How the Write Michigan Contest Jumpstarted My Writing Career

By Andy Rogers
A.L. (Andy) Rogers is a ghostwriter, editor and author. As a ghostwriter, Andy has written true crime, memoir, self-help and business books. As an editor, Andy has acquired books by professional athletes, Hollywood actors and thought leaders in nearly every major nonfiction category. Learn more about his work at andyrogersbooks.com.

Every writer struggles with self-confidence. As an editor, I’ve worked with authors who have multiple books traditionally published, yet even they secretly wonder, “Am I a ‘real’ writer?”

At what point are you a “real” writer anyway? When you get published? When someone pays you? What if you never get published or paid, but still love to write? Are you a writer then?

I was wrestling with these questions in 2013. I’d been writing since 2008, chipping away at short stories and articles, but my writing career was like a car that won’t start: going nowhere and kind of embarrassing.

An unfortunate truth about writing is that in order to be published, you often have to show that you’ve been published. Writers need writing credits. One way to break this chicken-and-egg paradox is to enter writing contests. In a contest, you’re not competing with thousands of other writers for an editor’s attention. You submit your best writing and let the work speak for itself. And even if you don’t win, making the short list is a great writing credit.

I heard about Write Michigan during one of my weekly visits to my local library branch (Grandville) and was immediately interested. The contest offered several things that are perfect for a writer building their career, as I was:

A smaller pool of competitors. Stories still have to stand on their own merits, but entrants have better odds than, say, submitting to The Paris Review.

A low cost. Some contests cost four times as much as Write Michigan, largely, I assume, to pay for expensive publications. However, KDL works with a local, print-on-demand publisher to keep costs low and the writers’ investments in the community. I love that.

Quality feedback. Writers rarely get feedback from the editors who reject their work. This is one of the most demoralizing aspects of trying to build a list of credits. You get a form letter if you’re lucky. But if you’re chosen for the final round of voting, you will receive notes from the judges.

In 2013, I submitted a sci-fi short story called “Archived” and won the Reader’s Choice Award. It wasn’t the ultimate prize, but that didn’t matter. To say I was thrilled with the outcome is like describing the sun as “kinda warm” – a massive understatement. I couldn’t believe it!

Today, I write and edit books for a living. I often tell people the Write Michigan contest came along at just the right time. Not only did it provide a printed publication – a real book I could show off and give away – but it was one of the first times I received professional feedback. The experience also boosted my confidence profoundly. I started submitting more articles and stories for publication. While not every submission was accepted (the writer’s life is filled with rejections), my win in that contest was the jumpstart I needed. And I’m still rolling.