I recently discovered a powerful secret strategy that can turn an ordinary writer into an award-winning superstar. Yes, I’m going to share the secret with you. And no, I’m not going to charge you $499.99 in five easy installments…
I’ve always thought that the phrase “award-winning writer” was one that would look good on my Elance profile, my website, my LinkedIn profile and heck, maybe even printed on my very own custom t-shirt. Who doesn’t want to be (or hire) an award-winner?
But the reality is that many writers—good writers–aren’t award-winners. We do great work and we get great feedback from our clients, but it doesn’t automatically lead to a fancy award we can buff to a high shine on the weekends. In fact, I always thought of awards as something that went to the writers who work for prestigious ad agencies or have powerful literary agents–not the ordinary working stiffs like me.
Of course, access to things like high-profile agencies and literary agents definitely help. But that doesn’t mean that “ordinary” freelance writers can’t become award winners, too.
And I have recently discovered an unbeatable formula for becoming one.
To become an award-winning writer, you need to enter awards competitions.
It’s really that simple, yet how many freelance writers make a habit of doing so?
I was recently asked by one of my clients to help them write several submissions for the eircom Spiders, Ireland’s premier online awards. “There’s an award for copywriting,” my client mentioned. “You might consider submitting something yourself.”
It would never have occurred to me to put myself forward for an award, and despite my client’s encouragement, I nearly decided not to. For one, I would be competing against big agencies with big-name, big-budget clients. I really didn’t have a snowball’s chance. And I would have to fork out about $200 to enter. Not a king’s ransom, but not an inconsiderable sum for a lone freelancer–especially since it’s an investment unlikely to directly lead to more work.
But in the end, I decided to do it. And I did it not because I thought I could win, but because I wanted to establish the habit of acting like an award-winner. That means not only delivering high-caliber work, but also being aware of the awards that celebrate this work, and having enough confidence to put my money where my mouth is (or where my keyboard) and submit my writing for consideration. Maybe my writing is of award-winning quality. Maybe it isn’t. But I won’t know—and I won’t win—if I don’t take the initiative in putting my name forward.
Ideally, this blog post would end with me telling you I beat the odds, outmaneuvered the big agencies, and triumphantly carried off the award. But I didn’t.
Not yet, anyway. The winners won’t be announced until later this week. However, I’m proud to say that I was shortlisted—an honor in itself, and one that came as a truly gratifying surprise. And win or lose, I feel as though I’ve broken a barrier. Now I’m ready to submit my work regularly—as regularly as it takes to win something shiny for my trophy cabinet.
Becoming an award-winning writer might even make me a better writer, by increasing my confidence as well as my ability to attracting high-caliber assignments that stretch my talents further.
Are you ready to act like an award-winning writer? Here are some tips:
1. Do your research. There are hundreds (thousands, even) of awards out there, and each has its own set of criteria. Many are limited to entrants doing client work in specific countries, or for specific markets, or in specific types of media, or particular industries. Others are restricted to entrants of a particular age, gender, nationality, affiliation, and so on. If there’s a piece of writing you’re particularly proud of, look into the competitions it may qualify for. For instance, if you live in Chicago, your client’s business is based in Paris, and they run a gourmet food store, your entry may qualify for a competition honoring Chicago’s best writers, or Paris small business, or a global competition for the best content for a food-related product or industry. If you’re a creative writer, you’ll find a good list of contests on the Writer’s Relief site. If you’re a copywriter, nosing out competitions seems to be a matter of trial, error, and exhaustive Googling. (I’ve started compiling a list, and will post it to the blog in the near future.)
2. Mark the date. Once you’ve picked out some competitions you’re eligible to enter, make sure you mark the submission dates on your calendar so you don’t miss the deadlines. Often, competitions will offer a sign-up list that gives you advance notice when deadlines are set for the coming year.
3. Set a budget. Some competitions are free to enter, but many require an entry fee, which can be as much as a few hundred dollars. Once you’ve researched the competitions you wish to enter, work out an annual budget and start setting aside funds to cover your submissions for the year.
4. Ask your client. Make sure your client is comfortable with having you submit the work you did for them into a competition. Most will be delighted: it means added prestige and positive publicity for them. But it’s always best to ask first, and it’s essential in cases where the writing was delivered under a work-for hire-arrangement, ghostwritten, or written for an internal audience. You might also want to amend your service agreement to include a clause that grants you the right to submit the work to competitions under your name or your company name.
