Legitimate Contests

Do you think we can use [winning the question contest] on our cover letters?

No. Very few of my colleagues even know this blog exists, so they would have no idea what you were talking about. Besides, this is not a legit writing contest.

I know you were joking, but here’s what you can use–legitimate contests that offer real prizes of cash or publication, like Writer’s Digest contests. Being published in an anthology does not count.

How to tell if the contest is legit? Check Preditors and Editors.

3 thoughts on “Legitimate Contests”

  1. What about winning the first chapter contest at the LDStorymakers conference?

  2. I wouldn’t use it because
    1) it’s too new; we have no way of knowing if the judges of the contest are good at picking real winners or not.
    2) we also do not know the size of the competition; were you the best out of 5 or 500?

    Now, if the winners of the LDStorymakers contests go on to be published several years in a row, and their books sell well, then it would be worth mentioning.

  3. Aww, man, and I was planning on mentioning the fact that I won (or placed first on) your little fanfiction contest by default on my next query letter.

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