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Does it matter when you submit your entry to a writing competition?
Hi all,
I think there was some discussion about this on a thread recently so sorry if its a repeat, but do you think it makes a difference when you send in your entry to a writing competition? I think I remember someone on here saying that lots of competitions will choose their shortlist from the earliest entries, and then not bother to read any entries sent in subsequently. Do you think this is common practice? Im just thinking of how to maximise my chances of getting to a shortlist, and wondered if timing made any difference?
Thanks for any thoughts and productive writing!
Comments
Who is to say the earliest entries will be the better ones?
write the best entry you can, send it off when you can't improve on it and take your chances like everyone else, I think! Credible competitions will judge fairly and when your entry actually arrives will be irrelevant - unless it's late, of course.
Personally, I think it's best to send them as soon as they're ready, in case you forget or they get delayed in the post.
I wouldn't recommend sending late though in case some comp administrators are tyrants!
However, I'm always a bit alarmed when I see (on a blog, for instance) the judge for a competition I'm planning to enter talking about the entries they've already read - often a few weeks before the closing date. I wonder whether in those circumstances the early birds have an advantage as the judge is 'fresher'?
In other cases, though, I guess being the last story to arrive might mean it's on top of the pile, so it's the first one to be read.
I don't think there are any hard and fast rules. As long as you give yourself enough time so that you're not rushing so much you send a badly edited mess of a story, it should be okay. Personally, I don't like to send my work in too far ahead of the deadline as until the closing date has passed I tend to obsess over all the little changes I *could* have made, if only I hadn't sent it in already. Once the closing date's passed, I tend to be able to focus on the next story in line.
Credible competitions will judge fairly and when your entry actually arrives will be irrelevant - unless it's late, of course.[/quote]
[quote=michellez]I think I remember someone on here saying that lots of competitions will choose their shortlist from the earliest entries, and then not bother to read any entries sent in subsequently. Do you think this is common practice?[/quote]
No, I don't think that is common practice. I mean, it is vulgar and rude as in common, but not something I would expect to happen frequently, if at all.
Edited to add, Patrick's advice is relevant to this one:
http://erewashwriterscompetition.weebly.com/