To help writers get a step up when entering any writing contest, the long-established Writers-Editors Network has posted 10 Tips for Winning Writing Contests. Among those tips are:

** Begin with a bang. Editors routinely say they read the first paragraph of a piece, and if they don't care about what happens next, they stop there, because the incoming mail stack is too high. Contest judges often face even higher manuscript stacks. A quick way to weed out the losing entries is to discard all those where the first page doesn't give them a reason to go to the second page. Before sending in an entry, read every article or book chapter you can find on openings, beginnings, leads. Then compare yours to what the experts say. This applies equally to fiction and nonfiction.

** Make your story different. That means a different setting or unusual characters or a different plot. If it's been used before, if it's trite, get rid of it. If two stories on that judge's pile are similar, they both lose.

** Make sure your story or article has a clear central theme that you follow throughout it. You should be able to say, "This article or story is about . . ." and finish the description in one sentence. Get rid of things that don't relate to that theme.

All 10 tips are posted at www.Writers-Editors.com.

Entries for the 29th Annual 2012 Writers-Editors Network International Writing Competition are now being accepted. Cash prizes will be awarded to the top winners in each category, with honorable mention certificates for near-winners.

Divisions and Categories include:

** Nonfiction (Previously Published Article/Essay/Nonfiction Book Chapter; Unpublished or Self-Published Article/Essay/Nonfiction Book Chapter);

** Fiction (Short Story; Novel Chapter);

** Children's Literature (Short Story/Nonfiction Article/Book Chapter/Poem);

** Poetry (Traditional/Free Verse).

Each entry MUST be accompanied by an official entry form. Contest deadline is March 15, 2011. Guidelines and entry form can be printed out online at http://www.writers-editors.com or http://www.FFWAmembers.com.

(Note: Winners of prior years' contests are also posted on the site.)