Are you entering the Pikes Peak Writers Fiction Contest this year? Check out the list of VIP judges that Dawn Miller just posted to the PPW's listserv (and I'm copying below with her permission). That list is totally impressive! So, if you were thinking of submitting an entry and have yet to do so, you've got until November 15th to submit your entry.
I have judged the Children & YA division of this contest for years and there are jewels to be found in the entries that come through. Last year I gave just about a perfect score to DARK LIFE. It went on to win 2nd place in the YA category.
The first 20 pages of DARK LIFE had it all: adventure, mystery, danger, young protagonists you just wanted to track with...aaahhhh....a wonderful page turner! I wrote at the top of my one page critique, "I'm not quite sure how to critique your entry. You've paid for a critique so I feel I need to write something here but how many times can I write AWESOME! WONDERFUL! GREAT WRITING! KIDS ARE GOING TO LOVE YOUR STORY WHEN IT GETS PUBLISHED! And so on? I absolutely LOVED reading your entry. Yes, I know all about not using caps but in your case they're merited!"
I've had DARK LIFE on my mind ever since and this week I was thrilled to receive a review copy of the complete novel. Its author, Kat Falls, sent it to me and I can't wait to read it and review it to the CCF site. Scholastic is the savvy publisher who acquired it and is bringing this book out to us come May 2010.
All this to say that I'm not at all surprised that the PPW Fiction Contest attracts the kind of firepower in VIP judges that the list below shows for the various categories:
- Children's: Jennifer Rees, Scholastic
- Historical Fiction: Rachelle Gardner, WordServe Literary Group
- Mainstream: Donald Maass, Donald Maass Literary Agency
- Mystery/Suspense/Intrigue: Kathleen Gilligan, Thomas Dunne (St. Martins) Books
- Romance: Brenda Chin, Harlequin
- Science Fiction/Fantasy/Horror: Jennifer Jackson, Donald Maass Literary Agency
- Short Story: Denise Little, Tor
- Young Adult: Stefanie Von Borstel, Full Circle Literary Agency
So...if you have a manuscript ready to submit...you've got until Nov 15th to do so.