Have You Heard About the Fantastic First Five Pages Contest?

Have you heard you need to hook your reader into your story at the beginning? If you have been writing for just about any length of time, or attended a writing conference, I’m sure you have. You’ve also probably taken notes at those conferences so when you’re working on your own manuscript you can add in what you’ve learned. Many have also spent the time reading and analyzing other people’s work to see how the author put it together.

After we have written are introduction to our story we want to find out if it works to get the readers wanting to keep turning the pages.

The League of Utah Writers is holding a contest that will give you the opportunity to test your first five pages of your manuscript. Get feedback on what you have written. And get the opportunity to read other manuscripts. Each of these elements helps us to become better at our craft of writing and telling the stories we have wanting to come out on the page.

You already have an entry if you participated in NaNoWriMo. You probably have a current work in progress that you have wanted to test out on beta readers. It may be a new concept and idea that has been bubbling up to the front burner. No matter where it comes from it doesn’t need to be an entire manuscript—just the first five pages.

Photo by Etienne Girardet on Unsplash

This contest is offering more. Cash prizes are being given for the top three places and some very credited editors are reviewing placed entries.

Besides the entry fee, you will be asked to read three other entries. This works out well because you are given the chance to see how other writers are putting together their stories. A great place to learn from.

I can tell you that this contest was held on a smaller scale in the past when several chapters hosted the contest for their members. I submitted to the contest. I didn’t win and wasn’t surprised about that. But the entry fee was well worth what I learned from reading other works and seeing the critiques on my piece.

This is a great chance for everyone in the league to take their story introductions to a new level.

To find out more about, or enter, the Fantastic First Five Pages Contest you can go to the league website and check the contest tab. Here is a direct link https://www.leagueofutahwriters.com/first-five-2023

Hope to read you soon.

Photo by Jaredd Craig on Unsplash

About the Author

Daniel Yocom writes about geeky things because people always say to write what you know. Their love of the geeky, nerdy community dates to the 1960s through games, books, movies, and stranger things better shared in small groups. They’re an award-winning writer with hundreds of articles on these topics for blogs, magazines, and gaming companies. They also have short stories and books published.

They enjoy attending conferences, conventions, festivals, sharing on panels, and presentations. This has included being a presenter for The League of Utah Writers and at FyreCon, panels at LTUE, FilmQuest, SaltCon, and FanX. They serve on the selection and awards juries for FilmQuest. And has been a guest at ProtoCon, Salt Lake Gaming Con, TimpCon, Southern Utah RPG Summit, St. George Gaming Convention, and GenCon.

As the current president of the League of Utah Writers Infinite Monkeys Genre Writers, they want to help every writer to become the writer and/or author they desire to be. You can get to know them better at www.guildmastergaming.com.