Creative Writing

Finding the right fiction writing contests is a great way to get a start as a writer. Any a freelance writer, fiction writer, or poet will tell you that it is difficult to really get discovered. Getting to the point where you can actually publish your own fiction is something that can take years, if not decades. A fiction writing contest is just one of the tools that writers can use to give them the boost they need.

One of the best things about fiction writing contests is that they tend to be open to untested and unpublished writers. If you have been trying to publish your fiction, you have probably noticed by now that a lot of the best magazines only take fiction submissions by published writers. When an organization holds a fiction writing contest, however, they usually have the goal of discovering new writers and giving them their first break. Not only are they willing to consider you if you are untested – they actually prefer it.

When you enter fiction writing contests, it is important to read the fine print. As a matter of fact, that is the first thing any professional fiction writer will tell you – always read the fine print. Most writers contests want first serial rights, or perhaps the right to republish you for one year. There are contests, however, that will actually completely take your rights if you win. That means you will not own the work you submitted anymore, and never be able to publish it on your own again. It isn’t worth it! There are plenty of reputable fiction contests out there, so don’t give away your rights.

Free fiction writing contests are a great place to start. After all, you generally have nothing to lose. Even a contest that require A reading fee, however, is not necessarily a no go. Many of these contests only asked for a nominal fee – usually around 10 to 15 dollars – and promised great cash rewards if your piece is selected. Just look at the 10 dollars as a write off – part of the cost of doing business. After all, the rewards that you have the potential to reap are more than worth it! Usually, I try to enter three free contests for every contest that I pay for. Some people have slightly different ratios, but the important thing is to make sure that you are taking advantage of all the free opportunities out there.

It is important for creative people to start as young as possible. If you want to go into business, public service, politics, or some other normal career, you don’t really need to worry about it until college. Get good grades, have a fun childhood, and relax. With creative people, however, things are a little bit different. The sooner you get your start, the better. A lot of the most successful writers, artists, and musicians that I know made their first contacts when they were only adolescents.

This is why writing contests for teens are so important for aspiring writers. Adolescence is about the only time in life where everyone wants to hear your poetry. Not only do creative writing contests for teens allow them to make money and get recognition, but more importantly they give teenagers a sense of purpose. If these young writers can build their confidence and their talents at an early age, they can go on to do great things.

Most schools have a lot of information about writing contests for teens. High school English teachers generally will announce the dates of the important teenage writing contests. The Scholastic Writing Awards is one of the biggest ones. If you can get national recognition in that contest, it will look very good on your college application and give you bragging rights to your friends. Most areas will also have a local writing contest for teens. When I went to high school, for example, the local Borders bookstore hosted a poetry contest. I ended up winning first prize in it, something which gave me the confidence to really take my writing to the next level.

Of course, there are literally thousands of writing contests for teens out there. The problem is that not all of them are completely legitimate. It is important to pick and choose carefully. A small reading fee is not unusual, but don’t pay more than 15 dollars or so. Also, read the fine print. Some so-called writing contests for teens aren’t contests at all. They are essentially vanity publishing outfits. For the price of a reading fee, your teenager can “win” the chance to be published in an anthology, which you can then buy copies of.  This is fine if vanity publishing is something that interests you. It is not, however, a particularly good way to win money, awards, recognition. Good luck, and happy hunting!

If you’re a college student, you’re well aware that education is expensive! On top of tuition, the cost of college textbooks is not insignificant. You may spend upwards of $2,000 for books in just one year. At the end of the semester, you may want to keep some, but generally, you’ll want to sell books to recoup some of your cost and put that money into next semester’s books. Selling used books is a notoriously unprofitable business. Here are some tips on maximizing your return when you’re selling used books.

Given that the college bookstore typically gives you half of the cost you paid, then resells to another student for anywhere from 70 – 80% of the new price, selling used books back to the bookstore makes your loss substantial, while they are making a 25% profit on a resale of the same book they first profited when they sold to you. Perhaps unfair, but that’s the way it works.

One way to minimize your losses when selling used books is to advertise on campus through their intranet. Since other students are needing your books, they’re also aware that the bookstore will charge them 70 – 80% of the new book price, while only paying the seller 50%. Therefore, if you advertise a price between 60 – 65%, both you and the buyer will save.

When selling used books, there are other ways to advertise besides the campus intranet. You can list all the books you’re selling on a flyer, noting the condition of the book and your selling price. Hand out your flyers to friends. Word of mouth works as well.

Other seeming losing propositions in selling used books occurs when you sign up for a class and decide to drop it. Now you’ve got a book in mid-semester that no one’s looking to buy until the next semester. Not necessarily. There’s always someone who signed up for the same class within the same period in which you dropped the class. Include this book in your emails and flyers and you may well find an eager buyer for your used but “clean” book at 75% of the new cost.

When selling used books, it’s important to keep that book in as new a condition as possible. Avoid writing in the margins, highlighting and try your best not to spill coffee on it. Don’t let the dog chew on it or let that burger drip on the pages. A “clean” book makes selling used books easier and will command a higher price. Everyone concerned makes out in this deal.

Advertising on your website is another innovative way to get the most for your used textbooks. A blog can attract lots of readers with your interests and in your age group, particularly college students. Just put a link on your main page, labeled “My college bookstore” to lead your visitor to your online flyer. Shipping books at postal book rates is cheap.

You can see that selling used books need not be such a loser!

Do you enjoy reading? Now I’m not talking about the newspaper or the nutritional information on the side of a cereal box. I am referring to the reading that folks do in their spare time. It’s a means of pure entertainment. Often much better than any show on television of film at the local movie theater. We’re talking about fiction. Those outstanding stories that can take your imagination and emotions on a roller coaster ride. Once you delve into a good book, it’s truly difficult to put it down. Have you ever had this experience? Of course you have. Now, imagine how to write a book from the author’s point of view. This is a major task. One that involves more than most people realize.

I don’t need to understand how to write a book, because I have no current interest in this field. I prefer to craft screenplays. Do you know the difference between the two? It is a pretty big one. First of all, most screenwriters may not how to write a book at all. The same goes for fiction writers. They can’t just whip their novel into a script. It’s a heavy process. Often a screenwriter will be hired to do such things. You should know the difference between these two types of entertainment. Obviously if you go and learn how to write a book, you will get involved with great detail. This is what fiction thrives on. You have to build that image in your head as you read. Therefore the author will describe even a small thing for an entire page or two, or more. This is not like screenwriting at all. When you craft a script, you are only writing what can be seen or heard on the screen. After all, your audience is not going to have a script handy. You can’t write a thought unless it’s actually played out. A screenwriter must stay out of the characters heads. Of course a novel is the polar opposite. You need all the detail you can get since nothing is on a screen before you.

Do you want to know how to write a book? I warn you that this is a process indeed. I encourage you to take a few courses on writing and possibly read a few books. This helps a great deal. Once you know where to start, then write, write, write. All books and stories for that matter begin with a great idea.