reached "The End"?
Remember, a short story is in and of itself complete. It is not the first chapter of a novel or a teaser for something bigger. Make sure your story stands alone and that this little glimpse into your character's life is really done when it ends.
An otherwise excellent story that doesn't end will not take first place. But a surprising but inevitable climax that leads to a satisfactory solution will amaze the judges and make your story a strong contender to win it all.
Take your time to get your ending right.
"
The judges of the writing competition are looking for the perfect ending to a story. Take the time to get yours right.
Two more notes on these "basics"
I looked at all of these elements from a writer's perspective. What does our panel pay attention to when we are asked to select a handful of winners from a wealth of exciting stories?
There are two other ways to read this list.
1. Feedback from the judges. One of the things that make our writing competitions special is the ability to get feedback directly from the judges as to why your story won or not. I'll tell you a secret: 85 percent of the feedback that judges write relates to these ten elements. If you master this list, it will be a real challenge for them to give you critical feedback.
(Would you like specific feedback on how your story met these ten key points or not? Take part in one of our writing competitions and sign up for judge feedback!)
2. The secrets of great storytelling. A list like this can feel fictional: "Oh, you mean, if I just put these ten arbitrary things in my story, will it be twisted so that the judges like it?" But here's the thing: the judges want to see these elements because they're basic skills of great storytelling. You don't need a writing contest to apply them – master these skills and you'll be a better storyteller for every story.
The best way to master these basics of storytelling is to take part in a writing competition. You could also win a prize! Ready to step in?
Take part in our next competition ยป
Which of these things is the biggest challenge for you? Let us know in the comments!
WORK OUT
Try writing a story for the Summer Writing Contest! Here's the contest topic:
Isolation. Alone in one room. Alone in the world. Caught together. Or. . . free from other people? Wherever your story goes and no matter how many characters it goes through, consider isolation.
For the next fifteen minutes, create a story based on the theme of the competition. Concentrate on the essentials four and five: Involve your readers with a great opening line and get to work straight away.
When you're done, share your story in the comments below and leave feedback for your co-writers. And hey, while you're at it, why not put your story in the competition for a chance to win?
Alice Sudlow
