The Writer's Workout
Be a better writer.
WRITER'S GAMES 2021
Not your ordinary writing competition
The Writer's Workout is proud to present the
EIGHTH ANNUAL WRITER'S GAMES
The Writer's Games is a free competition designed to help each individual writer improve his or her craft at an accelerated rate. Every accepted entry receives honest, unbiased feedback from multiple sources. This is not an elimination challenge so every registered participant is eligible to win every Event regardless of past performance.
To meet federal licensing regulations, we cannot accept religious or political entries. By request from the judges, entries containing erotica or pandemic fiction will not be judged.
Judges are available in our Forum to answer your questions.
Find submissions and formatting information below.
Registration for this portion is CLOSED.
This portion's sponsors:
Duotrope, Premier Literary Services, Reedsy, and Winning Writers
Want to help? Donate here.
We appreciate your support!
2021, Portion 1
Individuals listed below will be featured in our anthology,
Event 1: We Built This City
4th Place: EJ Howler & Arden Ruth
3rd Place: Jayne Hunter
2nd Place: Lisa Fox
1st Place: John Adams
Event 2: Every Villain's Story
5th Place: Ej Sidle
3rd Place: Calen Bender and EJ Howler
2nd Place: Bridget Haug
1st Place: Sean Fallon
Event 3: What Was That?
5th Place: MM Schreier
3rd Place: Maria L. Berg and Jason Ryder
2nd Place: M. Ong
1st Place: Fiona Donaldson
Event 4: Fatal Flaw
5th Place: Kate MacGuire
4th Place: Amber Felt
3rd Place: Rodaina Yasser
2nd Place: S.E. Reed
1st Place: Sarah Connell
Event 5: It's a Disaster!
5th Place: Kate MacGuire and Charlie Rogers
4th Place: Teague LaBrosse
3rd Place: Ella Moon
2nd Place: Allison Rott
1st Place: MM Schreier
Writer's Games, 2021
Did you receive exceptional feedback?
Our judges are in competition to see who can create the most beneficial feedback throughout this portion. If the feedback on your piece is truly helpful, let us know through this survey.
Overall Winners, 2021
10th Place, Bridget Haug
9th Place, Ella Moon
8th Place, Toni Risson
7th Place, K.M. Shapiro
6th Place, Sarah Connell
5th Place, Fiona Donaldson
4th Place, Lisa Fox
3rd Place, JB Hansen
2nd Place, Teague LaBrosse
1st Place, MM Schreier
To meet federal licensing regulations,
we cannot accept religious or political entries.
By request from the judges, entries containing erotica or pandemic fiction will not be judged.
Unsolicited entries are not accepted. Click here for how it works.
Please take a moment to thank and follow our sponsors on Twitter!
Duotrope: @duotrope
Premier Literary Services: @kuzitiz
Reedsy: @ReedsyHQ
Winning Writers: @winningwriters
Follow along with CoffeeQuills each week on Twitch as they livestream their Writer's Games experience!
CoffeeQuills is a veteran Gamer auditing the portion. Their entries are not scored.
Use our tools to your advantage! Check out the Event definition on our Tips & Events page.
Opt IN for emailed Event announcements here.
Opting in adds you to the Events mailing list only and does not secure registration.
Submissions & Formatting
Entries must meet the following general formatting requirements:
Arial or Times New Roman, size 10 or 12pt, black text only.
Single spaced
1" empty margins on all four sides
0.5" (12.7mm) or Tab indentations for all paragraphs
Do not use the spacebar for indentations.
Blank line for scene breaks
Do not include a secondary title of your entry.
Entries must include the proper Title Information at the start of the document, aligned left:
Name
Title of Entry
Event Name (this appears in all caps during the announcement)
Word Count
Entries not meeting the general formatting requirements lose points during judgement. Entries not including Title Information in the order listed above are disqualified.
These file types are accepted: .doc, .docx, .odt
Google Docs links must be set to "anyone with link can edit". Copy the link provided and paste it into an email. Do not attempt to add WW as an editor (Google permissions do not allow access through this method).
Email entries to submissions@writersworkout.net
OR use our DropBox by clicking "Add a file" above.
Judges are available in the Forum to help you.
Overall Winners, 2020
Portion 1
10th Place, Sean Fallon
9th Place, Chrissie Rohrman
8th Place, K.M. Shapiro
7th Place, Pamela Hellig
6th Place, Lauren Sibley
5th Place, Amber Felt
4th Place, Harvey Brown
3rd Place, Madeleine Pelletier
2nd Place, Lisa Fox
1st Place, Haley M. Hwang
Portion 2
10th Place, Andrea Goyan
9th Place, Sarah Perchikoff
8th Place, Lisa Fox
7th Place, Renée Boyer
6th Place, Ella Moon
5th Place, Emily Roth
4th Place, Chrissie Rohrman
3rd Place, CE Snow
2nd Place, Ej Sidle
1st Place, R.A. Clarke
Find out what goes into the production of one portion of The Writer's Games here and click the "Donate" button below. You can also check out our Donations page to find out how your donation supports this community.
The Writer's Workout is a registered 501(c)(3)
nonprofit organization.
The Writer's Games is a global competition so all genres, skill levels, and backgrounds are welcome. May the words flow to your victory.
Beloved Affiliates of The Writer's Workout:
Help spread the love of writing! Join our affiliates to see your organization here. For more information on each of our affiliates and sponsors, visit our Affiliates page.
Contact us for details.
The Writer's Games (originally dubbed the NaNoGames) were the brainchild of Heather Glomb. The first Games took place in May, 2014, and set out to encourage creative writing. When they finished, the writers wanted more, and this group was born.
Neither The Writer's Workout nor the Writer's Games is affiliated with NaNoWriMo or its parent company, The Office of Letters and Light (OLL). All profits from the sale of Writer's Games volumes is donated to OLL with permission from registered participants.