Contest Opportunity

Anyone who's talked to me about writing knows I learned a lot about writing while traversing the contest route. If you're aspiring to write category and looking for feedback to improve your writing, here's an opportunity you need to know about. Harlequin American Romance's own Laura Barth is the finalist judge in the Contemporary Category division of the Gateway to the Best contest, sponsored by my home chapter, Missouri RWA (MORWA). Read on to discover what Laura's looking for.

Here's the info you need.

Attention Contemporary Category / Series Romance Writers!

The deadline for the Gateway to the Best Contest is coming up on September 11th!

The final judge of the Contemporary Series category is LAURA BARTH at HARLEQUIN.

This is what LAURA says she's looking for in a contemporary series:

"For me, the most important elements when considering a contemporary series
submission are fit, voice, characterization, conflict and freshness.

"The first thing I look at is whether or not a new submission fits the line
to which it's targeted. ... If the submission is a good fit, I look at the
author's voice and writing style. The prose should be smooth, clear and
natural. The tone should be right for the story and the author should engage
the reader without intruding into the story.

"Characterization is also very important. The hero and heroine must
ultimately be likeable and believable. I want to see a heroine who's strong
enough to stand on her own, but vulnerable and human enough to make me care
about her plight. I want to see a hero who's masculine, but self-aware and
mature enough to show compassion and concern for others.

"A good romance cannot be compelling without conflict, and this conflict
should be organic--it should not be based on misunderstandings and
coincidences. For home and family lines, especially, there needs to be true
internal conflict, not just external conflict.

"Finally, it can be difficult, to say the least, to come up with a totally
new idea for a romance novel and still have it fit within the parameters of
your targeted line. But your approach still needs to be fresh. And hopefully
your story will at least have a new twist, something that makes it stand out
from the crowd."

Enter the first 25 pages of your manuscript for $30 (non-MORWA members).
BUT...enter any ADDITIONAL manuscripts for HALF-PRICE: only $15 each!

Check out our website for more information on the Gateway to the Best
Contest: morwa.org.

Don't write contemporary series romance? We also have dedicated paranormal
(et al), historical, romantic suspense, and single title categories with
great final judges, wonderful prizes, and half-priced additional
manuscripts.

Don't wait. As a courtesy to all our volunteer judges and final judges, our
September 11 deadline will not be extended for any reason.

Good luck to all who enter!

Megan Kelly
megankellybook.com