Category Archives: Contests

PICTURE BOOK PARTY TO GET AN AGENT

PB_Party_for_contest

Holy-moly! It’s another picture book contest. Things are looking up for the PB writers and illustrators, indeed. On March 27, 2018 Michelle Hauck and Sharon Chriscoe will co-host a Picture Book Party. Submissions will open at 4pm EST and will remain open for one hour. You need to have a completed and polished PB manuscript and illustrations are encouraged to be submitted (if you’re an illustrator).

Participating Agents and Editors

The agent round will be between April 4-6, 2018. Be sure to checkout the complete guidelines on the website. You can also follow helpful hints for all writers on the twitter hashtag #PBParty.

As always, good luck.

P.D. Pabst
Blogger and writer of MG/YA fiction.

Don Freeman Grant for Illustrators

SCBWI Grant and Award Logos

According to the webpage, the Don Freeman Grants are available to all members of the SCBWI, regardless of membership level, who are working on a picture book or their portfolio. They are not available for projects on which there is already a contract.

Two grants of $1,000 each will be awarded annually. One grant to a published illustrator and one to an pre-published illustrator. The money may be used in any way to help you complete your project. Acceptable uses include: purchasing art supplies, enrollment in workshops or conferences, courses in advanced illustrating or writing techniques, travel for research or to expose work to publishers/art directors, or childcare.

Enrolment is open and ends on  March 31, 2018. Visit the webpage to for complete information and guidelines to submit. As always, good luck.

P.D. Pabst
Blogger and writer of MG/YA fiction.

Poetry Contest

Winning Writers

Winning Writers is sponsoring the Wergle Flomp Humor Poetry Contest , which ends April 1, 2018. This contest seeks today’s best humorous poems. There isn’t a fee to enter, and even better, it’s for published or unpublished work! That’s right, even if the authors works was already published, it’s still eligible.

The judges will award a first prize of $1,000 and a second prize of $250. Ten Honorable Mentions will receive $100 each. The top 12 entries will be published online. To enter, submit a funny poem of no more than 250 lines. As always, good luck!

P.D. Pabst
Blogger and writer of MG/YA fiction.

AUTHOR MENTOR MATCH #AMM

Author Mentor Matchup was created by Heather Kaczynski and Alexa Donne. The object is to match new writers with authors further along in the publishing process and gain invaluable mentoring! That’s right, this is an opportunity to get your manuscript critiqued (for free) before submitting to agents!

Authors can select up to four mentors during the submission window between March 16, 2018 through March 21, 2018. Watch for the mentor BIOS to be posted to learn what age groups and genres they wish to see in their inbox!

Please note there is a two-step process for entering:

  1. Fill out the submission form. (I believe the form will appear during the sub window period.)
  2. Email the proper information to authormentormatch@gmail.com:
  • A query (pasted in the body of the email!)
  • The first 50 pages/3 chapters of your novel (whichever is longer & can be attached)
  • A synopsis

Be sure to include in the subject line the manuscripts Age Category +Genre + Title. (ie: YA Sci-Fi – Mars Plants are the Bomb) on the email submission. And check out the site in order to know how to select the mentors you wish to submit because it isn’t clear quite yet. (I’m guessing this might be part of the submission form.) As always, good luck!

P.D. Pabst
Blogger and writer of MG/YA fiction.

JAMES JONES FELLOWSHIP CONTEST

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The James Jones Fellowship Contest is for a novel-in-progress by a United States unpublished author. The award is given annually with a grand prize of $10,000. There are two runner-ups given a prize of $1000 each. A selection from the winning work will be published in Provincetown Arts. In order to enter, the author needs to submit the first 50 pages of the novel-in-progress, a two-page outline, and a $30 entry fee.

According to the web page, the award is intended to honor the spirit of unblinking honesty, determination, and insight into the cultural and social issues exemplified by the late James Jones, author of From Here to Eternity and other prose narratives of distinction. Authors can submit online or via SASE. The deadline for the contest is March 15, 2018. For complete guidelines, please visit the fellowship website. As always, good luck.

P.D. Pabst
Blogger and writer of MG/YA fiction.

PASS OR PAGES CONTEST

PASSORPAGES

Operation Awesome is hosting a Pass or Pages this month. For this round, the category is  for Young Adult Science Fiction and Fantasy novels. Submissions open between March 12 (6am EST) to  March 14 (6pm EST), 2018 This is an opportunity to get feedback from an agent on your query and first 250 words of your manuscript. Peeps, this is priceless! And as a possible bonus, the agent reserves the right to request your FULL.

The participating agents are:

There will be a form for submissions on Operation Awesome when the entry window opens. For complete rules and previous feedback reveals, go here. As always, good luck!

P.D. Pabst
Blogger and writer of MG/YA fiction.

Brenda Drake’s #Pitmad Is Coming!

Nothing soothes the writerly soul than a good twitter pitch party! This Thursday, March 8, 2018 is Brenda Drake’s infamous #PitMad between the hours of 8am-8pm (EDT). Common age category and genre hashtags are below.
Age Categories:
#PB = Picture Book
#C = Children’s
#CB = Chapter Book
#CL = Children’s Lit
#MG = Middle Grade
#YA = Young Adult
#NA = New Adult
#A = Adult
Genres/Sub-genres:
#AA = African American
#AD = Adventure
#CF = Christian Fiction
#CON = Contemporary
#CR = Contemporary Romance
#DIS = Disabilities
#DV = Diversity
#E = Erotica
#ER = Erotic Romance
#ES = Erotica Suspense
#F = Fantasy
#H = Horror
#HA = Humor
#HF = Historical Fiction
#HR = Historical Romance
#INSP = Inspirational
#IRMC = Interracial/Multicultural
#MR = Magical Realism
#M = Mystery
#Mem = Memoir
#LGBT
#LF = Literary Fiction
#NF = Non-fiction
#R = Romance
#P = Paranormal
#PR = Paranormal Romance
#RS = Romantic Suspense
#S = Suspense
#SF = SciFi
#SPF = Speculative Fiction
#T = Thriller
#UF = Urban Fantasy
#W = Westerns
#WF = Woman’s Fiction
The rules clearly state to only pitch THREE times per manuscript during the contest. Don’t break the rules and clog the feed! Also, please remember anyone can stalk the feed. So, do your research before submitting your manuscript!
As always, good luck!
P.D. Pabst
Blogger and writer of MG/YA Fiction.

Secret Agent Contest via Authoress is Coming!

Authoress

Authoress (aka Jillian Boehme) is hosting a round of Secret Agent on her popular Miss Snark’s First Victim site. If you’ve followed Authoress for several years, then you know that she only unveiled herself because she finally got her first book deal! (And this was her one condition she had promised herself before unveiling her true identity.) And many of us are so excited for her because she has given back to the community for so-so-so long! (Thank you Jillian!)

Now, for a few basic details of the contest:

  • Submissions open between Noon & 11:59 pm EDT, March 5th, 2018
  • This is a lottery. The BOT will draw 50 random names.
  • Only the First 250 words will be submitted.
  • Only completed and polished manuscripts may be entered.
  • Only ONE entry per person!

As always, there is no fee to enter the contest. This month’s contest will include the following genres only:

  • Mystery
  • Thriller
  • Literary Fiction (family saga, immigrant stories, etc.)
  • Upmarket Women’s Fiction
  • YA (literary and commercial)

For complete guidelines and entry form, go here. As always, good luck!

P.D. Pabst
Blogger and writer of MG/YA fiction.

#FaithPitch Twitter Event For Faith-Based Fiction

A Twitter pitch event exclusively for faith-based fiction is being hosted by Little Lamb Books on February 28, 2018 between 8am –  8pm CST. This is for board books, picture books, middle grade, young adult, and adult fiction that fall under the categories of inspirational, faith-based, biblical worldview, or Christian. Different denominations, ethnicities, a POV in this niche are encouraged. Be sure to use the hashtag #FaithPitch and only pitch 4 times per manuscript during the pitch window. (Maximum of 4 manuscripts are permitted.)

As with all pitch events, any agent or editor can troll the feed. Be sure to do you research before sending off your book baby to them! For complete guidelines, go here. And as always, good luck!

P.D. Pabst
Blogger and writer of MG/YA fiction.

Creative Capital Art & Literature Direct Funding and Career Development Contest

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Creative Capital is helping artists working in all creative disciplines realize their vision and build sustainable practices. Creative Capital provides each funded project with up to $50,000 in direct funding and career development services valued at $45,000, for a total commitment of up to $95,000 per project.

Um, need I repeat that? Up to $95,000!

This month (February 2018), they are accepting submissions in 34 disciplines. These include works in film, literature, performing arts, visual arts, and a number of other media. Here are some of the works they’ll consider:

  • Animation
  • Architecture
  • Dance
  • Design
  • Music-Theater
  • Documentary Film
  • Narrative Film
  • Games
  • Photography
  • Video Art
  • Painting
  • Poetry
  • Sculpture
  • Multimedia
  • Works On Paper
  • And much, much more!

For a complete list of projects and guidelines, go here. But hurry, the deadline to send Letters of Inquiry and budget is February 28, 2018. And as always, good luck!

P.D. Pabst
Blogger and writer of MG/YA fiction.