If you want to win a short story contest, the first thing you must do is study the rules. Many submissions are disqualified because they don't meet all the requirements. If formatting guidelines have not been given, single space the text and indent the paragraph. If the rules state a maximum of 1000 words, a 1200-word story, however brilliant, will hit the trash pile. If the short story contest calls for G-rated material (which means no swearing, vulgarities, or erotica) and your entry contains just one swear word, it will be discarded.
Welcome to the judging world, where judges go strictly by the rules. Assuming you follow the guidelines, the judges will then look at these four elements:
• Originality
• Creativity
• Style
• Technique
Let’s look at each one and see what they mean.
- Originality
Short story contest winners come from second, third, and tenth thoughts. Some contests give you a theme, such as, “Wedding Day.” What’s the first story idea that comes to mind? Whatever it is, forget it. You can bet everyone else will have thought of it, too. A large percentage of submissions will be so similar that the competition will be fierce.
Make your short story unique and the judges will love you. Come at it from a different point of view. Seek a new angle.
- Creativity
Don’t wrack your brain for an idea. Relax. Get your conscious, critical mind out of the way and allow ideas to bubble up from your subconscious. In other words, daydream.
Ask yourself who, what, when, where, why, how, and ‘what if?’ Let your train of thought go where it will. Before long, you’ll have an idea for a story that is different.
For example, what if a shy looking woman attended a wedding and sat in the back, all alone? At the reception, she avoided conversation. She partook of the food and drinks and then left. Back in her lonely, one room apartment she scanned the Forthcoming Marriages column in the local paper to see where her next free food and wine would come from. See? The ‘what if’ question can lead you down original alleys.
- Style
In short story contests, you’ll never wrong with the KISS method: Keep It Simple, Sweetie! Don’t try to impress the judges with $3 words. Like any other reader, they want a story that is readable and absorbing.
Every sentence must move the story forward. The reader doesn’t want flowery descriptions of a rose garden in the moonlight. He/she wants to know what the girl is doing there at two in the morning and what will happen next. Stick to the point.
- Technique
A short story contest calls for three distinct parts: the beginning, middle, and end. It's not as easy as it sounds.
The beginning introduces the main character and what the short story is about. The middle develops the theme and keeps the reader hooked. The ending must be believable, resolve the problems, and leave the reader satisfied.
Above all, don’t overlook simple formatting rules.
• Make a new paragraph for every new speaker
• Single space your short story and indent paragraphs
• Run the spellchecker!
• Watch your punctuation
And Finally…
If you don’t write an original entry for a short story contest, at least rewrite it to fit. For example, Creative Writing Institute’s contest is G-rated, which means no swearing or vulgar language. We’ve already received entries that contain good stories but the author probably didn’t cull out swear words from a story they had already written so it won’t be eligible. What a shame. Make sure your entry fits the rules.
This is short story contest is especially for beginners and the first thing the writer must learn is that judges go strictly by the book. See the rules here and abide by them: http://www.creativewritinginstitute.com. Above all, have fun! First prize wins $$ OR a FREE Writing Course!
