PUB: annual contest

Our 10th Annual FundsforWriters Essay Contest

Theme for 2011: "Diligence"

Oh my gosh, has it been a decade since we started this contest? How phenomenal is that? What's phenomenal is looking back and seeing where I was in 2000 when I started FundsforWriters. I wrote for simple sanity's sake, each and every night when I arrived home from a stressful day job. Today, twelve years later, FundsforWriters has 40,000 readers and has received the infamous Writer's Digest 101 Best Websites for Writers recognition eleven times. That's diligence.

Your definition of diligence, however, might involve a personal relationship, a child, a career, a manuscript. Maybe you weathered a difficult phase in your life, and now that you've come out on the other side relieved yet wiser, stronger and empowered.

In this day of instant publishing versus traditional, of impatient waits for answers to query letters, the theme of Diligence seemed most appropriate. No, you don't have to write about self-publishing versus traditional. Just make Diligence the clear, ultimate, and striking point of your nonfiction essay.

The Entry Fee Option

A major different between FundsforWriters' contest and other writing contests is the option of paying an entry fee. Some writers don't believe in fees and other can't afford them. So we offer a no entry fee category. Others, however, are willing to submit the $5 entry fee in order to vie for the higher prize purse. Take your pick.

The Prize Money

ENTRY FEE CATEGORY - First place - $400. Second place - $100. Third place - $50.

NO ENTRY FEE CATEGORY - First place - $50. Second place - $25. Third place - $15.

Last year's 351 entrants made this contest a resounding success. It's when I read those essays that I realize why I do this contest. People pour their hearts into these pieces, these stories. Some raise a tear. Some send a shiver. Some make me wonder why some individuals aren't well-published and known across the Web. I see the souls of people striving to spin words into stories, turn thoughts into communication. I see them teaching school, selling insurance, fixing computers, fighting crime, taking care of elderly parents, carpooling kids, and going through life like everyone else. But in their bedrooms, studies and kitchens, they dig down into themselves to enter contests like this. They want to write.

Contests offer a barometer. Everyday people and seasoned scholars can enter the same competitions, both trying to step up another rung on that ladder. Even honorable mention is hope. It's a nod that what you fight to pen words at night, on weekends, at dawn before the family is up, your effort is deemed worthy.

I'm honored to be a part of that process and look forward to your submissions.

(Scroll past Sponsorships for Contest Guidelines)

The Door is Open for Contest Sponsors

If you've advertised with FundsforWriters, you quickly appreciated the loyalty of its readers. Your resulting hits, sales and sign-ups more than compensated for your already reasonable advertising cost. The testimonials on our ad page speak volumes. That's why we offer sponsorships for the Annual FundsforWriters Essay Contest. Take a moment to see if one of these opportunities fits your budget and marketing plan. Contact Hope via email if any questions.

Platinum Sponsor - One Slot Available - It will go fast.

  • The contest will be referenced as the Annual FundsforWriters Essay Contest, sponsored by ***fill in name***

  • Marketing material to other venues and websites will reference sponsor.

  • Logo and ad copy to appear near the top of each of the three newsletters July thru December 31, 2011.

  • Logo banner to appear on each web page on the FundsforWriters website July thru December 31, 2011.

  • Logo and ad copy to appear at the top on the Annual Contest page.

  • Valued at over $1,500 per regular FundsforWriters ad rates.

Platinum Sponsorship $500

 

 

Gold Sponsor - Five Slots Available

  • Logo and ad copy to appear in each of the three newsletters July thru December 31, 2011.

  • Logo banner to appear on each web page on the FundsforWriters website July thru December 31, 2011.

  • Logo and ad copy to appear on the Annual Contest page.

  • Valued at over $1,000 per regular FundsforWriters ad rates.

Gold Sponsorship $300

 

 

Contest Guidelines:

What to Put In/On your Email Submission:

  1. The title of the essay (do NOT use the theme as your title)
  2. Your name.
  3. Your email address.
  4. Note Entry Fee or No Entry Fee category.
  5. The word count.
  6. The essay itself in the body.

Guidelines:

  • Not to exceed 750 words.
  • Essay/nonfiction only. Includes memoir, creative nonfiction, journalistic nonfiction...nonfiction period. NO fiction, poetry or children's writing.
  • Receipt deadline Midnight (Eastern Time), October 31, 2011.
  • Email entry to hope@fundsforwriters.com. (No fax or hard copy submissions.)
  • No attachments to emails. Embed in the email itself. (Viruses are nasty creatures.)
  • Entry fee $5 or ZERO dollars. Payable via PayPal or check. Put name, email address and essay title with check if you send via mail. Make checks payable to C. Hope Clark or FundsforWriters.
  • Note ENTRY FEE or NO ENTRY FEE on your submission. 
  • Same piece cannot be submitted in both ENTRY FEE and NO ENTRY FEE categories.
  • No changes/alterations to an already submitted piece. The second edit will be deleted.
  • Must be original and unpublished.
  • Must be in English but entries accepted internationally. Entry fees must be in US dollars.
  • No limit to the number of submissions.
  • All writers must be 18 or older.
  • Do not bother with SASE for winners lists. Winners posted on website and in newsletters.
  • Single or double-spaced accepted.
  • Winners and public notified by December 1, 2011.
  • Winners published in December 2, 2011 FundsforWriters newsletters.
  • Winners paid via check or PayPal. If you are from a country where that is a problem, please do not enter.
  • Other submissions will be considered for publication but will be paid the standard rate of $45 if selected.
  • Judges are selected from Hope's peer group of writers, authors and journalists, still pending, but the finalists are chosen by C. Hope Clark.
  • Final determination of winners is not negotiable.
  • You do NOT have to be a FundsforWriters reader to enter the contest.
  • You will not be added to any sort of mailing list.
$5 Entry Fee Option

 

 

Direct any additional questions to Hope Clark at hope@fundsforwriters.com . Checks can be mailed to: C. Hope Clark, c/o FundsforWriters.com, 140A Amicks Ferry Road, Box 4, Chapin, SC 29036

 

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