Fresh Eyes Needed

*high horse alert*
Last week I was trolling through the numerous loops that I'm a member. I'm on a daily digest for most of the loops and simply verify the topic before I delete the whole thing. Sorry, but my time is becoming more and more precious to me. I don't need to waste it reading stuff that doesn't interest me . . . uh, ditto for books.

Anyway, on one of the numerous contest loops that I belong to I was reading a slightly vitriolic comment by a contest entrant. Her manuscript had been in a contest YEARS ago, but she still got sick to her stomach when she saw the judge's name. Lady, you need to get over yourself and move on with your life and a new manuscript.

When I first started judging contests in 2002, I used to sign all the entries that I judged and I wouldn't be surprised if I was that judge and my comments made her ill. Trust me, I fully expected to get a face full of spit every time I wore my name badge at RWA National.

Over the years, I reserve my signature and email to the entries that blew my socks off. In 2007, I started judging electronic contests exclusively. I like to think I've become a better writer and judge in the process, but there is a learning curve to judging just like there is with writing.

When a person decides to judge a contest they have to follow the contest rules and score sheet and, depending on the score sheet, many of the categories overlap. I agreed to judge a contest recently--stupid me, when will I EVER learn? I thought it was a 30 pg limit, but nooo, it was a 50+ page limit. Anyway, this score sheet has numerous categories to judge: characterization, dialogue and narrative, are a few of the examples. If you are new and don't really understand POV (point of view) and odds are you will be marked down in all three areas.

Why? Because all three develop characterization. The way a character thinks and speaks plays into how a character acts and reacts, thus develops characterization.

Sorry, but judges have to follow the contest rules. Now we can 'manipulate' the scores up to a point if we feel someone has a unique voice and take on a story. But if it's bad, then it's just the red-hot poker jabbing us in the eyeball.

And no, I WILL NOT JUDGE A CONTEST ENTRY THAT I'VE JUDGED BEFORE. It's not fair to anyone. I got an entry once that I had judged previously--a few years earlier in fact--and I still remembered the entry. . . and yes, the author was pimping the EXACT SAME ENTRY.
Time to move on, sista!

But judges can offer you something that CP's (critique partners) can't.

--Contest judges are as close as you get to agents and editors. When you send a submission to an agent/editor and keep getting rejections, it's because they stop reading (lucky dogs!) Entering a contest might give you insight as to why you are getting generic rejections. Whereas, agents just say thanks, but no thanks, a judge has to comment on the 'flaws' of the story. True, you might get conflicting input, but I've seen the same thing with editors and agents when they do comment--which is rare.

--Judges don't know the backstory of the entry. If you leave something out, then a judge will be confused. Or the action of the character doesn't make sense.
Who do you brainstorm with? Your CP's.
Who do you describe your elaborate backstory to? Your CP's.
Who knows every excrutiating detail of your story and has bled with you along your path? Your CP's.
Judges don't know everything about your entry. All they have is what they are given. If you leave it out or gloss over an important issue. It won't make sense. Judges will comment on it.
You'll get your entry back, boohoo over the low score, tell your CP's, they'll pat you on the back and tell you the judge was an idiot.
But was the judge really an idiot? Could the judge be onto something? A really good CP will help the entrant interpret their scores and this would be a good time for the CP/friend to step up and say, "yanno, I thought something was missing or off in there."

I'll continue this diatribe on Friday, 'cause I have a life and need to get on with my own writing. . . after I finish judging this contest.

Write on!