Congratulations MARA Fiction From the Heartland Contest Finalists

This week, my local RWA chapter's contest announced its finalists.

The MARA Fiction From the Heartland contest recognizes the top Ten scores, regardless of category. This year, we had some incredible entries and it was tough, tough competition. It took more than 93% of total points to final in the top ten, so our agent/editor judges should look forward to some stellar submissions!

Six other entries, received at least 90% of total points possible and we thought that deserved some recognition, so we added Honorable Mention finalists as well.

Finalist' entries will go on to an agent and editor, while Honorable Mention Finalists' entries will go only to their respective category editor judge.


Finalists:

Erin Rieber
More Than a Stranger - Historical

Crista McHugh
Tangled Web - Paranormal

Isis Rushdan
Kindred of the Fallen - Paranormal

Diane Burton
The Pilot - Paranormal

Sarah Baker
Saving Captain Brookes - Inspirational

Deborah Gross
Stealing Justice - Romantic Suspense

Sharon Wray
Midnight Guardian - Romantic Suspense

Robin Weaver
Burned Illusions - Romantic Suspense

Rebecca Sampson
Alli’s Playground - Young Adult

Robin Weaver
Deep Speak - Young Adult

Honorable Mention:

Margaret Golla
The Demon Connection - Paranormal

Meredith Conner
Tall, Dark and Furry - Paranormal

Regina Tittel
Abandoned Hearts - Inspirational

Robin Weaver
The Bookstore Connection - Category Romance

Sarah Tormey
Rough Riding Ranger - Category Romance

Shoshana Brown
Squeaky Clean - Young Adult

WELL DONE!!!

But also, I want to offer a BIG Congratulations to all who entered. Having entered my share of contests before selling, I know what it's like to put my heart into an entry and wait. I know what it feels like to get dismal scores, to not final, to miss big or to miss finaling by 1 point. I know what it feels like to read judge's comments and wince, or to smack myself for missing this thing or that thing or to smile big because the judge "got me". It takes courage to write and submit something, be it to a contest or to an agent or editor, and each of you should be proud that you put yourselves out there.

Best of Luck to all of our Finalists and Honorable Mention finalists in the Final Round. May the requests abound!

I'd love to hear some of your contest experiences...

A New Appreciation for Contest Coordinators

Just popping in this week to say "hi", as I'm trying hard to be a more dedicated blogger this year :) (We won't talk about the fact that being a better blogger has more to do with content than just showing up, though...this week, I'm just shooting for consistency!)

You see, I am coordinating the electronic entries for my chapter's writing contest this year and since I've just finished up sending a hundred contest entries to two different first round judges (and hence each entry had to be renamed and numbered and addressed twice), I am too exhausted to have anything of interest to say this week except:

Thanks, out there, to all you RWA Chapter contest coordinators. You rock!

And for that matter, thanks to all of the judges in our contest and any other. I love being part of an organization where writers volunteer their time to help each other make our writing better, and contests are one of the ways we do that.

Next week, I'll think of something really interesting to say...

Have a great one!

Do Contests Really Help Your Career?

Contests have been good to me in the 2009/2010 season, most certainly. All told, I’ve finaled in 7, including the RWA Golden Heart®, and won three (Chicago North’s Fire and Ice, Kiss of Death’s Daphne du Maurier and Heart’s Through History’s Romance Through the Ages) the last of which introduced my writing to my now agent, Barbara Poelle with the Irene Goodman Agency.

I’ve been getting a few e-mails here and there from people who have noticed my finals/wins asking me how valuable I thought contesting was to launching a career, and if I felt that doing so well in contests was instrumental to getting an agent.

I must say yes. And no.

You already know my agent read my first three chapters in a contest, and went on to request the full, so you may be saying “Duh, of course contest finals were instrumental in launching her career.” But it’s not that simple. I had several agent offers to choose from, only 2 of which found me through a contest. Two more came through referrals from existing clients, and the other 4 through the good old query process. Had I chosen one of those agents instead, the answer would be very different.

Here’s the thing: getting an agent or editor to buy into your story ALL COMES DOWN TO THE WRITING, and not just in the first 25-50 pages (the average length of a contest entry). I’ve heard more than one editor and agent say that while contest finals are nice, they don’t pay a ton of attention to them (yes, even the Golden Heart) because many times they’ve read a polished, perfect first three chapters, but then the story falls apart, or the voice/story/plot/characters don’t carry through to the end of the book.

The most instrumental thing for your career then, is to WRITE A DARNED GOOD BOOK, through and through. No matter how well I’d done in contests, I wouldn’t have gotten a single offer if the entire book hadn’t stood out in some way.

That being said, I would still answer YES, as to whether contests have been instrumental to my career, and that is because of the feedback I’ve received. You see, before Sweet Enemy started doing well in contests, I entered another 5 (4 previous to my actual first finalist entry) that I did not final in at all. But what I did get was valuable feedback. I learned something from each and every one of those entries, even from those judges who hated my story or wrote pretty harsh or nitpicky things (most judges were absolutely lovely, btw, even when giving criticism). I learned what was working (thus building my confidence), what people were tripping over, what words I over-used, what images weren’t coming through as I intended, and so on and so on and so on. Taking that feedback and unbiased criticism helped hone my story, showed me areas I needed to better educate myself in on the craft, and then I would try again and enter another contest to see if what I’d changed worked.

Just as important in my growth as a writer has been JUDGING contests. It’s amazing how much you learn about your own writing, or about mistakes writers make, when you are seeing them in someone else’s work. Conversely, you learn when you see something done just right!

And remember, contest finals are great, they let you bypass the slush-pile of whichever editor/agent is judging, and that’s nothing to sneeze at, but that’s all it does. In the end, it’s the writing that is going to win you that editor/agent’s heart, so above all else, educate yourself and hone your craft. That’s what will launch your career.

For those of you who have entered contests, how would you answer this question? For those thinking about contesting, what do you hope to get from the experience?

Now, a shameless plug for my chapter’s contest, deadline of September 10th. And yes, we’re known for great feedback.

Why YOU should enter MARA’s Fiction From the Heartland Contest

• FEEDBACK, FEEDBACK, FEEDBACK
o You get TWO full page critiques, one from a published author.
o Our contest provides detailed feedback on your entire entry, including big picture story feedback from your synopsis
o You will receive your comments back in time to prepare to enter the RWA Golden Heart®
• Manuscripts that final are read by BOTH an EDITOR and an AGENT

o Check out 2010’s Fabulous Line-Up!

Agents
• Helen Breitwieser, Cornerstone Literary Agency
• Sara Megibow, Nelson Literary Agency
• Laura Bradford, Bradford Literary Agency
• Karen Solem, Spencerhill Associates
• Claudia Cross, Sterling Lord Literistic

Editors
• Category Romance - Susan Litman, Harlequin/Silhouette
• Contemporary Single Title - Danielle Poiesz, Pocket Books
• Historical - Tessa Woodward, Avon Books
• Romantic Suspense - Lauren Plude, Grand Central Publishing
• Paranormal - Meredith Giordan, Berkley Publishing Group
• Erotic Romance – Meghan Conrad, Ellora's Cave
• Young Adult - Natashya Wilson, Harlequin Teen
• Inspirational - Melissa Endlich, Steeple Hill

• Trained judges, who judge in the genre they write. No MARA members are allowed to enter our own contest.

• Overall winner receive $50 and a commemorative plaque

• Did we say FEEDBACK?

Here’s what some past entrants have said about our contest:

"I attribute my first sale to this contest." - Laura Abbot

"I had no idea when I entered the MARA Contest how it would change my life. Not only did I win the contemporary catagory and the best overall, but the judging editor requested the entire manuscript and I went on to become a published author! I can't recommend this contest enough." -Donna Delaney

And 2000 RITA® winner for Best First Book (The Maiden and the Unicorn), Isolde Martyn thanked MARA and the Fiction From the Heartland Contest in her acceptance speech

So be sure to polish up your entry and get it in today! Deadline Sept 10th, 2010. www.mararwa.com

When It Rains, It Pours

The blog has sort of a double meaning today. My heart goes out to all of those in the mid-east states who are suffering with torrential rains and unprecedented flooding, and I pray for all those who are displaced and grieving the loss of homes, jobs or loved ones. I sincerely hope recovery is swift.

Many of us in the romance writing world have been particularly glued to the news because our annual national convention was slated to be held at the Gaylord Opryland Hotel in Nashville at the end of July. I am very saddened that this no longer seems possible for many reasons, not the least of which because of the financial resources that will now be leaving the Nashville area when they need it most. I know we were all hoping that the Gaylord would be able to assess the damage and say, “Hey, we’ll be ready for you in July!” Sadly, that is not the case.

Regardless of where the RWA® board ultimately finds for us to move to, I know many of our hearts will be in Nashville this year.

As to the double meaning of this blog, I am experiencing a pouring down of wonderful news. I learned today that Sweet Enemy is a finalist in the Kiss of Death Chapter’s Daphne contest in the historical category. I am astounded and gratified (and a little bit embarrassed) at this recent rash of contest success and am very excited about the final judge, who is an agent I would be thrilled to work with. I hope she loves Sweet Enemy as much as I do.

Wishing you all a wonderful week...

Sometimes Even When You Win, You Lose…

Back safely from an incredible trip to Chicago for the Chicago North’s Spring Fling writer’s conference. This was my first time at Spring Fling and I must say that it was a phenomenal regional conference. The headliners, Cherry Adair and Julia Quinn, were both gracious and quite hilarious, the workshops I attended were very well done, and there were a wide array of editors/agents present. In other words, the conference was top notch. It’s put on every two years, so I would recommend planning to go in spring 2012. It is well worth it.

I can’t say enough about the people I got to know. Lydia Dare, Amy De Trempe, Samantha Grace and Erin Kelly, you girls rock! More about them individually to come, as they are historical authors not to be missed, but until then, you can check out their blog at Lady Scribes.

I got the chance to meet three other Golden Heart ® finalists, Rochelle Staab, Cat Schield and Erica O’Rourke and I must say, they are completely lovely and I am honored to be in the same GH class with them.



Erica O'Rourke, Rochelle Staab, Cat Schield and Me.


And I also met authors Sarah M. Anderson , Pamela Cayne and Ann Curtis as well as caught up with friend and awesome Regency author, Cheryl Ann Smith and Nancy J. Parra, Joelle Charbonneau and Jenna Peterson. All in all, a great time!

So now, to address the title of this blog. I am thrilled to have won the Historical Category of the Fire and Ice contest. It’s such an honor and I am grateful that the judges thought well enough of my manuscript to send it to the final round, and that the final round judge found it worthy of winning the category. But one of the things I enter contests for is to get my work in front of a particular editor or agent in hopes that they will request the full manuscript, and in that I lost. I also learned a hard lesson about the business of writing this weekend. During my editor appointment , the editor who judged my entry told me she very much enjoyed Sweet Enemy and that I had a wonderful voice and she’d love to see anything else I have, but that they’d recently published a particular book (by an author I really like, so I couldn’t even make a voodoo doll of her because she’s just too darned nice) with a similar premise to mine and therefore she couldn’t request it. The editor had some other lovely things to say about my writing, and she was very gracious and kind.

My pubbed friends assure me that editors don’t often say the things she did just to be nice and that sometimes it all just comes down to rotten timing. Perhaps so, but I am still disappointed.

Rejection and perseverance are both part of the game, so I am moving forward in the agent hunt in hopes of finding a house that loves Sweet Enemy. And I’m buying a fun gold gilded frame for my Fire and Ice certificate and maybe taking myself out for a nice glass of wine with my winnings!

In other news, I found out that Sweet Enemy is a finalist in the Georgian/Regency/Victorian category of Hearts Through History’s Romancing the Ages contest, with the final judge being an agent I’d really like to have. So I’ll set me sights on that and keep writing.

See you next week!

Off to Chicago for some Fire and Ice...

Busy week this week in the Snow household, with each of us coming and going different directions. My husband just returned from an extended business trip, my son has been away visiting first my parents and then my hubby’s while I finish up rewrites (thank you, awesome family!) and now I am leaving to go to Chicago for four days just when his grandparents will be bringing him home. I’ll miss seeing my son by hours…

But life is exciting, too. I popped in during Lent to tell you all of the Golden Heart® final, but another fabulous thing happened while I was away. Sweet Enemy is also a finalist in Chicago North’s “Fire and Ice” contest . So I and a good friend, historical author Keri Smith, will be going to their Spring Fling Conference and awards dinner this weekend, where Julia Quinn and Cherry Adair are headlining and where I will also be pitching the manuscript to an editor I’d really love to write for. All that, and I get to meet four other Golden Heart finalists who will be in attendance, catch up with my friend and fellow author, Nancy J. Parra, as well as meet many other incredibly awesome and talented writers. If you’re interested, details can be found here.

Chicago Spring Fling

Maybe I’ll have super news to share next Tuesday…and if not, at least I’ll be holding my boy in my arms again by then.

Have an awesome week!

Golden Heart

I'm breaking my Lenten Internet Fast and making an unprecedented Thursday post to say....

I FINALED IN THE GOLDEN HEART!!!!

Sweet Enemy is a 2010 finalist in the Regency Historical category.

For those of you who may not know, the Romance Writer's of America's Golden Heart ® is the most prestigious contest out there for unpublished romance authors, with about 1200 entrants per year. Find out more at:

RWA Golden Heart Finalists 2010

I'm still in the clouds here, so I don't have much to say yet. I just wanted shout it to the blogosphere!

My congratulations to all of the other finalists, particularly my Critique Partner, Leigh Stites, writing as Elisabeth Burke, for her final, The Healer, in the Historical Category.

And I wanted to express my sincerest gratitude to my awesome critique groups, without whom, this wouldn't have been possible: Katy Madison, Keri Smith, Leigh Stites, Fran Abram, Gretchen Jones and Stacey Long.

And thanks to the supportive writers in my local chapters who read my entry and helped me polish it up...MARA and MRW...you rock!!!

I'll be back after Easter with more, but I couldn't resist stopping in! I'm sure God will forgive me :)

Heather