In January alone, there are 13 awards programs for movies in the United States. Some of the more famous ones include Golden Globes, Screen Actors Guild and People’s Choice. In addition, nominees for Academy Awards are announced. Too much, you say? Not to the nominees and winners.

The abundance of film competitions, famous as they are, is dwarfed by the number of literary awards that are given every month of the year. The most well-known include the Pulitzer Prize, Man Booker Prize, John Newbery Medal, Edgar Awards, National Book Awards, Costa Book Awards, Indie Booksellers’ Choice Awards, Pushcart Prize, Pen/Faulkner Award, Nobel Prize, Nelson Algren Award, Flannery O’Connor Award and Hugo Award. Literary publications, universities and associations also generate writing competitions.

Winning a competition opens up publicity opportunities to build awareness of you and your book(s). Placing a sticker on a book, announcing its award, boosts its chances of being purchased. Winning an award for one book will likely lead readers to your previous books while alerting them to be on the lookout for your future work.

Win or lose, the benefits of contests go beyond possible financial compensation. Challenging yourself to compete against great writers can elevate your own writing (assuming you read previous winning submissions in contests you plan to enter). If a competition provides judges’ feedback, you can gain insights to the strengths and weaknesses in your writing.

There’s a competition for every genre. Guidelines, fees and prizes vary. So do the degrees of competition and the prestige levels. There’s little point to throwing your money and time at competitions that don’t suit your goals or your work. The challenge is in the choosing: what to submit and where.

Amy Edelman, a publicist and a writer who founded IndieReader (“the essential consumer guide to self-published books and the people who write them”) says, “…there are many awards/contests out there and you should carefully read the small print and decide for yourself which make sense. If there is one person reviewing what is probably a ton of books I would question the validity of said award. Check out the judges. Check out the reputation of the organization sponsoring the awards. Check out the media generated for the winners. Check out the prizes and see if there’s something tangible, like a review. If you get only cash you’re essentially back where you started from.”

Choose wisely, Grasshopper.