Music City Romance Writers: Contests

2019 Melody of Love

The 2019 MELODY OF LOVE has capped out early!! Thanks for your interest. We'll be back next year!

**Tentative Contest Notification Dates

Barring unforeseen circumstances, first-round finalists will be announced by April 30. Finalists will be notified via e-mail and posted on the MCRW website, www.mcrw.com, and MCRW's social media accounts. First round scores of finalists will be mailed or emailed as soon as possible. All other scores will be emailed within 30 days.
Final Round: Overall Category Winners and 2nd and 3rd place finalists will be announced shortly after all final round judges return their scores. The goal will be to announce at MCRW's June meeting on June 15, 2019. Entrants will be notified via e-mail and posted on the MCRW website, www.mcrw.com, and MCRW's social media accounts.

Sponsor: Music City Romance Writers
Fees: $22 for MCRW Members, $27 for other RWA Members, $32 for Non-RWA Members
Contest Opens January 1, 2019
Deadline: February 28, 2019

Eligibility: Open to published and unpublished authors over the age of 18. The manuscript entered must be the author’s original work and be unpublished and uncontracted at the time of deadline and unpublished during the contest itself. Manuscript must also meet minimum word count lengths.

Entry: First 25 pages.

Number of Entries: Each entrant is limited to 3 entries, with no more than 2 in any one category.

Categories: Contemporary, Mainstream/Women’s Fiction, FF&P (Futuristic, Fantasy, & Paranormal), Historical, Young Adult. All heat levels welcome.

Judges: Judging is on a point basis, with all manuscripts judged by three authors from a pool of PAN, PRO, and trained general members. Judges are highly encouraged to comment and critique each entry.

Final Round Judges:

Contemporary Romance: Megan Broderick (Assistant Editor, Harlequin) and Ann Rose (Agent, Prospect Agency)

Futuristic, Fantasy, & Paranormal Romance: Lexi Smail (Associate Editor, Hatchette Book Group, Forever Yours) and Marlo Berliner (Agent, The Jennifer De Chiara Agency)

Historical Romance: Sarah Blumenstock (Assistant Editor, Penguin Random House) and Katelyn Uplinger (Agent, D4EO Literary Agency)

Young Adult Romance: Annette Pollert (Editorial Director, Bloomsbury) and Elizabeth Poteet (Agent, The Seymour Agency)

Mainstream/Women’s Fiction with Romantic Elements: Norma Perez-Hernandez (Editor, Kensington) and Janna Bonikowski (Agent, The Knight Agency)

Three finalists per category. Finalist entries will be judged by one editor and one agent.

Top Prize: Finalists in each category will receive a certificate and announcement in the RWR (RWA's print and online publication), on the MCRW website, and across MCRW’s social media. The overall winner of each category will be announced at MCRW's June meeting and will receive: a $50 cash prize, a 50-page critique by a published author or editor, and a commemorative Melody of Love pin.

You can e-mail our Contest Coordinators Jody Wallace and Dana Brantley-Sieders at contest@mcrw.com for more info.

WE HAVE MET OUR ENTRY LIMIT FOR 2019 AND HAVE CLOSED TO NEW ENTRIES.

Contest Coordinators: Jody Wallace and Dana Brantley-Sieders
Email: contest@mcrw.com
Simplified Registration Page (but please read the rules first): https://musiccityrwa.blogspot.com/p/contest-registration.html

1. The Melody of Love contest is limited to the first 80 Entries.
2. The contest opens January 1, 2019 and closes February 28, 2019 at midnight Central Standard Time. Entries received after this time cannot be accepted.
3. Entry fees:

$22 for MCRW/RWA Members
$27 for all other RWA Members
$32 for NON-RWA members

Note: If co-written with an RWA Member who is not a member of MCRW, the higher rate applies. All fees are non-refundable.

4. Fees may be paid through PayPal. For other payment options, please contact the contest coordinator.
5. Manuscript entries are set to a maximum of 25 pages. All entries are electronic.
6. Heat level and sub-genre can be specified on entry form, though it is optional.

Eligibility

The MOL contest is open to any writer meeting the following criteria:

An unpublished author.
A published author, including in the category entered.

Note: Manuscript being entered cannot have been previously published and cannot be currently contracted to be published via any means, including self or subsidy publishing.

The entry must meet minimum word lengths per category. (See category descriptions below).

Note: Any category that does not receive a minimum of five entries will be canceled. The manuscript will be placed in the writer’s second choice category.

Document Formatting

Please submit as follows:

A readable document in .RTF, .doc, or .docx format as an email attachment
Double-spaced – no extra spacing between paragraphs. And please, no tightened spacing to get more words on the pages.
Times New Roman or approximate font, 12-pt font size
One-inch margins on top, bottom, and both sides
Unjustified right margins
Header with manuscript title on left, category and page number on right
Do not put your name on your manuscript, please. If your name appears on the manuscript it will be disqualified.
Contact contest@mcrw.com for questions or help with formatting.

Judging Specifics:

First Round: Judging is on a point basis, with all manuscripts judged by three authors from a pool of PAN, PRO, and trained general members.
The three scores will be totaled to reach the final score.
Barring unforeseen circumstances, finalists will be announced in April. Finalists will be notified via e-mail and posted on the MCRW website, www.mcrw.com. First round scores of finalists will be mailed or emailed as soon as possible.
Other scores will be released within 30 days after the finalists are announced.
Final Round: Judged by editors and agents as listed below. All judges’ decisions are final.
Overall Category Winners will be announced shortly after all final round judges return their scores. The goal will be to announce at MCRW's June meeting on June 15, 2019.
As a reminder, final round judges are: Contemporary Romance: Megan Broderick (Assistant Editor, Harlequin) and Ann Rose (Agent, Prospect Agency); Futuristic, Fantasy, & Paranormal Romance: Lexi Smail (Associate Editor, Hatchette Book Group, Forever Yours) and Marlo Berliner (Agent, The Jennifer De Chiara Agency); Historical Romance: Sarah Blumenstock (Assistant Editor, Penguin Random House) and Katelyn Uplinger (Agent, D4EO Literary Agency); Young Adult Romance: Annette Pollert (Editorial Director, Bloomsbury) and Elizabeth Poteet (Agent, The Seymour Agency); Mainstream/Women’s Fiction with Romantic Elements: Norma Perez-Hernandez (Editor, Kensington) and Janna Bonikowski (Agent, The Knight Agency)

Awards:

First Round Finalists: First, Second, and Third Place Finalists are chosen by their overall score in each category.
First Round Finalists will be announced at the MCRW July meeting.
Finalists in each category will receive a certificate and announcement in the RWR (print and online publication), on the MCRW website, and across MCRW’s social media.
The #1 Finalist in each category will also receive a $50 cash prize.
Each entry has a chance to win a 50 page professional critique by a published author. Winner selected by random drawing.

How to Submit:

Your entry must have the following three elements:

Payment via PayPal. Contact contest coordinator for other payment options.
A completed entry form. (You will need your PayPal transaction number to fill out the entry form!)
Your manuscript’s first 25 pages emailed to our contest coordinators Jody Wallace and Dana Brantley-Sieders at: contest@mcrw.com by February 28, 2019. We recommend but do not require that you end your partial at a cliffhanger or other intriguing spot, even if it means you don’t send 25 whole pages.

Entry Specifics:

All entries must be electronic and in standard manuscript format: 12 point standard font (Times New Roman), double-spaced, indented paragraphs (i.e. not block style), 1-inch margins. Pages should be numbered and include a header which states title and category of manuscript. For a sample of a "properly formatted" manuscript, please contact the coordinator.
Coordinator will send emails to confirm receipt of entries. Please allow 5 working days (i.e., not weekends or holidays) before you ask the coordinator whether the entry has been received. Email address for questions is contest@mcrw.com and the contest coordinators are Jody Wallace and Dana Brantley-Sieders.
Contest limited to 80 total entries, in order of receipt of all three parts. The optional subgenres (e.g. Sweet/Inspirational, Erotic, Romantic Suspense, Mystery, etc.) on the entry form are used only to determine the best judges for your work and do not affect scoring or final round editor assignment.
While it is acceptable to submit the entry form and payment before you submit your pages, all three parts (pages, entry form, payment) must be received by February 28, 2019, or your entry will not be counted in the contest. Your entry fee will be reimbursed if this happens. The entry form alone is insufficient to “reserve your spot” should the contest fill up; payment must be included as well.
Scoresheets and/or critiques will be emailed to contestants. You will be asked on the entry form if judges may employ Microsoft Word’s “Comments” feature on your manuscript. Agreement is not required. The scoresheet is extensive and designed to provide a valuable, in-depth assessment of your opening chapter(s), including the hook, plot and conflict, characterization, writing style & technique, dialogue, setting, professional presentation, and overall impression. If you would like to see the scoresheet before committing to the contest, just email the coordinator.

*** Fine print: ***

Entries received that are found to have been published prior to or during the contest period by any means will be disqualified. No entry may be withdrawn after being submitted to the contest with two exceptions (see below). Entry fees from disqualified entrants will not be refunded. Entrants who finaled in our contest previously may enter again, but don’t re-enter the finaling manuscript. For the purpose of this contest, published is defined as available for sale by any means or as a free download via retail sites such as Smashwords and Amazon. Any entries over the contest limit of 80, or those received after the due date, will be returned along with the entry fees.

Exceptions: Entry fees will be refunded to entrants in any category that does not receive the minimum number of entries unless they request placement in another category. Entry fees can be refunded if a manuscript receives an offer of publication during the contest upon proof of said offer.

Questions? Contact Contest Coordinators Jody Wallace and Dana Brantley-Sieders at contest@mcrw.com

WE HAVE MET OUR ENTRY LIMIT FOR 2019.