We chatted with Eden Werring, writer and nonfiction contest editor for LUMINA, about how writing contests, while scary, can actually be a great tool. Here's what she had to say:

As a writer, you might live on the inside. Alone, most of the time, with your own imagery, stories, ideas. But then there’s the urge to bring your writing into the world where others can experience it. When you feel this way, consider submitting your work to a writing contest.

Submitting. It might sound harsh. Like you would be placing yourself at the mercy of another’s control or examination. While that might be literally true, consider a more expansive interpretation. Submitting your writing is also a way of letting it be experienced by a broader readership. In this view, the submission process becomes more an act of expression than of subjugation. In fact, the word ‘contest’ evolved from the medieval Latin com- (together) and testare (witness). Through contests, we witness our writing, together. Doesn’t that sound better?

With this in mind, here are just a few more reasons to consider submitting to a writing contest before the summer is over:

1. A brighter spotlight. Submitting to contests creates even more exposure for your writing than submitting in general to literary journals. Many writing contest winners report that the contest accelerated their careers in ways that would never have happened had they not submitted.

3. Have your writing read by a writer you admire. Submitting to a contest means you have the chance to be read by the judge of the contest, who is often an esteemed writer. In the case of LUMINA’s Nonfiction Contest, our judge is Leslie Jamison, author of the New York Times bestselling essay collection, The Empathy Exams. Many of the writers who have submitted to LUMINA’s contest have done so because they want a chance to have Leslie read their work.

3. Blind submission process. The process of judging the contest submissions is often blind (without your name on the page), so it is the merit of your writing that is being judged, not your identity or background.

4. A little money. Most of the time publication in literary journals does not come with any financial recompense, so writing contests with cash prizes are a way of giving yourself some opportunity to earn some money for your writing.

5. Supporting literary journals. Although the fees can add up if you submit a lot, you are making a small contribution to the sustainability of literary journals, many of which are nonprofit or with unpaid staff, when you pay to submit your work.

So consider submitting to a writing contest this summer. One great option is to send LUMINA your boldest and most beautiful nonfiction by September 1. First place prize is $750 and publication in LUMINA, Vol. XVI. With Leslie Jamison as our judge, this is going to be a very exciting contest. Details are here: http://luminajournal.com/contest. The theme of the contest (and the journal in general this year) is Borders and Boundaries. We hope this broad theme offers an opportunity for writers to stretch within and beyond themselves, so that we can witness your writing together.

Eden Werring is a writer and member of She Writes. She graduated from Yale University with a B.A. in English Literature and is pursuing her MFA in Creative Nonfiction at Sarah Lawrence College. Eden writes and lives with her family in Redding, Connecticut.