So, as a judge for Cupid’s Come and Get It! Contest, I had to choose four finalists out of the original ten entries I was given. The judges all agreed that it was a rough choice. I was pretty highly critical of all my entries and gave a LOT of feedback, and I really hope it’s helped everyone—not just my four finalists—in their search for an agent.
My final four (“original entry” links to where you can read my comments; “finalist” links to where you can see if agents bid on them):
- Original Entry #38, Finalist #28: THE ASTRONAUT’S DAUGHTER, YA Historical
- Original Entry #39, Finalist #34: EYRE HOUSE, YA Gothic
- Original Entry #87, Finalist #20: ENDANGERED, MG Fantasy Adventure
- Original Entry #89, Finalist #3: RACE TO BUTCH CASSIDY’S GOLD, MG Mystery
I must say it was an interesting experience being on the other side of the fence in a contest. It wasn’t as hard as I thought it might be, though. It took some time, effort, and energy, but I was very confident in the entries I chose and enjoyed giving feedback. If anyone wants to ask questions about my feedback, let me know. I’m an open book!
In a nice nerdy blog post, Kristy Shen has analyzed the chosen entries and processed the data on genres overall, genres by judge, and age groups. Very cool~!