I waited a week to post this because, well to be honest: my feelings were just a little bruised. Anyway, I didn’t make it past Round 1. There were so many amazing entries, each of them unique and with such a well-crafted voice that I fell in love with many of them. I don’t know how the judges narrowed it down and most of them say that it was incredibly subjective, which as a reader, I know is true often enough. Still, it stung. I wanted my book to be read. I wanted some praise. I wanted some verification that I CAN DO THIS.
It was a learning experience and I got some feedback that I will take and hopefully make improvements. This blogging/writing community is much grander than I thought and I am a newbie. Anyway, I’d like to publicly thank Deana Barnhart and all of the other bloggers that helped her. They truly stepped up the game! Good job everyone!
I didn’t make it past the first round either, and was pretty disappointed I got almost no comments (and comments from only one judge). I’m painfully aware of how historical isn’t a hot genre right now, particularly straight historical (as opposed to “sexy historical” or fantasy or paranormal in historical clothes), but sometimes it’s like rubbing salt into a wound. I can’t help but wonder if I might do better in some of these contests if I wrote a genre that was more popular.
I nominated you for a blog award: http://carrieannebrownian.wordpress.com/2012/09/24/one-lovely-blog-award/
Oh, thank you for the nomination!
As for GUTGAA, I’m using it as a reason to go through my manuscript yet again and tighten it up. I only got one comment from a judge and then one from someone else. If nothing else, I was hoping for some more feedback. I guess I’ll have to take what I can get. Keep working at it!