My first win

True Minnesotan

I won a 5 pound nut roll for this writing competition!

This is the contest that sparked my drive to write and to write competitively.

Having been in several contests since then, I think there are a couple things to take away.

• Local contests often don't appear on contest list websites
• You are more likely to write about something you know when it is a local contest, a more specific point of view is often better writing
• I prefer writing contests with specific themes/challenges vs more universal "submit anything" types