Windy City RWA Chapter
2009 - Four Seasons Contest Rules
Fee: $25.00 (U.S. funds) per electronic entry, $30 per paper entry. Make check payable to Windy City Romance Writers, PO Box 3523, Lisle, IL 60532 or pay with PayPal. Fees are non-refundable.
Deadline: Entries must be received by March 1, 2009.
Content: The first 25 pages of your manuscript.
You may include an optional one-page, single-spaced synopsis. The synopsis will not be judged, but may be used as a reference to answer questions that arise during judging.
Entries in all categories must be romantic fiction. Short stories, nonfiction, and fiction in genres other than romance will not be accepted. Category Coordinators reserve the right to reject any entry that does not meet the acceptable industry standards for romantic fiction.
Eligibility requirements: The Four Seasons Contest is open to unpublished writers and to any author who has not been published in the past five years in any novel-length work of fiction (40,000 + words) in any format (e-book, mass market, etc). Past Four Seasons Winners are eligible to enter a manuscript that has not previously won the Four Seasons Contest.
MAILED Submissions must include the following:
- Your entry must consist of three (3) mailed copies of the first 25 pages, mailed to the attention of the appropriate category coordinator (see list below).
- Submit a copy of the entry form/waiver paper clipped to your entry.
- Fee of $30.00 per entry (U.S. funds) paid by check or PayPal. Please include PayPal confirmation number on your entry form.
- SASE with sufficient postage for return of judged entry and score sheets.
Entry: The total page number may not exceed 25 pages, excluding an optional one-page synopsis. Any additional pages will be removed prior to judging. WCRW will return only copies that have been judged. Additional copies will be destroyed after the contest is completed. Each entry should be bound separately with a large paper or binder clip or rubber band. Do not bend or staple.
Submission format:
- 8 1/2" x 11" or A4 (European size) white paper, printed on one side only.
- At least 1" margins on top, bottom, and sides.
- Times New Roman or Courier New, 12 point font. Double spaced.
- Manuscript title in upper left-hand corner.
- Page number in upper right-hand corner.
- Unjustified text, aligned left.
- Bind copy with a large paper or binder clip or rubber band. Do not bend or staple.
- Author's name must not appear anywhere on the manuscript.
- Deductions from final scoring may be made for manuscripts not in the standard format as defined above.
Postage: Each entry must include a SASE with sufficient postage and large enough to return the judged manuscripts used to compute your scores, plus score sheets. If you live outside the United States, check with your local postal service to determine sufficient return postage from the U.S. If sufficient postage is not received, entries will not be returned and manuscript pages may be destroyed.
If you do not wish your manuscript to be returned, clearly mark "Return score sheets only--destroy manuscript" on the bottom of the entry form. Upon completion of the contest, the manuscript will be destroyed.
ELECTRONIC Submissions must include the following:
- Your entry must consist of the first 25 pages in a Word document (RTF Format ONLY, no other format type will be opened), emailed to the appropriate category coordinator (see list below).
- Submit a copy of the entry form/waiver as a separate file attachment.
- Fee of $25.00 per entry (U.S. funds) paid by check (mailed to WCRW prior to March 1st, 2009) or PayPal. Please include PayPal confirmation number on your entry form.
Entry: The total page number may not exceed 25 pages, excluding an optional one-page synopsis. Any additional pages will not be judged.
Submission format:
- Entry must be a Word document, saved by Title (no author name) and in RTF format ONLY. Doc, docx or any other file type will not be opened.
- At least 1" margins on top, bottom, and sides.
- Times New Roman or Courier New, minimum 12 point font. Double spaced.
- Manuscript title in upper left-hand corner header.
- Page number in upper right-hand corner header.
- Unjustified text, aligned left.
- Author's name must not appear anywhere on the manuscript.
- Deductions from final scoring may be made for manuscripts not in the standard format as defined above.
Contest entry form and waiver: Each submission must include a separate Four Seasons Contest entry form and waiver. The contest entry form and waiver become the property of WCRW and will not be returned.
Judging: Individual judges are encouraged to make comments directly on the manuscript (written entries) or in-line (electronic entries) and on the score sheets. The extent of the critique provided is at the discretion of the individual judge. Three (3) judges read and score each entry. Judges consist of published authors and unpublished WCRW-trained members. All judging is confidential. Please review the judge's score sheet available on the contest page of the WCRW website.
Finalists: The top four (4) finalists in each category will be the four (4) highest scoring entries once the lowest score has been dropped to determine final rankings. Finalists will be notified on or about April 25, 2009.
Prizes: The final round judge ranks the top four (4) entries in her/his respective categories. Top prize: TBA. All finalists receive certificates. Winners are announced in the Romance Writers Report. Approximate date of winner notification is June, 2009.
Number of Entries: WCRW reserves the right to eliminate a category if sufficient entries aren't received.
Failure to Comply: Any entry failing to comply with the rules as stated herein will be disqualified and entry fee forfeited. No fees will be refunded on the basis of disqualification or withdrawal. The Four Seasons Contest Chair reserves the right to return any entry that does not comply with contest rules.
Please note these special rules for Erotic Romance Entries: WCRW will not accept anything that could be considered offensive, including but not limited to rape, incest, bestiality, racial slurs, pedophilia and bodily functions which might be considered distasteful. Erotic romance stories must have plot, character development, and emotional relationships. Please no pure erotica.
E-Mail questions to Kris Froehlich, contest coordinator at fourseasonscontest@windycityrwa.org
CATEGORIES
Contest entries should be mailed to the appropriate coordinator listed below.
Four Seasons Category Coordinators
Historical
Windy City RWA
Attn: Aimee Cohler
PO Box 3523
Lisle, IL 60532
FourSeasonsContestHist@windycityrwa.org
Single Title Contemporary
Windy City RWA
Attn: ST Coordinator
PO Box 3523
Lisle, IL 60532
FourSeasonsContestSTC@windycityrwa.org
Erotic Romance (please see above special rules)
Windy City RWA
Attn: ER Coordinator
PO Box 3523
Lisle, IL 60532
FourSeasonsContestER@windycityrwa.org
Fantasy/Futuristic/Paranormal
Windy City RWA
Attn: FFP Coordinator
PO Box 3523
Lisle, IL 60532
FourSeasonsContestFFP@windycityrwa.org
Short/Long Contemporary
Windy City RWA
Attn: S/L Coordinator
PO Box 3523
Lisle, IL 60532
FourSeasonsContestSLC@windycityrwa.org
