Fixing the First Page Feature Giveaway #13

Photo credit: Nellie0224 on Flickr
Incredibly, we are more than halfway through July, which means it's time to gear up for the next Fixing the First Page giveaway! Yay!

For those who’ve missed it in the past, the Fixing the First Page features is a public first 250 word critique. Using the lovely rafflecopter widget, anyone interested in winning a PUBLIC (as in, featured in a post on this blog) first page critique can enter.

For an example of what this critique will look like, here's the last Fixing the First Page post.

Rules!

  • ONLY the first 250 words will be critiqued (up to finishing the sentence). If you win and send me more, I will crop it myself. No exceptions.

  • ONLY the first page. I don’t want 250 random words from your manuscript, or from chapter 3. If you win the critique and send me anything other than the first 250 words of your manuscript, I will choose someone else.

  • I will actually critique it. Here. On the blog. I will say things as nicely as I can, but I do tend to be a little blunt. If you’re not sure you can handle a public critique, then you may want to take some time to think about it before you enter.

  • Genre restrictions. I'm most experienced with YA & NA, but I will still accept MG and Adult. HOWEVER. If your first page has any erotic content on it, I ask that you don’t enter. I want to be able to post the critique and the first 250 in its entirety without making anyone uncomfortable, and if you win and you enter a page with erotic content, I will choose someone else.

  • You must have your first page ready. Should you win, you need to be able to submit your first page within 48 hours of my contacting you to let you know you won. If 48 hours pass and I haven’t heard from you, again, I will choose someone else.

  • You’ll get the most out of this if it isn’t a first draft. Obviously, I have no way of knowing if you’re handing me a first draft (though I will probably suspect because it’s usually not that difficult to tell). I won’t refuse your page if it’s a first draft, but you should know that this critique will likely be of more use if you’ve already had your betas/CPs look over it. Why? Because if you don’t, the critique I give you will probably contain a lot of notes that your betas & CPs could have/would have told you.

  • There will not be a round 2 (unless you win again in a future contest). I hate to have to say this, but if you win a critique, it’s NOT an invitation to send me a bunch of your revisions. I wish I had the time available to be able to look at revisions, but sadly, I don’t. If you try to break this rule, I will nicely say no, and also remember to choose someone else should you win a second contest. Which would make me sad. :(

So that’s it! If you’re okay with all of the above and would like to enter to be the twelfth public critique on Writability, do the thing with the rafflecopter widget below. You have until Wednesday, July 22 at 11:59 EST to enter!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

28 comments:

MK said...

Yay! There's currently a debate going on in my writing class about the opening of my YA contemporary. Would love to get your perspective Ava!

Ava Jae said...

Yay! Sounds like great timing, then. Good luck! :)

Christy said...

I'm a new follower on your blog (I saw a post of yours on Pinterest) and I really like it! I'm excited for this contest! :)

Ashley R said...

I think I'd pick my NA sci-fi/post-apocalyptic this time. It's near and dear to my heart because it's very heavily influenced by video game storytelling <3

Ophelia Leong said...

I am so excited about this!! I would love to win! I would use my fantasy/adventure MS because I've been working so hard on it and some feedback would be great! ;) Thank you!

Gwen Tolios said...

Yay! I love getting crits because each one reveals something new and you know what you're talking about.

David Villalva said...

Oh my gravy. I want to steal this wonderfully fun approach. Straight up, I love this uniquely generous (monthly) gift to writers. Good stuff!

Ava Jae said...

Well, first and foremost, welcome to Writability! :) If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask.


And good luck with the giveaway!

Ava Jae said...

That sounds cool! Good luck, Ashley!

Ava Jae said...

Yay! I'm so excited that you're so excited! :) Good luck, Ophelia!

Ava Jae said...

Thank you, Gwen! I think you're totally right that every crit can reveal something new. Good luck!

Ava Jae said...

Ha ha thanks, David! It's been a fun feature for sure. :)

Giselle Abreu said...

It's my first time entering one of these because I feel like I finally have a worthy 250 first page excerpt. It's YA magical realism.

Juniper Nichols said...

Wheee I'm gonna keep doing these intil my YA Fantasy is chosen :-P

Julia E. said...

Yay! I love your critique posts. So helpful! Plus, I love seeing what other people are working on! ^_^

Ava Jae said...

Awesome! Good luck, Giselle!

Ava Jae said...

Ha ha sounds like a plan. :) Good luck, Juniper!

Ava Jae said...

Yay! Thanks, Julia! It's been a fun feature to host. :) Good luck!

Amelia Creed said...

Man, how come I didn't know about this generous crit the first 12 times? Well, maybe 13 will be the lucky number, for me and for my NA romantic suspense MS. Fingers crossed.

Emily Wenstrom said...

Just found you through Janice Hardy's Fiction University specifically because I'm trying to figure out why my first pages aren't getting positive responses from literary agents ... I'm psyched for this!

Tanvi Berwah said...

Aw yay! So excited for this! I've changed the opening page of my YA F so would love feedback!

Ava Jae said...

I'm glad you stumbled across it this time, Amelia! Good luck! :)

Ava Jae said...

Welcome to Writability, Emily! Glad you found your way here. :)


That sounds like a great reason to get a first page crit—good luck!

Ava Jae said...

Yay! Good luck! :)

Kat said...

How did I not know about this comp? I've just changed my opening scene to show for the first and only time the antagonist/eventual romantic interest's p.o.v. in order to up the conflict - before I opened with the protagonist and it just wasn't working for me. I think it works better but it introduces other issues, so crit would be fantastic.

Debra Daugherty said...

My first page needs help! Would love to win this critique.

margie stewart said...

Thanks so much for this opportunity, Ava. Editor feedback is the best way for me to learn. I'm hoping to sub this mss to Entangled (Bliss) when it's finished.

Jessica Vasko said...

I'd use the critique on my YA manuscript.

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