Are you ready to Chase the Dream?

Filed in: blog | contests    Tags: chase-the-dream-contest | first five pages | leigh michaels | rachelle chase

The Chase the Dream contest starts January 1, 2010 and continues for 8 weeks:

http://chasethedreamcontest.wordpress.com/

This is absolutely the best bang for your buck contest there is. Authors Rachelle Chase and Leigh Michaels host the contest and really take the time to line up an all-star judging panel as well as offer a lot of great feedback on what works in an opening. Send your first 1000 words and Rachelle reads through the entries to choose a finalist each week for 8 weeks. If you don’t win the first week, keep on entering the same opening or another one the next week.

Check out the line up of agents and editors this year too! If you final, you get guaranteed feedback from them. Plus there are video blogs on the site about what each agent/editor is looking for in an opening. Then there’s the mini-critique winner each week. Leigh Michaels will go through and offer critique on a non-winning entry. I learned so much just following along!

Last year, I had just revamped my opening to Butterfly Swords. I took a deep breath and sent it in. This turned out to be the very first contest that Butterfly Swords finaled in. If you check out Week 4 from 2009, you’ll see a very rough draft of the opening scene — one of the few left online after I pulled my excerpts.

So polish up and send in that opening. I received two full requests, one editor and one agent, off of this contest alone. This really could be a dream come true. Good luck!

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Big happenings next week

Filed in: writing    Tags: chase-the-dream-contest | conferences | contests | golden heart

Big for a little unpublished writer at least…

1. Chase the Dream contest announcements:

These are supposed to come today. I didn’t win, because they should have already notified the winners, but I’m still excited for the announcements. I have my own personal favorite that I’m rooting for.

2. Golden Heart announcements:

Wednesday, March 25 is the date for the announcements.  I’m going to be on pins and needles all day.  Already I’m trying to mentally prepare myself.  Historicals seem to be a very competitive category so I’m trying not to get my hopes up too high, but heck yeah I’m hoping to final. I may need ice cream Wednesday night.

3. The New England Chapter conference

On Thursday I’m travelling out to Massachusetts for the Let Your Imagination Take Flight conference. The schedule looks amazing and I have my pitch mentally prepared. It’s good to keep it off the cuff and fresh, right? That’s my excuse.

I’m looking forward to seeing some writer buddies, meeting new people and hopefully, some happy news.

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Editor/Agent feedback

Filed in: book reviews | writing    Tags: agents | chase-the-dream-contest | contests | editors | feedback | writing journey

I know that most submissions are rejected and that form rejections are the standard. There’s just not enough time to respond to each submission, plus the threat of the “angry author” is even more real in this day and age of instant e-mail replies.

Form rejections are the reason why I started hitting contests so hard. I just needed to know if I was making any progress at all with my writing. So far one of the best experiences I’ve had is the Chase the Dream contest run by Rachellle Chase and Leigh Michaels. I was chosen as the Week 4 finalist and so far one agent and three editors have read my opening. They each pointed out weaknesses in my writing as well as strengths. (giddy! I have strengths) Sure, I with I could blow them all away and get requests for my manuscript on the spot, but nonetheless, this feedback is gold to me. This is what I’ve been searching for throughout my entire query war. I’m starting to get an occasional form rejection now which is a huge step, isn’t it?

There are more critiques to come and I wait on pins and needles for each one.

Tomorrow is the last day to vote for the winners!

To see finalists:
http://chasethedreamcontest.wordpress.com/

To vote:
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=OQvSykwHXYudFZ5C3hcdoA_3d_3d

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Voting opens in Chase the Dream contest!

Filed in: Announcements | writing    Tags: brags | butterfly swords | chase-the-dream-contest | contests | openings | writing

All eight finalists have been posted and voting opens from March 5 to March 11. There’s quite a range there — historicals from different time periods, paranormals, contemporaries. Butterfly Swords is in good company and I feel like I’ve already won since the lovely panel of judges will read over all the final entries.

I feel silly trolling for votes, so if you’d like to check out some interesting openings, click on over and vote your conscience.

To read the final entries
http://chasethedreamcontest.wordpress.com/entries/

To vote:
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=OQvSykwHXYudFZ5C3hcdoA_3d_3d

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Butterfly Swords finals in "Chase the Dream"

Filed in: Announcements | writing    Tags: brags | chase-the-dream-contest | contests | hooks | writing

It was 6:00 am Wednesday. I woke up and groggily turned on my laptop. I had a workout I had to rush to at 6:30, but for some reason I thought I’d check out Rachelle Chase’s blog…just to see.

*BAM*

My words! The opening for Butterfly Swords. I couldn’t smile wide enough. I started e-mailing people and gushing. I compared it to a couple of my writing buddies as the “I’m on TV” feeling. My writing is on the Internet.  Okay, I know it’s easy to post something to the Internet…look I’m doing it right now.  But it was so cool to be recognized…and of course I’m jittery about the amazing agents and editors that Ms. Chase has gathered for the panel.

You can keep on entering every week for this contest. (It’s still open by the way!) So I had entered every week for four weeks, alternating between “Butterfly Swords” and “Silk and Seduction”. I was kind of worried she would be darn tired of seeing that thing again, but the rules allow it so there had to be a reason, right?

Persistence paid off! And though this was the same story that finaled in “Hook, Line & Sinker”, I had revamped the entire opening based on other contest feedback. I switched it to start in the heroine’s POV and in a more action packed spot. It had to mean something that more than one judge would point out that the opening was just okay compared to the rest of the entry. So even if people love your writing – pay special attention to the comments you get repeatedly!

So, come by and browse the finalists. Get your 1000 words together to enter. It’s free and you may final or win the mini-crit. One of my chapter-mates finalled two years ago and that’s how she got the editor request that led to her first sale.  And you can learn a lot by reading the openings that finalled or won the mini-crits. Rachelle Chase and Leigh Michaels are really making an effort to comment constructively and provide a learning opportunity.

Oh yeah, and if you honestly feel “Butterfly Swords” was the most compelling, come by and vote for it from March 4 to March 11. 

Excerpt from Butterfly Swords

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