Many aspiring authors seek writing contests for many reasons. I’m sure everyone has been there. Whatever criteria they give you, you get the motivation to write about it. The potential of being read is exciting, however, not if you don’t get any feedback. Even worse if it’s a paid contest. I usually refrain from those.
In the last six to seven months, I have blogged and edited a lot–wrote a short horror story, which I’ve been submitting to Halloween-related literary journals. You’re under time pressure because you don’t know how much free time you have left before work will pick up again. You start on a new novel and get side-tracked by all these challenging contests for which you have ideas that you want to share.
The Nine Dots Prize caught my attention. Not only do they offer a cash prize of US$100,000, but they request a completed book of up to 40,000 words on the topic:
What does it mean to be young in an ageing world?
Before you start writing, consider brainstorming ideas. What they want you to submit is the following:
- Summary Response (to the question) –> Sum up your overall idea and the constituting factors that you will cover (i.e., economic, societal issues) = 3,000 words.
- Outline Structure –> Structure out the book you have in mind and include chapter headings. How is your response expand into a book? Is there enough depth? = 1,000 words.
- Justification statement –> How will you complete the book in seven months? Tell them about your previous experiences. = 1,000 words.
I’ve been jotting down ideas about Generation Y and millennials, social media, politically correctness, etc. And since this is research-based, you get to be a student again. Head over to your library and place some relevant books on hold because you will have to cite them!
Come on, be productive with me! That way, we can prove ourselves as freelance writers and essayists!
This contest is free to anyone over 18. It sounds to me like they highly encourage non-fiction writing, but fiction is also eligible if you depict your ideas and arguments clearly. For more information, visit:
The Nine Dots Prize – Submit by January 18, 2021.
Paula C. Deckard 