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Contests & Activities: June 17, 2009 Issue [#3112]

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Contests & Activities


 This week:
  Edited by: spidey Author IconMail Icon
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Table of Contents

1. About this Newsletter
2. A Word from our Sponsor
3. Letter from the Editor
4. Editor's Picks
5. A Word from Writing.Com
6. Ask & Answer
7. Removal instructions

About This Newsletter

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Welcome to the Contests & Activities Newsletter. I'm spidey Author Icon, and I'm your Editor this week. I'd like to discuss Time-Management.


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Letter from the editor


Time-Management


Has this ever happened to you: You've set up an activity or contest, only to find yourself struggling to host or judge? or You sign up for a contest or activity only to find yourself without the time to finish?

Although life can be unpredictable (and an argument can be made for an allowance for those unexpected events), we should also take a serious look at whether we have the time to commit ourselves.


Hosting/Judging:

How much time will it take?

It's not usually possible to get an exact amount on how long it will take to host, judge, and award an activity or contest. However, we can take a look at some guesses based on a few things:

*Bullet* Recurring or one-time? A recurring contest, one that runs round after round continuously, will require you to be able to set aside time on a regular basis to host and judge. To get a good idea if this is a reasonable thing for you to do, try hosting just one round to get a taste.

*Bullet* Round lengths - If you're running a weekly contest, you'll have to set aside time each week to maintain your contest, with some time during the round to answer questions if need be. For a monthly contest, you'll need possibly the same amount of time or even more - since you're giving a longer time for people to submit. Consider your round lengths carefully.

*Bullet* Number of Submissions - This one's very tough to judge ahead of time. It's best to overestimate. Give yourself plenty of time to judge, but try to have winners determined in a reasonable amount of time so your contestants aren't waiting too long.

*Bullet* Limit Lengths - One way to keep judging to a surmountable task is to enforce limit lengths on entries. No one likes to stifle creativity, but limit lengths can be a way to reduce the time it will take to read and judge entries. (Plus limits can arguably inspire more creativity out of writers!)


Entering:

Entering a one-time contest isn't too difficult when considering time-management, but what about longer committments? There are a few things to think about before signing up for multi-round or longer challenges.

Think about how much time you can realistically set aside for writing. Perhaps it's one hour per day, or three hours per week. You know your schedule best, and you know how to fit writing into it.




Remember that life is unpredictable. Try to be realistic and anticipate complications.





purple flower sig


Always keep on writing!



Editor's Picks


Contests & Activities :
Just a few contests & activities I've come across on the site. Know of some gems that deserve exposure? Submit them in the feedback form or submission form at the end of this Newsletter, and I'll put them in my next one!

 Invalid Item Open in new Window. []

by A Guest Visitor


 Evil is Elegance Open in new Window. [18+]
Can you write a villain that chills -and- thrills?
by silverfeathers Author Icon

 Bite Size Poetry Contest Open in new Window. [E]
Just one small sweet bite of poetry is all I need.
by Taizia Author Icon

 Genres and Keywords Open in new Window. [E]
How do you use them?
by Elisa: Snowman Stik Author Icon

 Invalid Item Open in new Window. []

by A Guest Visitor


Some of my favorite contests & activities:
Image Protector
Anniversary Reviews Open in new Window. [E]
Celebrate Writing.Com member account anniversaries with reviews.
by Annette Author Icon

 Invalid Item Open in new Window. []

by A Guest Visitor

 Invalid Item Open in new Window. []

by A Guest Visitor

Image Protector
Movie Talk Open in new Window. [13+]
Actors, actresses, movies, TV -- It's the 'Golden Globe' of Writing.Com! Quill Nominee
by Maryann Author Icon

100 Words Contest Open in new Window. [ASR]
Closed Until Some Unknown date in the future....
by LoneKrampuswolf Author Icon




 
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Word from Writing.Com

Have an opinion on what you've read here today? Then send the Editor feedback! Find an item that you think would be perfect for showcasing here? Submit it for consideration in the newsletter!
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Ask & Answer


My last newsletter discussed Guest-Judging. *Smile*

I like guest judges because each person has their own likes and dislikes. No matter how objective anyone tries to be, they do have a bias. I often run up against this and find myself trying to write to the judge rather than writing what I want to write. And when one person is judging all the time, I also know that they can get burnt out. So it's a relief as a contestant to see a new face judging, or even better, when there's more than one judge. When there's more than one judge, you tend to have more objectivity and less room for bias to rule ~ sarahreed

All great points! *Smile*



Question to think about: How do you prioritize so you have time for entering/hosting contests & activities?





*Bullet* *Bullet* *Bullet* Don't Be Shy! Write Into This Newsletter! *Bullet* *Bullet* *Bullet*

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