Writing Contests: Could Winning Mean Losing? Beware of the Rights Grabbers!

Would you enter a writing contest if you knew that entering the contest meant losing your rights as a writer? Would winning a writing contest and getting a few copies of the book as a prize be enough to make up for losing out on royalties?

Knowing that getting published is difficult, some publishers sponsor or co-sponsor contests where winning the contest means you might get published âÂ?¦ but oh, my Sweet Aunt Sally, they don’t make it clear that winning can cost you your copyright. Before you ship off an entry to a writing contest, make sure you read the rules.

The key words to look for in the rules are “grant”, “rights”, and “compensation”. Whenever you are “granting rights” you should be getting something back as “compensation”. The preferred compensation is a standard publishing contract with an advance and royalties.

Sometimes just entering a writing contest means granting rights and getting nothing in return. For example, the 2005 Woman’s Day children’s picture book contest, co-sponsored by Scholastic, had this rule:

“5. Submission of an entry grants Sponsors the exclusive right to publish, illustrate, edit, and print the entry for any and all purposes in any media whether currently in existence or hereafter invented (including but not limited to print and digital media) without further notice or compensation to the entrant or winner. Winner may be required to sign all necessary documents to transfer copyright ownership of the winning entry to Sponsors.”

If you submit an entry under these rules, that’s the end of the line for that story. Kiss it lovingly goodbye before you seal the envelope, because you are handing them unlimited exclusive rights to that creation. If you submit a story that turns into the next “Harry Potter“, they own it and you don’t. If you submit a story that turns into the next “Goodnight, Moon” a steady seller and royalty producer for over 60 years, they own it and you don’t. You get no royalties, no nothing. Just your name on the front of a book.

After taking a public scolding from professional writers for the blatant rights grabbing, the 2006 Woman’s Day children’s picture book contest only grabs the publishing rights from the winner.

5. Acceptance of Grand Prize grants Sponsors the exclusive, perpetual, and worldwide right to publish, illustrate, edit, and print the entry in any media whether currently in existence or hereafter invented (including but not limited to print and digital media) without further notice or compensation, except as set forth below. (A clause below states that the Grand Prize winner gets 100 free copies of the book, if it is published.)

When questioned about the rules by a published author, Woman’s Day defended the contest’s treatment of the winner. One of their senior editors wrote, “In offering the contest, we wanted to provide non-professional writers with a chance to experience the thrill of becoming a published children’s book author.” I think the thrill of a contract and the usual advance would be better.

I’m not alone in thinking that the thrill of being published isn’t enough to compensate me for handing over all rights, forever. Children’s Fantasy author, Christine Norris wrote, “If I submitted my picture book to them through the normal channels, instead of through the contest, and it was accepted, I would be given an advance, and rights, and royalties, and copies. I would be treated like a writer, and not a ‘contest winner’.”

Susan Gable, a published romance novelist, had this to say: “If the winning entry of this contest is good enough for them to publish, it should be good enough to get at least their basic deal, which I’m willing to wager includes an advance and some restriction of rights.“

My advice: don’t sell yourself short on the promise of getting published. If you think you have what it takes to win a writing contest, don’t submit your work unless there is a real contract as a prize. If you are good enough to get published, you are good enough to get published like the rest of the writers, with all the goodies that come with a contract.