We've all been told never to pay to get our work read by an agent. So why should we pay to get our work entered into a writing contest? Because a lot of them require it. Actually, I'm not sure why there are entrance fees for writing contests: probably to contribute to prize money, possibly also to make the readers' time worthwhile (if you know another reason, let me know.) Angela Hoy at Writers Weekly has some tips on how to tell legit contests that want to take your money from fake contests that want to take your money.