 Attention, writers! Four free First Pages Contests from Writing Day Workshops are open right now in Spring 2026, giving you a golden opportunity to receive professional agent feedback on the opening page of your unpublished novel. Whether you're writing ambitious literary/mainstream/upmarket fiction, heartfelt romance and women's fiction, gripping young adult fantasy, sci-fi, and horror, or pulse-pounding thriller, mystery, cozy, suspense, and crime, there's a dedicated contest perfectly tailored to your genre. Each contest is judged by an experienced literary agent who will select three winners and provide a valuable critique. Best of all, there is no entry fee, and the deadline for all four contests is April 20, 2026. Ready to polish that first page and take your shot? Keep reading for full details on Contests #8 through #11, including submission guidelines and how to enter. HERE'S HOW IT WORKS: We invite an awesome literary agent to judge the contest. The agent picks the genre(s) they want to judge. Writers in that genre are invited to send in their first page as part of the competition. PRIZES: The agent judge will pick three winners (in no particular order). All three winners are invited to send their first 5 double-spaced pages to the agent judge for a free critique. If you've ever wanted to know what an agent is thinking when they read your submission, this critique is a great way to learn just that. CONTEST PAGES: First Pages Contest #8: Literary / Mainstream / Book Club Fiction -- Judged by Agent Katie Monson of SBR Media First Pages Contest #9: Romance and Women's Fiction -- Judged by Agent Rachel Beck of Liza Dawson Associates First Pages Contest #10: Young Adult Fantasy, Sci-Fi, and Horror -- Judged by Agent Keir Alexseii of Azantian Literary First Pages Contest #11: Thriller / Mystery / Cozy / Suspense / Crime -- Judged by Agent Ritu Anand of D4E0 Literary AND THE WINNERS ARE: Contest #8 Judged by Agent Katie Monson of SBR Media Aaron Abbarno Nancy Champagne Katie Knuhtsen Contest #9 Judged by Agent Rachel Beck of Liza Dawson Associates Jesse Masters Colleen Moody Elissa Dickey Contest #10 Judged by Agent Keir Alexseii of Azantian Literary Moby Olarewaju Oylude Oluwajoniloju Sigrid Ostenberg Contest #11 Judged by Agent Ritu Anand of D4EO Literary Nancy Champagne Marylou Gaylo Thomas White Honorable Mention: Sidra Sheikh Congratulations again to all our winners! We can’t wait to follow your writing journeys and celebrate every future success along the way. The Writing Day Workshops Team  Pitch an Agent at a Writers Conference in 2026:
 This post by Chuck Sambuchino, freelance editor and lead director of Writing Day Workshops. Chuck is a former longtime staffer with Writer's Digest, editing the Guide to Literary Agents. He is the author of the writing guide CREATE YOUR WRITER PLATFORM as well as the bestselling humor book HOW TO SURVIVE A GARDEN GNOME ATTACK. His most recent books are all about pickleball -- daily tear-off calendars as well as the picture book GOODNIGHT, PICKLEBALL. He is a proud #GirlDad, movie geek, and guitar/piano player. Connect with him through WDW's Instagram and Twitter.
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