Write, Judge and Learn

I am judging entries into the Florida Writers Association Royal Palm Literary Competition. It’s very well organized and has a fine, clear format for judging. Entries are closed for this year, but if you have a novel, story, poem, non-fiction piece, it’s a good contest that (probably) opens in early February, 2020.  See https://floridawriters.net/competitions-awards/royal-palm-literary-award/. The welcoming memo pointed out that judging would be a form of education for me as a writer, and it was right. Other people’s strengths call out my weaknesses. That probably should have been obvious … it certainly is now.

I have been silent for a month. We traveled from Minnesota to Florida and have been visiting friends and enjoying St. Augustine.  I’ve been finishing rewrite of my third novel, Fail Deadly and am about ready to deliver it to several beta readers.  These folks read a draft copy and tell me where the plot and/or the characters go astray. If you are interested in the Thriller genre and would like to be a beta reader, drop me a line at gotuit5243@gmail.com.

Author: John Rogers

I have thought of myself as a writer for most of my adult life. In 2011, I became a fiction writer full time. I studied creative writing as an English major in college. Then came family and career. I worked in finance and biotech and did a wonderful stint in Vienna. Now, I have the opportunity to use those experiences as the substrate for my stories. My first novel takes on the world of Big Data and the very timely issue of cyber war. The second uses the manipulation of financial derivatives as impetus for attempted murder during a trip from Vienna to Budapest on the Danube. I have taken writing instruction at the Cape Cod Writers Conference and from The Loft in Minneapolis. I am finding writers’ groups to be very helpful as concept editors, as well as practical advice from the published authors. I am in three such groups. I have taken writing instruction at the Cape Cod Writers Conference and from The Loft in Minneapolis. View all posts by John Rogers