Writing Contests

I have decided to challenge myself by entering writing contests. For those familiar with my fiction and nonfiction books, you know that I love entering sweepstakes. However, they are usually just fill out a form with your information, submit, and wait to see if you win a prize. A contest is different from a sweepstakes in that it requires some skill, for instance photography, baking, drawing, etc. In this case the skill is writing. The first writing contest I am going to enter will be the Idaho Writers Guild 2021 Idaho Writers Contest. There is a fee to enter, and the prizes are small, but it gives me the unique opportunity to receive feedback on my writing from the judges. This is valuable in and of itself.

The categories for this particular contest are short story, novel, nonfiction memoir and poetry. Since I feel I would gain the most value from feedback on memoir-writing, this is the category I am going to attempt. However, I am having trouble deciding what slice of life will result in the best story. So, I am throwing some ideas out to you, dear readers. What topic would you find the most interesting for a nonfiction/memoir book?

1. An advocacy-centered memoir on a career in the nonprofit sector
2. A humor-centered memoir on past dating debacles
3. A family history-centered memoir

Or is there another memoir aspect that you particularly enjoy reading about? I am looking forward to hearing your thoughts!