Writing Resources: Agent Contests

If you have a book ready to query there are a few contests you should consider entering. These contests run on people's blogs every month, but have agents pick the winners - usually resulting in a partial or full manuscript request.

These contests can be scary to enter, but they are a great way to get feedback on your entry from other writers and agents. Just remember that lots of people have opinions, and that doesn't mean you need to listen to all of them. And if you're nervous about people reading your writing, most of these contests are anonymous.

Even if you don't enter, you can watch the contests as they happen, and through the previous rounds to get an idea of what a particular agent is interested in.

Here are four I recommend:

Miss Snark's First Victim - The amazing Authoress does a monthly Secret Agent contest, where you submit your first 250 words only. The entries (usually chosen by a random lottery) are posted on her blog, where people can comment and critique your opening. The secret agent leaves comments too, and then picks winners. Miss Snark's First Victim is the longest running of these contests, and has led to many, many authors being signed by agents. You can read more about the rules here, and check out previous rounds on the right sidebar of her blog.

Mother. Write. (Repeat) - The lovely Krista hosts a monthly contest called An Agent's Inbox, where you submit your query letter and opening pages. Sometimes the agent is secret, and sometimes it isn't. Like MSFV, the agent comments on each entry and selects winners. You can read more about the contest (and see past rounds) here. Note: Krista's contests are currently on hold because she just had a baby - congrats Krista!

Operation Awesome - The wonderful authors at Operation Awesome host a monthly Mystery Agent contest, where you submit a pitch (sometimes a Twitter pitch, sometimes longer), and the mystery agent selects winners. This is a good contest to enter if you're afraid to post your query or opening page on someone's website. For more information on the contests, and a list of previous pitches and winners, click here.

Cupid's Literary Connection - This is the newest contest site, but Cupid already has huge buzz. Her first contest in January led to an author being signed with an agent, and her second contest (going on now) has a large list of agents participating. She seems to switch up the rules every month, so make sure you keep an eye on this one.

There are many other agent contests out there, but these are the ones that seem to run consistently every month. Do you know of any other regular contests? Have you entered any of these?