Are Writing Contests Scams?

This blog post is directly inspired by a response on our blog about our writing contest.

A lot of people are very cautious about entering into a writing contest online. It is important to be this way because there is a great deal of scams available online. Some of these contests may require you to pay a large entry fee, while others may require you to sign away the rights to your writing. It is important to read the fine print on the writing contest that you are thinking about entering. You could potentially see the article that you entered into the contest all over the web without receiving a dime for it.

Things to Keep a Look Out For

The truth is that some writing contests are scams. They will use the “contest” as a way to get a lot of legitimate original writing that they will use and never pay out the prize money. Some scams will charge an entry fee, but then never name a winner so that they do not have to pay out the prize money. It is always a good idea to do a web search on a company that may be having a writing contest, if they have burned people before than it will be rather easy to find it on the web. Think critically before entering into a contest or paying any money, if the contest seems too good to be true than it probably is exactly that. You may pay a $5 entry fee and be awarded $100 and that is more likely to happen than paying a $5 entry fee and being awarded $100,000.

WriteWordsEditing.Com Writing Contest

There has been some speculation that the writing contest on this site might be a scam. The truth is that this is a contest that you enter and it is completely legitimate. You will not be forced to sell the article that you list on the website, but you will have the option to list it for sale should you choose. You are not required to sell your article nor are you forced to enter the contest if you choose to list an article for sale on our site. You are required to pay a $5 per entry fee in order to enter the writing contest. This fee is only to cover the prize money for the contest and other expenses involved, but you will not be required to pay the entry fee if you choose not to enter into the contest, or only simply want to list an article on the site for sale.

On our website, we have a section where authors can submit articles on varies topics to sell.  Many of the contest articles will be listed for sell for the authors to earn money when their article is sold; however, this is not a requirement. 

When you enter into our contest, the $5 entry fee is used for the prize money, contest preparation and marketing for the contest.  What you get for your entry fee:

·         Chance to win $100

·         Opportunity to post your article for sale on the website

·         The winning article will be highlighted on our website, in our newsletter, our blog, Facebook and Twitter.  A press release will also be sent out about the winner, which helps the author gain extra notice.

·         Other entries, aside from the winning artice, in the contest will also be mentioned in the newsletter, blogs and other areas which will help to advertise the article and the writer

How to Make the Writing Contest Work for You

The writing contest is just built as a way for freelance writers to earn a little bit extra money, and find out how competitive their writing will be against others of the same genre. The rules are all listed on the site, and there will be a topic each month for the contest. This is again by choice, and you are not required to sell any of the articles that you enter nor are you required to enter the contest if you are looking to list your articles for sale.

When it is Alright to Pay an Entry Fee

There is some stipulation about entering a writing contest that requires an entry fee. You should use caution whenever you enter into any type of competition that requires an entry fee, there are quite a lot of scams available on the internet that will take you money and run. We are simply a fairly new site, and the only reason that we are requiring the entry fee is so that we can afford to conduct the contest, and so that the winner will be awarded with a cash price. We would be happy to answer any questions that you might have in regards to the writing contest or our services. You can contact us editor@writewordsediting.com.