Hogwarts may be closed, and Dumbledore gone (or is he?), but that hasn’t stopped J.K. Rowling wanna-be’s from inundating agents and publishers with the next best seller. We’d be willing to bet that if Hermione and her friends weren’t preoccupied with saving the world from he-who-can’t-be-named, she’d want to enter this writing contest. 

Nobody can predict which books will hit it big and which will be destroyed by the dark lord, never to see the light of a book store again. And yet, says Sid Smith, headmaster of the Write and Publish Your Book (WAPYB) writing contest, “there seems to be more writers of books than readers of books today.” Smith notes that writing is a love affair, and publishing is a risk, even for the big five publishing houses. “It’s always a gamble,” he says, “and unfortunately your odds of selling a million books is no better than your chance of grabbing the golden snitch and winning a Quiddich match.” 

However, there are alternatives to enrolling at Hogwarts, and that’s exactly why Smith and his wizard friends created the Write and Publish Your Book web site and their current writing contest. Smith says: “We want this to be a fun, low-key, event in which the first-time author, or even a previously published author, can see if their book passes the mustard, or plum pudding, if the author so desires.” He adds that like the Tri-Wizard tournament, the number of entrants is limited (to 250).

 
“Although we won’t force authors to face fire-breathing dragons or menacing mermaids, they will be subject to the whims and sometimes foul moods of our panel of judges,” Smith warns. Barb Klansnic, one of the judges, agrees. “It’s a fun contest, but it’s equally serious. We want to enjoy what we’re reading, whether it’s about the mating habits of goose worms or a romantic, science fiction mystery thriller.”

 
Entrants, says Smith, will be judged both on the quality of their writing and the magical qualities of the book to hold the judges’ attention. “If one book mesmerizes us into obedient submission, and the next lulls us into a deep coma, you can pretty much figure out which we’ll choose.” “It’s not rocket science,” adds Klansnic; “but, great writing is indeed magical.”  

 
The contest winner will have his or her book published and listed on the major online retail websites. He or she will receive 25 copies of the book, as well as book PR consulting by Marika Flatt of PR By the Book (http://www.prbythebook.com); full-on book editing by Charity Hogge of Mighty Pen Editing (http://www.mightypenediting.com); marketing consulting from successful self-published author Michael Sterns (http://www.grasshopperdreams.com); as well as several bonus items that won’t turn your nose green or put scales on your feet.  

 
The two runners up also receive cool prizes, just to keep things interesting. According to Smith, the full value of the winner’s prizes is “somewhere between a couple thousand dollars and two gold ingots.”

 
Writing contest rules and information can be found by visiting the Write and Publish Your Book web site: http://www.writeandpublishyourbook.com