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Short Story Contests Survey

by Jeff

Rated: E · Survey Form · Writing · #1967989

Please answer a few quick questions about your preferences for short story contests!

Over the past few months, I've tried a new format with the two contests I currently run (The "Sinister Stories Contest"

and the "Paradise Cove Writing Challenge-On Hold"

). Each contest used to run on a monthly format, and I changed them to a seasonal/quarterly format (four rounds per year). The decision was made because there are already so many horror and erotica contests that are monthly or shorter, and not many allow writers the time to really sit down and develop short fiction that's longer than a couple thousand words. I figured we'd up the prizes, extend the round duration, and give people the chance to write longer pieces that don't often qualify for contests because they exceed the word limit.

Since the change, though, participation in both contests has plummeted. Each contest is lucky to see 2-3 entries during a good round, and most of the entries come from the same recurring participants. I worry that I might have misjudged the situation and adapted my contests into a format that writers just aren't all that interested in.

With that in mind, I'm hoping you'll take a few moments to fill out this quick survey so I can get a better idea of what most people are looking for in a short story contest. Your feedback is greatly appreciated!

(R) denotes a required field.

1. How long do you prefer contest rounds to be? (R)

Daily
Weekly
Biweekly (every two weeks)
Monthly
Quarterly/Seasonal (four times a year)
Biannually (twice a year)
Annually

2. What's your preference for a minimum word count? (R)

No minimum word count
300 words
500 words
1,000 words
1,500 words
2,000 words
More than 2,000 words.

3. What's your preference for a maximum word count? (R)

Less than 1,000 words
2,000 words
3,000 words
4,000 words
5,000 words
6,000 words
More than 6,000 words

4. What kind of prizes are most appealing to you? (R)

Awardicons
Merit Badges
Gift Points
Combination of the above

5. What do you feel is a good value for a 1st place prize package (e.g. when you add up the cost of all prize elements for 1st place ONLY)? (R)

Less than 10,000 Gift Points total
10,000-25,000 Gift Points total
25,000-50,000 Gift Points total
50,000-75,000 Gift Points total
75,000-100,000 Gift Points total
More than 100,000 Gift Points total

6. OPTIONAL: Please feel free to share any thoughts, opinions, and/or suggestions about what you'd like to see in a contest, what makes you interested in entering a contest, etc. All comments are welcome!

Disclaimer: The information submitted will be sent to Jeff

. Do not submit anything private or confidential.