The End of an Era

Yes, my friends, we’re at the end of an era. Or at least, the end of a half-decade.

We started the Launch Pad Contest as an experiment in 2010, back when this blog was called Novel Journey. We had no idea how it would work, or even if we’d have any entrants. But you never know until you try, right?

So we fiddled around with it, tweaking the format here and there. Changes included adding a Nonfiction category in 2013 (and removing it the following year) as well as adding an entry fee. That enabled us to present the Grand Prize winner with that oh-so-fun blown glass rocket trophy. 

The contest was well received for the first few years, and it kept us judges quite busy at times. But when the number of entries dwindled in 2014, it seemed time to re-evaluate. As a result, we’re not conducting the contest this year. 

If you’ve been polishing up a manuscript in anticipation of entering, we apologize! But it ain't over till it's over, and we may not be done with it yet. Depending on the feedback that comes in (combined with other factors), we may start it up again in the future. However, we will not be taking entries in 2015.

Speaking of feedback, I’m keeping the email account open (NovelRocketContest at gmail doc com), so feel free to get in touch with me about your thoughts and suggestions for the future.

I’d like to thank all who have helped keep the contest going for the past five years by entering their

stories, which provided me with the opportunity to meet some new writers – also thanks to those on the Novel Rocket team who helped judge the entries, which enabled me to get to know them a little better, too.

All in all, it’s been fun. So let’s not think of this as Goodbye, but rather, See ya around!

Yvonne Anderson writes fiction that takes you out of this world.

Book a flight through the Gateway to Gannah for some serious sci-fi adventure!

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Pssst... Have you Heard?

It's no secret! Novel Rocket's LAUNCH PAD Contest: Boosting You Out of the Slush Pile is well under way!

"So what?" you might say. "Do I care?"

If you're an unpublished novelist, you should, indeed, care, because this contest is all about YOU! 

(In case you were wondering, "unpublished novelist" means a writer who has completed one or more works of full-length fiction but has never had a novel contracted with a traditional publisher.)

The only problem is if you write Suspense/Crime/Mystery/Thriller novels. 

What's the matter with that? Nothing -- we love them! But that category is already closed for this year. The judges have read all the entries and made their decision, and the winner will be announced on May 12. If that's your thing, unfortunately, you'll have to wait for Launch Pad 2015.

However, we're still taking submissions in all the other genres, so there's still time for most of you. A little time, at least: the second category (General Fiction) closes on MAY 10 -- that's THIS COMING SATURDAY. So if that's your genre, grab your gear and get aboard! 

Check out the submission requirements at the Launch Pad tab and join the many writers who have found this contest to be a valuable boost to their writing careers.

When she's not overseeing the Launch Pad contest, Yvonne Anderson writes fiction that takes you out of this world.

Ransom in the Rock, the long-awaited third title in the Gateway to Gannah series, is now orbiting on Kindle, and the the print version launches May 15.

Fly through the Gateway to Gannah for some serious sci-fi adventure!

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We're Off and Running!

Hooves are pounding the track (and fingers are pounding the computer keys) in Novel Rocket's LAUNCH PAD Contest: Boosting You Out of the Slush Pile event.

Last Thursday was the submission deadline for our first category, Suspense/Crime/Mystery/Thriller, and the judges are reading, critiquing, and enjoying a nice field of entries, even as we speak. You'll want to stop by next month (May 12) to check out the winner of this first heat. The funnest part for the spectators? You'll be able to read the actual entry, so even if you don't know the writer, you'll get a good view of what's going on.

Entrants are reaching for the prize of a unique trophy individually made of blown glass and personalized for the winner. As if that's not cool enough, the Grand Prize winner also gets to jump over the slush pile by having his or her manuscript presented to a hand-chosen agent or editor.

 

If you're a writer with a novel sitting on your computer all dressed up with nowhere to go--and if you've never had a novel contracted with a traditional publisher--this might be the opportunity you've been looking for. The first category is closed, but we're still taking entries in five genres:

General Fiction (submission deadline is MAY 10)
Historical (deadline is JUNE 10)
Middle Grade/Young Adult (deadline is JULY 10)
Contemporary Romance (deadline is AUGUST 10)
Speculative Fiction (deadline is SEPTEMBER 10)

You'll find all the details, including the definitions of each of these categories, the submission requirements, and the entry form, at the Launch Pad tab. So check it out. Then saddle up and come join us!

When she's not overseeing the Launch Pad contest, Yvonne Anderson writes fiction that takes you out of this world. 

Make sure to book your flight on the third voyage in her Gateway to Gannah series, Ransom in the Rock, lifting off this spring!

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The Times are Changing, But You Still Have Time

by Yvonne Anderson

For the first time ever, I forgot to change my clocks Saturday night for the time change Sunday.

The only consequence, fortunately, was getting up with my cell phone alarm at 6:00, staggering into the kitchen to turn on the coffee, seeing the clock on the microwave saying 5:00, and thinking Huh? Then I remembered: It's Daylight Savings Time.

It was disappointing to realize the microwave clock lied to me and I couldn’t go back to sleep for another hour. But I’m thankful for my self-adjusting cell phone alarm. Without it, my whole morning would have been thrown out of whack.

Speaking of times and seasons, this seems to be the season for writing contests. I keep seeing reminders from ACFW that the deadlines for submission to the Genesis and Carol Award contests are breathing down our necks.

Like the Genesis contest, Novel Rocket’s Launch Pad Contest: Boosting You Out of the Slush Pile is for writers who have never released a novel through a traditional publisher. It’s a way to gain experience in the submission process, to get some unbiased input on the opening of your book, and, if you’re a winner, to get a little attention for your work.

The contests are similar, but there are two big differences:

1) With the Launch Pad contest, the grand prize is this really cool blown glass rocket trophy,

something no other writing contest can boast, along with the opportunity to bypass the slush pile and get your submission into the hands of an agent.

2) The submission deadline for the Launch Pad contest is still a comfortable distance away. We have different deadlines, depending on the genre, but the first one isn’t until April 10. And that’s only for Suspense/Crime/Mystery/Thriller. If your story is in another genre, you’ve got even more time.

Some unsolicited feedback from people who participated in previous years:

Peter Leavell, author of Gideon's Call, recently volunteered: "I will preach it from the highest pulpit, the two mandatory contests are Novel Rocket and Genesis. I applied the feedback from both and entered Operation First Novel in 2011. Christian Retailing also chose it as the Best First Novel winner for 2013." 

This email came from UK writer Magda Knight, who entered two stories in the Middle Grade/Young Adult category in 2012: “At the risk of burdening your inbox I'd like to voice my appreciation of the incisive and immensely helpful critiques by the judges. I don't think I've ever had such pertinent and useful feedback. Absolutely game-changing. Please accept my thanks for setting up such a great competition. I may not have won, but thanks to those critiques I feel like I won anyway. Huzzah!”

From two other past entrants: “I can't tell you enough how much it has helped me. Just getting my work out has been hard for me, because I usually don't receive any feedback. Both of the judges’ critiques were extremely helpful.”

“The comments were spot on. Some were very encouraging. It's given me new motivation to continue on. Thank you, thank you, thank you!”

So how about you? The deadlines aren’t pressing yet, so you can breathe easy and often. Check out the complete rules. (Contest rules, that is, not rules for breathing.) And, if you’ve got a novel manuscript you’d like to share with us, give us a try!

Yvonne Anderson writes fiction that takes you out of this world. Look for Ransom in the Rock, the third book in the Gateway to Gannah sci-fi series, to release this spring!

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Writing Contests - What's In It For You if You Enter?

by Pamela S. Meyers

Wanda Writer signed on to the ACFW eloop and scanned the list of posts. She kept her finger poised over the delete key, clicking on it every so often, picking and choosing which posts to keep and which ones to banish. She paused at a reminder from the Genesis Head Coordinator that there was still time to enter the Genesis Writing Contest.

A nudge poked its way into her mind to click on the message, but why bother? She’d entered the writing contest a couple years ago, and what did she have to show for her time but a lost entry fee and a judge’s comment that all but said she didn’t know how to write and should find another way to pass her time. It had taken her almost a year to get over that and start writing again. Her finger hit delete and the reminder disappeared from her computer screen and from her thoughts.

But, the next time Wanda opened her WIP to work on it, the nudge returned. She had taken those workshops at conference last year and joined a good critique group since that last contest. Maybe it was time to enter Genesis again. But what if that same judge or another like him or her got her entry? She never wanted to go through that again. She pushed all thoughts of entering out of her head and never considered entering the contest again. Weeks later when one of her crit partners shared how a contest judge's hard criticism woke her up to a weakness in her writing and how grateful she was for receiving the judge's input, Wanda questioned if she'd been too hasty in deciding not to enter the contest.

Genesis Logo

Does that scenario sound remotely similar to your experience with writing contests? Or perhaps you’ve never entered a contest before and get a case of jitters just thinking about it?

This is the time of year that writing contests for unpublished writers seem to be everywhere. Currently, ACFW’s Genesis (of which I am head coordinator) is in the middle of its first round, and Novel Rocket has just kicked off its Launch Pad contest. There are other contests also going on for unpublished writers you may want to look into by Googling.

Here are three great reasons that you should consider entering a

Novel Rocket Launch Pad Award

contest or two this year.

1. Experience—no matter how many contests you enter, each one gives you more experience in preparing a manuscript for submission, following guidelines, and becoming more comfortable with strangers seeing and evaluating your work.

2. Feedback from Judges—Contest judges can vary from veteran writers or published authors to editors and agents (usually in the later rounds). Yes, some judges can be blunt, and judging is always subjective. But, entrants can often times learn more from a candid judge than from a gentle judge. I experienced this when a Genesis  judge gave me a low score for POV when my story was in first person. Of course, I wondered how she could give me such a low score when there was no POV shift or head hopping? I later learned the reason was that I hadn’t made my POV deep enough. That is where I first learned about deep POV and have incorporated it in my writing ever since.

3. A Chance of Winning—Most contests don’t hold a promise of a book contract for the first place winner or even a monetary award. But, winning does give you bragging rights and something great to add to your writing resume. Placing in a contest shows you can follow writer’s guidelines and your writing is good enough to win. It says a lot about your character traits that appeal to publishers and agents.

You may be saying, “Okay this all sounds good on paper, but I never want to experience the hurt I felt when that judge said . . . ”  

Yes, it does hurt. But if you decide ahead of time that you are going to put on your rhino skin and not fall apart if you do receive a few bad comments, you’ll be better able to ignore them.

The best way I’ve found to deal with disappointing judge remarks is to put the score sheets away for a while and not look at them for at least a week or maybe a month. I then go to the Lord and pray through my bad feelings. It's especially therapeutic to journal about my feelings and get them out on paper. Sometimes it has taken many pages of notepaper to get them all out, but it really does help.

I always save any positive remarks I’ve received from my crit partners that I can go back to and read during my moments of despair over a bad judge remark. And you can be assured that such experiences don’t end once you’re published. One bad review can send an author into a tailspin. That’s when many will go to the positive reviews and fan letters they’ve received and reread them.

I hope by now, if you’ve been on the fence about entering a writing contest this year, I’ve convinced you to take the plunge. For more information about the ACFW Genesis contest you can go to www.acfw.com/genesis. For the Novel Rocket Launch Pad contest, you can read about it at http://www.novelrocket.com/p/launch-pad-contest.html.

Just remember that no matter where you place in the contest, all entrants are winners in one form or another. So what are you waiting for? 

 

A native of Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, author Pamela S. Meyers lives in suburban Chicago, an hour's drive away from her hometown which she visits often to dig into its historical legacy. Her novels include Thyme for Love, and Love Will Find a Way,  contemporary romantic mysteries and her 1933 historical romance, Love Finds You in Lake Geneva,Wisconsin, released in April, 2013. She can often be found speaking at events around Lake Geneva or nosing in microfilms and historical records about Wisconsin and other Midwestern spots for new story ideas.

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Did You Get the Word?

Hear ye! Hear ye!

Calling all unpublished novelists: have you heard about Novel Rocket's Launch Pad Contest: Boosting You Out of the Slush Pile?

Now in its fifth year, the contest offers a number of opportunities for one and all to:

1) Practice the submission procedure.
If a writer ever hopes to be published, she'll have to submit her work about a gazillion times. And you know what they say about practice leading to perfection.

Even when we understand that no manuscript is ever perfect, the submission process is an intimidating to the fledgling writer. Contests like this are a great way to break the ice. If you mess up, you won't ruin your chances at publication; you'll simply be contacted with a friendly suggestion as to how to correct the problem, and then you can try again.

2) Acquire valuable input from writing professionals.
This is where our contest shines. Every entrant will receive two careful critiques from people who have been around the block enough times that Novel Rocket got tired of seeing them traipse by, so we invited them in to get them off the streets. That means they know the craft and they know the industry, and they enjoy sharing what they've learned with new writers. Why? Because at one time, they were each where you are now: passionate about writing, but struggling to break through.

If you'd like confirmation of what you're doing right as well as suggestions for ways to improve, this is your chance to receive two (2) knowledgeable and unbiased opinions from people who don't know you.

3) For those who win a genre category, it offers the writer the opportunity to draw attention to his work.
The winning entry in each monthly category will be published right here on Novel Rocket for thousands to see. This comes with no promises, but on at least one occasion, an agent read the chapter, liked what she saw, and contacted the writer with an offer of representation.

Even if that doesn't happen, it gives you bragging rights and a chance to send links to your chapter to everyone you know. Who wouldn't want that?

4) For the Grand Prize Winner, it gives the writer's an opportunity to have her manuscript offered directly to an agent, circumventing the slush pile.

The trophy we presented our
2012 winner.

The winner of the whole shebang will be matched up with an agent, or possibly an editor, based on the story's genre and the writer's submission history. (That is, we won't introduce you to someone who's already seen it and decided she can't use it.) That's what the "Out of the Slush Pile" slogan is talking about. But it's not idle talk; we mean it!

5) The Grand Prize Winner also wins an über-cool rocket trophy, each of which is hand-made of blown glass and engraved with the winner's name.
There may be some writers who'd consider this nothing but unnecessary clutter and would want no part of it. I don't know anyone like that, but anything's possible. If that describes you, then don't bother entering.

However, if you'd like to put a trophy like this on your desk or shelf -- if you've got a hankering to see your writing showcased on our site -- or even if you're just looking for a little submission experience and professional input on your writing -- click on the Launch Pad tab to see the complete rules.

We're currently open to entries in all categories. However, although the contest runs throughout the rest of the year, each genre category has a different submission deadline. Here's a quick overview of the categories and the entry dates:

Suspense/Crime/Mystery/Thriller: Submission deadline is April 10, 2014.
General Fiction: Deadline is May 10, 2014.
Historical Fiction: Deadline is June 10, 2014.
Middle Grade/Young Adult Fiction: Deadline is July 10, 2014.
Contemporary Romance: Deadline is August 10, 2014.
Speculative Fiction: Deadline is September 10, 2014.

Tool for polishing manuscripts

Read the complete rules carefully; polish up your manuscript. Download the Entry Form and fill it out; click on the PayPal button at the bottom of the Launch Pad Contest page to pay the entry fee; then email your completed Entry Form, your novel's synopsis, and the first 3-4000 words to us at NovelRocketContest at gmail.com.

Questions? Comments? Send them to that same email address. A real-live human being (not necessarily an Earthborn one, but at least she's not an android) is waiting to provide a prompt and personal reply. In English.

We look forward to receiving your entry and visiting your story world!
   

Yvonne Anderson, when she's not overseeing the Launch Pad Contest, writes fiction that takes you out of this world. Fly through the Gateway to Gannah for some serious sci-fi adventure.

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Launch Pad Contest: Boosting You Out of the Slush Pile - 2014 Edition

We're pleased to announce that the 2014 edition of our popular Launch Pad Contest: Boosting You Out of the Slush Pile is ready for take-off. It's the contest everyone wins.

We here at Novel Rocket love to encourage new writers and help them find their way through the complexities of the publishing world. We're not rock stars, but now that we've gained a little experience, we're appreciative of those who helped us get to where we are and would like to similarly pay it forward. 

This the fifth consecutive year of this event. We've had a lot of positive feedback from past participants, and several writers found it so valuable that they entered again. 

Moreover, a surprising number have contracted with agents and/or have been published since entering the contest -- and I'm not talking about just the winners. Several past contestants tell us that the critiques and encouragement they received from our judges gave them the boost they needed to keep going.

The Launch Pad contest works a little differently from most other writing contests in that it runs all year. We take submissions beginning in January. Each month from May through October, we judge one of the six genre categories. The winner of each of these monthly mini-contests has the opportunity to move into the final round. A second panel of judges decides which of those finalists should win the Grand Prize.

Oh, by the way: when we announce a monthly winner, we publish the winning entry on the blog, thus giving the writer's work some nice exposure. On at least one occasion, an agent saw a winning entry, liked what she read, and contacted the writer about the possibility of representation. You never know where something like this might lead.

Here are the categories, along with submission deadlines and the date each winner will be announced. Definitions of/criteria for each of these categories can be found at the Launch Pad tab above.

Suspense/Crime/Mystery/Thriller. Deadline: April 10, 2014. Winner announced May 12, 2014.

General Fiction. Deadline: May 10, 2014. Winner announced June 9, 2014.

Historical: June 10, 2014. Winner announced July 14, 2014.

Middle Grade/Young Adult Fiction: July 10, 2014. Winner announced August 11, 2014.

Contemporary Romance: August 10, 2014. Winner announced September 8, 2014.

Speculative Fiction: September 10, 2014. Winner announced October 13, 2014.

The Grand Prize will be announced on December 8, 2014.

The contest is open to all unpublished novelists. That is, a writer who has completed a work of full-length fiction but has no novel published by a traditional publisher. Never mind if you've published poetry, nonfiction, plays, or have had short stories or articles printed in various publications. This is for anyone who's never had a novel published by a traditional publisher.

We do ask, however, that your novel be complete, because if you win your category, you'll be required to provide the complete manuscript in order to advance to the final round. So if you're just getting started with that novel of yours, you might want to wait until next year before you hop aboard.

However, if you think you'd like to get in on this now, check out the complete rules at the Launch Pad tab above. In addition to the submission requirements, you'll find a link to the entry form there and a Paypal button for the entry fee.

We have several new judges this year who are eager to read your entries and offer their feedback. And who knows? We might even have a blown glass rocket trophy, much like the one at the beginning of this post, with your name on it!

When she isn't overseeing the Launch Pad contest, Yvonne Anderson writes fiction that takes you out of this world.

Fly through the space fantasy series, Gateway to Gannah, for some serious adventure!

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Novel Rocket's Launch Pad Contest: Boosting You Out of the Slush Pile -- We Have a Winner!

Okay everybody -- time to let out all those pent-up breaths. We have a winner to announce!

The category winners submitted proposals and complete manuscripts to our final round judges. The judges read and pondered. Then they pondered some more. They discussed. And finally, a decision was made.

Because the judges are all Christians, they view the world through the lens of scripture. But fair is fair: this year's winner is not a Christian story, and the language makes us a bit uncomfortable. But it's a great story, and the writing is top-notch. We're all confident that the best entry won.

Let's all give a hearty congratulations, therefore, to Kerry Ann Morgan of Altamonte Springs, Florida, for her contemporary novel, The Last Resort.

Kerry Ann will receive a handmade engraved crystal rocket much like the one shown here. (This picture is of the trophy we gave to last year's winner, Rachelle Harp -- if you look closely, you can see it's engraved with "2012 Novel Rocket Launch Pad Contest" as well as the winner's name. Pretty cool, huh?) Kerry Ann will also be working with our own Gina Holmes to get her in touch with a suitable literary agent.

Best wishes to you, Kerry Ann, for publishing success!

If you think this sounds like fun, check back January 13, when we plan to announce the 2014 edition of our contest. You won't want to miss it!

When she's not overseeing our Launch Pad Contest, Yvonne Anderson writes fiction that takes you out of this world. If you're looking for a worthwhile get-away, fly through the Gateway to Gannah for some serious sci-fi adventure!

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Launch Pad Contest: The Final Countdown

Novel Rocket's fourth annual Launch Pad Contest: Boosting You Out of the Slush Pile has moved into the final countdown.

(Ten... nine...)

Over the past six months, we've chosen a winner in each of our six categories: Suspense/Crime/Mystery/Thriller -- General Fiction --  Nonfiction -- Middle Grade/Young Adult -- Romance -- Speculative Fiction.

Those category winners who have elected to move on to the final round have submitted proposals and complete manuscripts. And now, our esteemed final round judges are reviewing all these in order to make their decision.

(Eight... seven...)

If you're not familiar with our contest, it's an opportunity for unpublished authors to receive two professional critiques of the first chapter or two of a finished work, which is a prize every entrant receives. Each category winner has his or her manuscript spotlighted on this blog. And the Grand Prize winner wins a nifty crystal rocket trophy (the 2012 edition is shown here, but each is individually made and so no two are exactly the same). But here's the best part: the Grand Prize winner will also be matched up with a literary agent or publisher, thus circumventing the dreaded slush pile. For complete details, check out the Launch Pad tab above.

(Six... five...)

Wish you could have gotten in on it, but learned about it too late? We plan to launch another edition next year with a similar itinerary. So keep watching this blog and be ready to book your flight when the time comes.

Meanwhile, make sure to check back on December 9 when the Grand Prize winner will be announced.

(Four... three...)

The tension mounts!

When Yvonne Anderson isn't hovering over the Launch Pad contest (or stressing out over an interstate move, as she's currently doing), she writes fiction that takes you out of this world. Check out her Gateway to Gannah for some serious sci-fi adventure!

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A Tickle from Your To-Do List

Don't forget about our Launch Pad Contest, now in full swing.

The judges are currently reading and critiquing the entries for the first category, Suspense/Crime/Mystery/Thriller, and we'll announce the winner of that group on May 13.

Meanwhile, we're still taking submissions in all the other categories: General Fiction, Nonfiction, Middle Grade/Young Adult, Romance, and Speculative Fiction. So if you're an unpublished novelist -- or a never-before-published author of book-length nonfiction -- there's a place for you here!

Check out the complete rules on the Launch Pad Contest tab.

Don't delay for long, though, especially if you're interested in entering the General Fiction category. As you may recall, we've changed the categories a bit, merging Women's Fiction and Contemporary Fiction under this General Fiction heading.

Also, since we've eliminated the Historical designation, we're accepting historical pieces in different categories. So if you've written a historical romance, that now goes under Romance (there's no longer a separation of historical from contemporary). What if you have a historical drama about, say, Clara Barton, or the story of a young boy in ancient Rome? That's now included in General Fiction.

The official rules elaborate: "These are the stories that don’t quite fit the other categories and can include westerns, dramas, inspirational stories of personal growth, as well as comedy/humor. The setting can be either contemporary or historical."

Why are we nagging you about this? Because the submission deadline for this category is coming up right quick: May 10, 2013. And if we don't remind you, who will?

So if you've been thinking about entering but haven't quite decided, now's the time to jump down off that fence, cowboy!  

Questions? Email us at NovelRocketContest at gmail.com.

We're looking to hear from YOU today!

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Ready to Make Your Own History?

Now in the fourth year of our Slush Pile Contest for unpublished novelists, we’re taking entries in all six categories, as outlined below. 

WARNING -- the first category will close in just two days (April 10). So if you’ve been thinking of submitting that mystery you’ve been working on, get your entry in pronto!

Here’s the whole list of categories, with their submission deadlines:

Category	Submission Deadline (11:59 pm EST)
Suspense/Crime/Mystery/Thriller	April 10, 2013
General Fiction	May 10, 2013
Nonfiction	June 10, 2013
Middle Grade/Young Adult Fiction	July 10, 2013
Romance	August 10, 2013
Speculative Fiction	September 10, 2013

If you’ve completed a novel (or a nonfiction book – for the first time this year, we’re accepting entries for book-length nonfiction from writers who have never previously published nonfiction) but haven’t yet found a publishing home for it, we’d love to see it!  Check out the complete rules and submission requirements on the Launch Pad Contest tab.

In 2010, the first year of our contest, we ran through the whole list of categories twice, then chose the Grand Prize winner from the list of twelve semi-finalists. We had some excellent entries, and as we’ve reported previously, several of our early participants went on to be successful published authors.

Sally Apokedak entered the second round of the Speculative category (which we then called Science Fiction/Fantasy/Horror) with a story called The Button Girl. She won the category, and then went on to be our first Grand Prize winner.

You might recognize Sally’s name, as she's now one of Novel Rocket’s regular contributors, as one of the unexpected byproducts of being our first contest winner. Here are Sally’s thoughts on having been our groundbreaker:

Most of us don't get maps ahead of time that tell us where God is taking us.

When I entered the Novel Rocket contest several years ago, I had no idea where it would lead. I won, to my delight and surprise, and within a couple of months, thanks to Gina Holmes's help, I'd signed with a real-life literary agent.

Well, that was in early 2010. And here we are 3 years later.

I can't tell you that my Novel Rocket win catapulted me to stardom and to six-figure advances. And honestly I'm glad it didn't. Because then I'd be on a different path. And I'm loving the path God has me on, even though I didn't see it coming three years ago.

So…if entering the contest didn't set me on the road to fame and riches, what did it do for me?

• It moved me along the path God has determined for me
• It let me get to know Gina Holmes (and others here), and that's been wonderful
•  It opened the door for me to see how the agent/writer relationship works
• It opened doors for me to get to know editors

And here I am three years later, a literary agent working with the wonderful Les Stobbe. I had no idea when I entered the contest that God was going to give me such wonderful experiences and opportunities.

And two days ago, my Novel Rocket contest experience came full circle when I signed as a client…

Janine Yordy! Another Novel Rocket winner. She took first place in the YA category with a lovely novel in verse.

What a kick! I went from wanting an agent to being an agent. Now God's allowing me to take part in making other people's dreams come true. What could be more fun than that?

Here's my philosophy: God will take us wonderful places if we'll keep on knocking on doors and walking through when he opens them. Grab every opportunity, always keep learning, and praise God in all things, because he has bigger plans in mind for you than you can dream up on your own.

So what do you think?

Could the Launch Pad Contest be an opportunity for you as well?

When she's not coordinating the Launch Pad Contest, Yvonne Anderson writes fiction that takes you out of this world.

Fly through the Gateway to Gannah for some serious sci-fi adventure.

Book #1, The Story in the Stars

Book #2, Words in the Wind

Book #3, Ransom in the Rock (release TBA)

Book #4, (under construction)

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