Literary competitions are a launching pad for budding authors

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

By presidential decree, 2015 was declared the year of Russian literature in Russia. In this regard, much attention will be paid to libraries, the school curriculum and, of course, authors, especially beginners. Literary competitions of various sizes will be held for authors of all ages and genres.

It is noteworthy that many talented people who convey their thoughts and experiences on paper know very little about such competitions. Their works remain in boxes, the circle of readers is limited to acquaintances and relatives, since the authors do not see the possibility of publishing their work. Literary competitions are designed to help such people.

Who needs it and why

For those who intend to "give life" to their creation, it would be useful to know about competitions held among writers. It is better to start acquaintance with this phenomenon with questions: who are the organizers, sponsors,participants and is on the jury of such events.

Literary competitions today can be organized by schools, universities, local or federal authorities, professional authors or communities of writers, websites and publishers.

The terms of each competition determine the set of participants, works, themes and other components of the event.

The jury of the competition can include both professional, honored writers, and ordinary people, readers. Works in the latter case are published on the Internet and are evaluated by readers. Also, the winners can be determined by a mixed system, professionals and amateurs jointly. Before submitting an application for participation, each contestant gets acquainted with the conditions of the event, which stipulates how the work will be evaluated.

Sponsors allocate funding for the competition, the preparation of certificates, diplomas, collections of the best works and, if provided, cash prizes. In return, the sponsor receives advertising on all resources where the competition is being held, and the opportunity to select promising authors for further work.

To identify promising authors is one of the primary goals for the organizers of the contests. Publishing houses and professional writers get acquainted with the works, select the most talented authors and offer them cooperation within the framework of one work or longer-term. By the way, if literary competitions are held by a state structure (school, department of youth affairs, etc.), they are aimed at identifying and promotingtalented authors, while having no financial profit from his further success.

Russian contests

Russian literary competitions are a great opportunity for novice authors to submit their works and receive recognition, reviews, and even prizes. This year there are a lot of competitions in different directions. Those who wish to participate are required to apply correctly, do good work, be willing to participate and believe in themselves.

The most famous All-Russian literary competitions of this year:

1. Russian Booker 2015 is a competition for publishers, libraries and universities for the Best Novel of the Year award, with a serious cash prize.
2. Extra Days Fantasy Story Contest.
3. Short story competition "Weapons and the Spirit of Victory".
4. Black Jack is a short fantasy story contest organized by Samizdat magazine.
5. AST Publishing House is holding the Best Youth Bestseller 2015 contest.
6. The theme of fear, horror and nightmare is offered to the authors by the organizers of the Quasar "Horror" contest.
7. Literary and pedagogical competition "Good Lyre".
8. "Everything is ahead" - a prose contest, with the participation of the Writers' Union of Russia.
9. Crystal Spring.
10. "Written with a pen-2015".

International contests

International literary competitions differ from all-Russian ones in that not only citizens of the Russian Federation can take part in them. Today there are severalcontests:

1. "Samara Fate".
2. "Smart Heart".
3. "Written with a pen-2015".

Participation in international competitions is no different from "native", except that there is more competition, although this is a shaky indicator.

Children's contests

Reading opens up great opportunities for a person. Children's reading is an indispensable assistant in gaining knowledge, developing imagination and broadening one's horizons. It is very important to instill in your child a love of books.

It's wonderful when a child not only loves to read, but is also able to analyze information and formulate his thoughts and feelings so much that he can create works himself. Children's competitions are held for such talented children, which stimulate them to further development.

List of the most popular children's literary competitions:

1. International creative competition "May 9 - 70 years of Victory".
2. "Young Journalists of Russia".
3. International competition "Children are talents".
4. "The feat of our people" for the Victory Day.
5. "Spring inspiration".
6. "My small homeland".
7. "I have the right to live, develop and be friends."
8. "100 Talents".
9. Imaginarium.
10. "Russian beauty - birch".

Literary competitions for children are often held by order of the president or heads of regional organizations. Participation in such events enables the child to be heard, to feel the significance of his work, to find friends who share his passion, anddevelop your talent to a more professional level.

Instead of a conclusion, or Why contests are useful for authors

Not every contestant wins a prize, so why waste time? If you have such a question, in no case do not participate in the competition. Not every competition has a cash prize, so what will the author get from participating in it?

1. If the competition is organized by a publisher, it is interested in choosing a quality work, awarding it a prize and distributing it, thereby glorifying the author.
2. Even if the work did not win a prize, it may be of interest to someone from the jury and find a way to the reader.
3. If the competition is "network" and the work goes to the lynching of readers, the author will certainly receive a positive charge from the reviews and the designation of weaknesses that he can work on in the future.
4. It would be useful for the author to get acquainted with the works of other contestants. The role of editor, judge and reader is a great experience.
5. Getting some meaningful diploma and "likes" on the network is already a good addition to the author's portfolio.