The 2013 Colorado Gold Contest for Unpublished Writers

Are you thinking about entering The Colorado Gold Contest for unpublished writers?  Let me ask you something first, before sharing my thoughts. It sounds as if you’re trying to find an excuse to avoid entering. Why? What’s the problem?

What?! You’re afraid you won’t win? Well, pull up a chair and let 's talk about winning. To be honest though, I’m also anxious to talk about losing.

Yes, I’ve won my share of contests and it’s exciting. First you receive word that you’re one of the finalists in your category. At the big banquet, all spiffed in your fancy pants, your heart pounds when your name is called. You bolt to the podium amidst waves of applause. And then, the moment of truth. Who won? You did? Applause! The editor picked your entry and now she’s shaking your hand!

Shhhh… Here’s what you’ll do later, right? You’ll find her in the bar or hospitality suite and thank her for selecting your manuscript. Then, at the perfect moment, she’ll undoubtedly lean close and slip you a three-book contract.

Ahem. You really do write fiction, don’t you?

What will really happen is that you'll have an edge, and the final judge in your category might just request a full. Regardless, you’ll have increased confidence as well as additional credentials to boost your resume, which is very helpful in this profession of ours. But wait, there's more.

Cut to scene at pitch meeting: ME, many years ago: “Hi, Big $$ Agent! I’ve had several articles published as well as one short story, and I just won first place in the Colorado Gold Contest for my time-travel, Soliloquy... Yes, it’s complete, about 80,000 words. Sure, I have a few pages with me. Here.”

BIG $$ AGENT (flipping through the first three pages): “Well, at least you can write. Here’s my card, send me the manuscript next week. I'll take a look.”

Happy dance! Was it because I’d polished and honed and studied and fussed and fumed and listened to my friends in critique regarding those first 20 pages, which helped me win the contest? Most likely. But I didn't win first place the first time I entered.

Speaking of not winning, I want to talk about losing a writing contest and why that’s not a bad thing. Yes, I know it’s not politically correct to say “you lost,” but if you didn’t win that means you lost. Or does it?

Alone, in the dark (and sometimes stormy) night, I’d written my first book. Then I attended a class on How to Get Published. At the class I joined fellow attendees to form a critique group (Uff Da!). During that class I also learned about writing organizations, conferences, and contests. I learned about RMFW. I wasn’t alone anymore.

Entering my first Colorado Gold contest was scary-fun. I remember being chew-on-your-elbows nervous when preparing my entry, to the point that I probably had the rules memorized from double-checking them. I already mentioned I didn't win first place in that first contest I entered. But in retrospect I did win, BIG time.

The RMFW conference and contest were my first real foray into the big, bad world of publishing. When I didn’t win first place I was flattened. Think fresh asphalt on a hot day. I was so certain that I would be the next Zenna Henderson or Julian May. The world of fantasy would be mine for the taking… and it wasn’t. But the writers and editors and agents at the conference welcomed me to their panels and luncheons and dinners, and we talked, talked, talked about writing and publication. I doubt that I’ve ever learned so much in so few days. But I was still sad about not winning first place.

At some point I hitched up my britches, grabbed a cup of tea, and carefully arranged my score sheets on the dining room table so I could study them on a warm, optimistic morning. Oh no, look at this, where I keep shifting POV! Oh no, look at that passive text! Deep breath. Oh wait, here’s a nice comment. This judge liked my synopsis, said the overall story holds together. And this judge said my voice is INCREDIBLE. All in caps! Wow! Then she said if I’d tighten my pacing, address a few mechanical issues such as POV and passive text, that she would have purchased my book if flipping through it at a bookstore!

I’d already sent out at least a half-dozen queries before entering that contest. I should dig them out and send apologies to each of those editors. Don’t get me wrong, I’m proud of my first manuscript, my very first try at novel-length fiction, but I now recognize how poorly it’s crafted, that it lacks pacing, subplots, and world-building. The comments from the contest helped me recognize what I needed to study to improve my next effort. And manuscript number two was better. I kept entering contests, reading, attending critique, learning, and most importantly, writing new words. Then, with manuscript number three I finally landed my first publication contract.

But let’s talk rejection for a moment. There could be an analogy made between losing a contest and that loss preparing you for a glimpse of the future, when query after query might trigger rejection after rejection. In other words, the contest is kind of an apprenticeship for the world of publishing. You want to win the contest and you want to win a publication contract. To win either there are lessons to be learned, words to write, worlds to conquer.

When an agent sends comments with a rejection this is a compliment, even though they're attached to a rejection. Just like in the contest, there are lessons to be learned from those comments. Yes, you do have to filter all comments, decide if you agree or disagree. But your writing will improve and someday you will win! First you’ll land an agent or you’ll meet an editor and pitch to them. They’ll love your story idea and request a partial, then a full. You’ll receive an offer and then… a contract!

So when it comes to writing contests, it seems as if losing might just be winning. Of course winning is winning as well. Guess that means you can’t lose, doesn’t it?

Janet Fogg
RMFW's 2013 Colorado Gold Contest is now open!  See submission guidelines at http://www.rmfw.org/contest/ for full contest information!

Event! Event! 2013 Colorado Gold Contest Workshop!

Are you an unpublished writer of commercial novel-length fiction?  Interested in writing contests?

Join Chris Devlin, Rocky Mountain Fiction Writer's Contest Chair, and Terry Wright, Co-Chair, on March 16, 2013 for a free workshop: Introducing the 2013 Colorado Gold Writing Contest!

Saturday, March 16, 2013
1:00 pm - 3:00 pm

Arvada Public Library
7252 W. 57th Avenue
Arvada, CO 80002
No RSVP required

Making the finals in RMFW's annual Colorado Gold Writing Contest is a great way to get your work in front of agents and editors. In fact, many past winners and finalists have gone on to have their books published. If you're thinking about entering Colorado Gold this year, then don't miss this opportunity to spend an afternoon with contest chair (and longstanding contest judge) Chris Devlin. Come learn what makes a good entry great, what catches a judge's eye, and how to avoid common mistakes.

Chris Devlin is a writer, blogger, and social media specialist. A long-time RMFW member active in critique groups and as a contest judge, this year she's Contest Chair. Her novel St. Vitus Academy: The Lazarus Rock finaled in the Pikes Peak Writing Contest in YA paranormal. She likes to study storytelling in different mediums to find the commonality among them.

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If you can't make it to this event, keep an eye on RMFW's 2013 Colorado Gold Writing Contest page for this year's deadlines and rules for submission. 

Janet Fogg

Janet is the author of Soliloquy, an award-winning historical romance, and co-author of the military history best seller, Fogg in the Cockpit.

A Colorado Gold Nugget by Terry Wright

This is my fifth year running the Colorado Gold Writing Contest for RMFW. It’s hard to believe that much time has gone by. Thinking back to the beginning, I recall how word had gotten out that I’d sold my auto repair business and retired, so Susan Smith and Jeanne Stein asked me if I’d take over for them. They’d been at it for five years, so I figured I could do the same stint.

First and foremost, I’m a businessman. My eye is always on the bottom line. Profit and loss. Red and black ink. Cost v expenses, time equals money. Buy low, sell high. When I saw the contest through my entrepreneurial eyes, utter disbelief overwhelmed me.

The sheer amount of paper the contest volunteers had to shuffle staggered me. The number of people it required to move all that paper, the amount of space it took to store, organize, and stack it, the cost of the materials, the printing, the packaging, the postage, and the hundreds of man-hours, oh my. I went into ‘bottom line’ sticker shock.

Susan and Jeanne helped me survive that first year. Afterwards, I looked at the numbers, put my business experience to the bottom line, and came up with a new plan. Electronic submissions. If other contests could do it, so could RMFW. I told the Board it would take a total revamp of our procedures and that I was willing to do the work needed to usher the Colorado Gold into the 21st Century. They gave me the go-ahead to devise a new, easier, and cheaper way to conduct the contest.

The next year we accepted paper and electronic submissions, a kind of weaning-off-paper process. The third year, we went all electronic. Expenses dropped by 67%. This allowed us to budget in more prize money and fund two new categories: Action/Thriller and YA. Not one penny was spent on paper supplies and printing.

The Colorado Gold is now leaner and keener.

Chris Devlin will be your Contest Chair next year. She’s a 25-year member of RMFW, and she’s judged the contest most every year for the last twenty. This year she’s helping me, learning the ropes, and she’s thrilled to be involved. Thank you, Chris, for stepping up. You're a Colorado Gold Nugget.

Contest opens April 1st. Go to www.rmfw.org/contest for all the details.

Novel, Meet Your New Agent and Editor

Write it well. Get it in the hands of an acquiring agent or editor through the Gold Contest.


The judges of Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers Gold Contest look forward to reading your entry. Many of them are published authors! The first pages of your manuscript and your synopsis shall be scored by two judges and evaluated for the finals.


The five highest-scoring submissions in each category are already winners! If you make the finals, you receive your official RMFW finalist certificate—a must have for your author portfolio! And at this stage, you’ve already won $30!


Next step is on to the editor or agent who reads your entry!

Editor LaToya Smith with Grand Central Publishing is just one of the industry representatives who will look at the finalist! Grand Central publishes blockbuster authors like Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child, Anita Shreve, and David Baldacci. (See the more extensive list of editors and agents below.)


The Grand Prize of each category is $100.00!


BOOK DEALS HAVE BEEN MADE HERE!


You do not have to be present at the conference to become a finalist or win. The winners shall first be announced at the Colorado Gold Writers Conference, September 9-11, 2011 at the Renaissance Hotel in Denver, Colorado, then on Chiseled in Rock immediately after the ceremony.


Get the inside tips to help you win! Follow the Chiseled in Rock blog through either Google or Networked Blogs and receive links as we share tips and interview authors and former contest winners who found success through the Gold!


CONTEST CATEGORIES: Young Adult, Romance, Speculative Fiction, Mystery, Mainstream, and Action/Thriller.

The representatives booked so far are:

Agent Rebecca Strauss with McIntosh and Otis, Inc. Literary Agency

Agent Sara Megibow with Nelson Literary Agency

Agent Rachelle Gardner with Wordserve Literary Agency

Jennifer Unter with the Unter Agency

Editor Brian Farrey of Flux Publishing

Marisa Iozzi Corvisiero with L Perkins Agency

Editor LaToya Smith with Grand Central Publishing

Agent Molly Jaffa with Folio Literary Management

And more will be announced in the next coming months

Contest opens April 1, 2011. Deadline: June 1, 2011. Entry Fee: $30.

Official links for electronic registration are coming soon!

Start following the Rock now for your leg up!