Official Competition Rules and Regulations
1. OPEN ONLY TO REGISTERED MEMBERS OF THENEXTBIGWRITER.COM. TO ENTER:
Registered members of theNextBigWriter.com may enter in two ways:
- Writing Members enter by posting their work on theNextBigWriter.com site, anytime during the Contest period. Writer members are automatically entered for Writer Awards when they post their novels, short stories, or poems to the site.
- Review Members enter by submitting reviews and ratings of Writing Members’ work posted to the site, anytime during the Contest period. Review Members earn rating scores from the Writing Members whose work they’ve reviewed.
All work posted to the site by members is the sole responsibility of the submitting person. Entrants are entirely responsible for all content posted or otherwise made available via the site. Sponsor reserves the right to declare any entries determined to not be in accordance with the stated terms of theNextBigWriter Member Agreement ineligible for entry.
2. Rankings and Winner Selection: The winners in the Short Story, Poetry, and Reviewer prize categories will be those with the highest rankings as of the end of each segment of the Contest period. The winner of the Annual Novel Award will be the member with the highest ranking in that category as of the end of the annual Contest period. Participating Writing Members and Review Members will be ranked by theNextBigWriter.com member community according to the reviewing and rating guidelines stated on the site, under supervision of the Sponsor, whose procedures and decisions in all matters relating to this Contest are final. Potential winners will be contacted by email to the address provided during membership registration, and will be required to execute an Affidavit of Eligibility or Winner Verification form, liability/publicity release and, where applicable, Sponsor’s standard publishing contract. Potential winners must respond to the email notification within 8 days; the completed affidavit or verification form, release and, where applicable, publishing contract must be returned and received within 14 days of the date mailed to the potential winner, or the prize will be awarded to the subsequent winner in the overall rankings. Participating members are solely responsible for the validity and current status of the contact information in their member profile. In the event of a statistical tie in the rankings among eligible finalists, the tie will be broken by a vote by the member community.
3. Prizes: Prizes will be awarded in two categories – Writer Awards and Reviewer Awards:
Writer Award Prizes: One (1) Annual Novel Award, awarded to the Writing Member who’s submitted novel is ranked highest at the conclusion of the annual Contest period: $5,000 plus lifetime membership to theNextBigWriter.com, up to a maximum value of $3,400. Approximate retail value of Novel Award is $7,400. Nine (9) Short Story Awards – three (3) awarded to Writing Members who’s submitted short stores are ranked highest at the conclusion of each segment of the Contest period: A paid publishing contract of $.03 per word for the submitted winning stories, up to $100, plus 1 year’s membership to theNextBigWriter.com. Approximate retail value of each Short Story Award is $139.95. Nine (9) Poetry Awards – three (3) awarded to Writing Members who’s submitted poems are ranked highest at the conclusion of each segment of the Contest period: A paid publishing contract of $.03 per word for the submitted winning poems, up to $50, plus 1 year ‘s membership to theNextBigWriter.com. Approximate retail value of each Poetry Award is $89.95.
Reviewer Award Prizes: Four (4) Reviewer Awards – one (1) prize of $100 awarded to the highest rated Review Member at the conclusion of each segment of the Contest period. Retail value of each Reviewer Award is $100.
No more than the stated number of prizes will be awarded. No transfer or substitution of prizes permitted. Winners are solely responsible for all applicable federal, state, or local taxes on the value of their prizes. Novel Award winner will be issued an IRS 1099 tax form for the retail value of the prize won. Winners are responsible for all costs or expenses not specifically exempted herein. By accepting a prize, each winner agrees to the release of his/her name, pen name, likeness, and city and state of residence for potential publicity purposes, where permitted by law.
4. Eligibility: Void where prohibited by law or regulation. Contest is open only to registered theNextBigWriter.com members 18 years of age or older who have never sold 15,000 or more copies of any particular book or manuscript they’ve authored. The following additional restrictions apply to individuals who registered as members of theNextBigWriter.com site after November 11, 2005: (i) Void in AZ; and (ii) Contest is only open to legal residents of the United States (except residents of AZ, PR, and all other US Territories and Possessions), Australia, New Zealand, United Kingdom, India, Israel, or Canada (except the Province of Quebec). Contest is not open to employees and their families (spouses, parents, children/siblings and their respective spouses, and those living in the same household) of theNextBigWriter, LLC, its affiliates, advertising and production agencies. Entrants consent to the use of their registration information in accordance with theNextBigWriter privacy policy. All federal, state, and local laws and regulations apply. All rights to any work submitted by Writing Members are retained by the submitting member in accordance with the stated terms of theNextBigWriter Member Agreement. Any entries that are currently or have previously been published or protected by a copyright, trademark, or other proprietary right other than the entrant’s may be entered, with the permission of the publisher or copyright holder, only. Entries must be original and conceived and created entirely by the entrant. Sponsor may prohibit any entrant from participating in this Contest or any future promotion offered by the Sponsor, if, in the sole opinion of theNextBigWriter, LLC such entrant (i) has tampered with the entry process or the operation of the Contest or website, (ii) repeatedly shows a disregard for the rules, or (iii) acts (a) in an unsportsmanlike manner, (b) with an intent to annoy, abuse, threaten, or harass theNextBigWriter, LLC or any other entrant, or (c) in any other disruptive manner. Entrants must be a Writing Member or Review Member of theNextBigWriter.com site, as appropriate, in good standing as of the end of each segment of the Contest period to be eligible to win. The Contest may be terminated at any time after its commencement without prior notice; however if such termination should occur, all prizes will be awarded to winners according to the rankings at the time of Contest termination.
5. Limitation of Liability: Sponsor is not responsible for typographical errors in any contest-related materials; or for any individual's inability to enter this contest, including but not limited to unavailable network, server, telephone, or other connections; failed software or hardware transmissions; other errors of any kind, whether human, mechanical, or electronic, including lost, late, incomplete, damaged, or misdirected entries; or for any damage to any computer related to or resulting from participation. Sponsor reserves the right to terminate or modify contest if fraud or technical failures compromise the integrity of the contest as determined by Sponsor in its sole discretion. In the event that the contest is terminated, all eligible entries received before termination will be ranked. Entrants agree that the Sponsor, its promotion partners, related companies, agencies, and their respective employees or officers shall not be liable for injury, losses, damages or costs of any kind resulting from participation in this contest or acceptance of or use or misuse of a prize or parts thereof. By entering, participants agree to be bound by these official rules.
6. Winners List: For a list of winners send a postcard, only, with your name and address to: theNextBigWriter Awards Winners List, P.O. Box 610383, Newton, MA 02461. Winners will also be posted on theNExtBigWriter.com website as they are determined.
7. Sponsor: theNextBigWriter, LLC, P.O. Box 610383, Newton, MA 02461.
