How a
Contest Judge Views a Book
by Helen Gallagher
Literary merit is a core requirement
for any prize-winning book.
After succeeding as an author, book
reviewer, and publishing consultant, I was recently pleased to participate as a
judge in a national book competition.
If you are or have
been given this honor, it is a big responsibility and a whole lot of fun. Each
judge must critique the contest entries on a long list of factors, not limited
to content, accuracy, editing, and design.
In order to avoid
being overwhelmed, I agreed to judge only the three genres I know best. I would
not feel comfortable judging categories where I don’t have an informed opinion
of quality, such as mystery, sci-fi, or romance.
Unlike my work as a
book reviewer, in which I evaluate writing style and content and consider the
value of the book’s theme or message, judging goes much further. Reviewers
often discuss an author’s point of view, while letting the reader of the review
know pertinent details of the book. That’s why people read book reviews—to
determine if they want to invest time in reading the book.
In judging a book
contest, the parameters are set by the organization or committee running the
contest. They set criteria for entries and sort through all submissions to be
sure each entry that is judged fits the standards for quality writing in the
category. The biggest job for a judge is remaining objective in order to judge
fairly. Frequently, contest entries are read and judged by two different
people. The second judge performs the same task as the first: analyzing the
book’s worthiness on all the variables, and the combined scores are averaged.
Most contests have
very specific categories. As an author it is important to make sure your book
is in the best category, or choose multiple categories, such as “Motivational”
and “Self-Help,” to give your book a better chance against steep competition.
Most contests charge an incremental fee for multiple categories, so be clear
about the category that best fits your book.
As an author, what
I found most interesting about being a judge is the importance of every detail.
That’s right—If you enter your book in a contest, you don’t want to have a
perfect book design but fall short on other elements or overlook errors. The
lesson here is that when you are finalizing your book for publication, nothing is unimportant. Don’t overlook
errors in the Table of Contents, pagination, page layout, or chapter headings,
and re-check every word and every reference, from cover to cover.
Give the same
consideration to the importance of good cover design and quality printing.
Whether you use a traditional publisher, print-on-demand, or a local printing
firm, your book must look as good as any other mass-market book to be worthy of
an award. This includes cover artwork, fonts, design, proper placement of the
ISBN and barcode, and error-free layout of both the front and back covers.
You may have a
great story, but if you failed to do that last round of proofreading or
checking the layout, another contest entrant may outshine your book by a few
points.
Here are some tips
to consider, not just when you prepare to enter your completed book in a
contest, but before you publish your next book.
- Is your title/subtitle appropriate and
does it generate interest?
- Does the title truly reflect the
content of the book? Don’t fall in love with a quirky title that would
disappoint or mislead the reader.
- Is your book price appropriate for the
target audience? Have you done research to determine this?
- Do your book layout, editing, and
design meet the highest standards?
These four sample
factors are just the first steps in passing through to the award level in your
book’s category. Many contests haves thirty categories by which each book is
measured. If any of these initial factors is adequate but not truly
professional, entering an important book contest might be a waste of money.
Before you run back
to your manuscript to polish it up, keep in mind that literary merit is a core
requirement for any prize-winning book. Books up for award are of course
evaluated on the writing, not just the spelling and punctuation, but quality of
language, comprehension, and the ability to present material in an interesting
way, authored by a person with the qualifications to write on the topic.
Remember that your
confidence in your book when presenting it for any award consideration requires
all the up-front effort and attention to detail well before you even dream of
winning First Prize in a book contest. The reward, though, when your book is
chosen, is increased publicity and increased sales, because of the
distinguished honor in winning a book award.
Helen Gallagher is the author of Release Your Writing: Book Publishing Your Way.
Her publishing blog is at releaseyourwriting.blogspot.com. © 6/24/2014
In my youth, a convoy of nuns at Sacred Heart School taught English, grammar, writing, shorthand and typing. The nuns are long gone to their heavenly reward but daily, I am grateful for my ability to string sentences together. These basic skills helped me make a living in the corporate world for many years, and then as a writer/author. Freelance writers without the early-childhood advantage of nuns for teachers can be grateful for Grammarly. This company stepped forward to provide a survey showing the value of good writing, at a time when good freelancers are in great demand. Grammarly is an online automatic proofreading service and grammar coach. 
