So You

So You're Judging a Writing Contest...
by
Emily Cotler

First, do no harm.

No, I am not referring to Hippocrates, but take the old Greek’s wise words to heart and to task next time you judge a writing contest. After all, a contest experience should be positive for all involved, even for those entrants who don’t final, and including those judges who have a hundred thousand other things they really should be doing. At every step of a contest experience, no participant should feel coddled, taken advantage of, or abused. Your job as a judge is not to inform someone that her writing is so bad it will never ever be published. By the same token, you are not judging a contest for the mere purpose of being a cheerleader. Your job is rather straightforward: to evaluate an entry within the guidelines of the contest.

That said, let’s establish a basic fact: your chapter is sponsoring a contest because contests bring in money. Certainly there is some prestige in hosting an excellent contest, but contests are fundraisers. You are a volunteer and to you a sincere Thank You. Your educated, experienced, unbiased, valuable time is hugely appreciated. Really, everybody loves you —especially the overworked contest coordinator.

We’ve all heard the horror stories of judges marking chunks of points off for paper that wasn’t thick enough or because she personally couldn’t stomach "ANOTHER redhead with unruly curls?!" This is worse than bad judging, this is off the charts. There is little to be done about those few bad apples except for not inviting them to judge next year, but for the rest of us who have volunteered their time to assist in this type of fundraiser, here are a few things to bear in mind.

1. Be constructive, not unduly harsh.

2. Know what the contest called for when it was advertised. Is the contest called "Best opening hook?" Is it "Love scenes are us?" Is it a prepper for the Golden Heart and therefore a strict 55-page beginning and synopsis? If you are judging a contest that calls for simply a scene, be aware that you may not get a whole lot of plot follow-through, whereas if your contest is a Great Beginnings and you are only given 15 pages to judge, you may not get a full idea of the extent of the conflict or of individual motivation. Think about it: in a book you buy, wouldn’t you feel robbed of your money if you knew everything in the first chapter and a half? Also, consider that not every plot twist can be included in a synopsis. Look for character growth and motivation as well as conflict climax and resolution in a synopsis.

3. Hopefully your contest has a detailed scoresheet. Read it a few times before you begin judging. If you have a question about how something is phrased, ask your coordinator. For instance: "Villain’s motives well-defined." Does this mean that if in the first chapter you don’t find out exactly what the villain is all about then the entry is toast, or does it mean you only need to detect a hint of external conflict? If there is no specific POV part of the scoresheet, do you evaluate it under structure or voice? Clarify rather than guess.

4. Be aware that you are not an editor. You are not reading this entry with the possibility of buying it and hanging your name and reputation on the gamble. The best way to look at your job is to consider yourself a very experienced reader. Does the jerky writing and bad pacing give you a migraine, or does the writing voice seem promising? Do you like the characters? Do you wish you had the rest of the book to climb into bed with, the kids and dishes be damned? Such is a good sign.

5. Leave your biases at the coat check. You don’t like medievals? Cowboys give you hives? One more redheaded heroine with unruly curls and you’re going to seriously start considering indiscriminate target practice? Too bad. Get over it. Look at the story. Is it well-written? Does it flow? Go back to your scoresheet and be impartial. Karma will be kind to you when you send in a time-travel and the judge getting yours thinks all that paranormal stuff is hokey but she scores your writing high because you are a good writer.

6. Give good feedback to your coordinator. Were certain parts of your scoresheet hard to follow? Hard to evaluate based upon how it was worded? Do you have suggestions for a better evaluation method? Your input is valuable. How else can the contest get better?

Remember, the better the contest gets, the more prestigious winning it becomes and the more entrants will enter and the more money your chapter will raise.

And no one gets harmed in the process.

Emily Cotler is the newest Sweet Valley High writer. Sweet Valley, the young adult series revolving around the Wakefield twins, Elizabeth and Jessica, has been around for years, however, this year a new line is being released: Sweet Valley High - Senior Year. Emily just finished writing #6, entitled YOUR WORST NIGHTMARE, due out early summer 99. Emily's first manuscript THE TRUCE, a medieval romance, finaled in the 1996 Golden Heart Competition. Emily’s second manuscript, IF ONLY THIS NIGHT, also a medieval, was a finalist in the 1998 Golden Heart.

In addtion to articles on writing competitions, Emily is also a regular contributor to DESKTOP PUBLISHERS JOURNAL, a nationally-distributed magazine. She wrote the cover article for the October 1998 issue on Stock Photography. But writing is only one of Emily’s jobs. She freelances as a graphic designer, building everything from menus to websites (please visit www.juliaquinn.com). She snowboards whenever she can.