Writing Competitions to Enter in December

Tags

Audio Arcadia's General Fiction Short Story Competition, Bath Children's Novel Award, Flash 500 Competitions, H E Bates Short Story Competition, Henshaw Quarterly Short Story Competition, Magic Oxygen Literary Prize, Reflex Quarterly Flash Fiction, Times/Chicken House Children's Fiction Competition

 

Yesterday was one of ninevoices’ fortnightly writing days. An opportunity to share work-in-progress, discuss books we’ve read, and encourage one another to persevere – perhaps the most important quality for a writer, after talent. And, to demonstrate its importance, ex officio member Skipper trawled around the room in search of a dropped or donated fragment of food and reminded us with his melting brown eyes to be dogged in our literary endeavours.

Here are some ways:

The Magic Oxygen Literary Prize wants stories up to 4,000 words and poems up to 50 lines on any theme. Prizes are £1,000, £300, £100 and 2 x £50 in each category. The entry fee is £5 and FOR EVERY ENTRY A TREE IS PLANTED IN AFRICA. Worth entering for the good you are doing, with the possible bonus of winning one of the prizes. The deadline is 31 December. Details: http://www.magicoxygen.co.uk

Flash 500 Competitions hold quarterly competitions for flash fiction, up to 500 words. Prizes: £300, £200 and £100. Entry fee is £5 for one, £8 for two. Deadline 31 December. Details: flash500.com

Bath Children’s Novel Award. Send first 5,000 words and synopsis. Prizes: £2,500, various shortlist prizes, including Cornerstones online course worth £1,800. Entry fee: £25. Closing date 2 December. Details: http://www.bathnovelaward.co.uk

Times/Chicken House Children’s Fiction Competition for full-length novels of 30,000 to 80,000 words, suitable for readers 7-18. Prizes: publication deal worth £10,000. All longlisted writers receive an editorial report. Entry fee: £15. Deadline 18 December. Details: http://www.chickenhousebooks.com/submissions

H E Bates Short Story Competition for up to 2,000 words. Prizes: £500, £200, £100, £100 for best short story by Northampton writer not winning another prize. Entry fee: £6, or £10 for two. Closing date 3 December. Details: http://www.hebatescompetition.org.uk

RW Themed Flash Fiction Prize. Short fiction up to 500 words on quarterly set themes. December: ‘Running Away‘. Prizes: £200, 2 x £100. Entry fee: £8. Closing date 30 December. Details: http://www.retreatwest.co.uk

Henshaw Quarterly Short Story Competition for stories up to 2,000 words. Prizes: £100, £50, £25. Entry fee: £5. Deadline 31 December. Details http://www.henshawpress.co.uk

Audio Arcadia’s General Fiction Short Story Competition for stories up to 5,000 words. Prizes: anthology publication, royalties. Entry fee: £5.50. Closing date 31 December. Details: http://www.audioarcadia.com

The Exeter Novel Prize is open for entries, and asks for the first 10,000 words (including synopsis) of a novel that has not been accepted for publication by a tradition publishing house. The first price is £500, plus a trophy. Five shortlisted writers will each receive £100 and a trophy. Entrants must not be currently represented by a literary agent.The entry fee is £18, payable by Paypal. Details http://www.creativewritingmatters.co.uk  The closing date is January 1st – technically next year, but the morning after New Year’s Eve isn’t the best time to press all the right buttons on your computer. Do it well ahead of time!

The Moth Poetry Prize awards 10,000 Euros for a single unpublished poem, and 3 prizes of 1,000 Euros for runners up. Closing date 31 December. Details: http://www.themothmagazine.com

 

Skipper would like to remind you to check all details carefully before entering any competitions. Good luck!

 

 

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Competitions to Enter in December – and the beginning of January

Tags

Arcadia Science Fiction Short Story Competition, Deborah Rogers Writers Award, Magic Oxygen Literary Prize, Ruth Rendell Short Story Competition, Short stories, Stephen E King, Templar Poetry Awards, The Mogford Prize, The Orwell Prize

H E Bates Short Story Competition. A maximum of 2,000 words on any subject. Prizes: £500; £100; £50. Entry fee £6. Deadline 4 December. Details: http://www.hebatescompetition.org.uk/competition-rules

Amnesty International York Short Story Contest. Maximum 1,700 words on the theme of ‘Borders‘. Prizes: £50, plus signed novel and publication on Amnesty International York website. Deadline: 10 December. Details: yorkamenstyuk.blogspot.co.uk/p/competition.html

Deborah Rogers Writers Award. First 20,000-30,000 words of an unpublished novel by a debut author. Prizes: £10,000. Deadline: 15 December. Award is in memory of literary agent Deborah Rogers. Details: deborahrogers-foundation.org

Templar Poetry – Quarterly Portfolio Awards. 10-12-page portfolio. Entry fee: £12. Prize: publication. Deadline 18 December. Details: templarpoetry.com/pages/submissions-and-awards

Ruth Rendell Short Story Competition for flash fiction. Maximum 1,000 words. Prize: £1,000 plus commission of four further stories. Entry fee: £15. Deadline 22 December. Details: http://www.interactstrokesupport.org/news/ruth-rendell-short-story-competition-2017

Arcadia Science Fiction Short Story Competition. Short story of maximum 5,000 words. Rules: age 18-plus, no children’s stories or erotica. Entry fee: £5.50. Prize: percentage of anthology royalties. Deadline 31 December. Details: http://www.audioarcadia.com/science-fiction-competition

Magic Oxygen Literary Prize. Poem: maximum 50 lines. Short Story: maximum 4,000 words, excluding title. Rules: age 15-plus. Prizes: £1,000; £300, £100; 2x£50. Entry fee: £5. Details: http://www.magicoxygen.co.uk Entry fees contribute to the planting of trees in Africa.

The Mogford Prize for a 2,500 word story on the theme of food and drink. Prize: £10,000. Entry fee: £10.Deadline: 3 January. Details: http://www.oxford-hotels-restaurants.co.uk/mogford prize

The Orwell Prize 2018 – for non-fiction: journalism, books, political writing. Entry is FREE. Prizes: £3,000 in each category. Deadline 11 January. Details: http://www.orwell-foundation.org

Times/Chicken House Children’s Fiction Competition for full-length novels, 30,000-80,000 words, suitable for readers aged 7-18. Prizes: Publication deal worth £10,000. All long-listed writers receive an editorial report. Entry fee: £15. Deadline: 18 December. Details: http://www.chickenhousebooks.com/submissions

Exeter Novel Prize for the first 10,000 words, including synopsis, of an unpublished manuscript by an author not currently represented. The winner will receive £500 plus a trophy. Five finalists will each get £75. Entry fee: £18. Deadline: 1 January. Details: http://www.creativewritingmatters.co.uk (One of ninevoices made it to the final five last year, and has a rather splendid trophy to prove it, so it CAN be done)

One in Four new writer contest, run jointly by Trapeze, single parents’ charity Gingerbread and women’s lifestyle website The Pool are seeking a novel celebrating single parent families. Your first 5,000 words could earn a £10,000 publishing contract with Orion, plus three hours mentoring. CLOSING DATE IS 4 DECEMBER. Details: OneInFourSubmissions@orionbooks.co.uk

I could be wrong, but at such a busy time of year, surely these competitions will receive fewer entries than usual? Which might you a better chance of getting noticed?  So I suggest you follow Stephen King’s example, and keep entering these things until you get recognition.

Please remember to double-check all details.

My Christmas Tree is Planted…

Tags

Magic Oxygen Literary Prize, Planting a Word Forest in Kenya ya, Short stories

Just heard from Magic Oxygen that they’ve received my entry into their short story competition and the (very modest) entry fee of £5 has been translated into a young tree in their WORD FOREST.

They will shortly send me GPS co-ordinates, in case I plan to grab a jet and make a visit. Maybe with a silver spade….though I guess it’s too late for that.

Please let me encourage others to follow my example. Apart from the good this is doing the environment, not to mention those cheerful-looking Kenyan schoolchildren, the first prize is £1,000.

Deadline is December 31st.

If You Write One Thing This Year…

Tags

Bore School, Kenya, Magic Oxygen Literary Prize, Short stories and poems, the environment, the Tropical Word Forest

If you write one thing this year, make it an entry for the Magic Oxygen Literary Prize.

This unique international writing competition plants a tree for every single entry received in their Tropical Word Forest in Bore, Kenya, in association with the Community Carbon Link.

Stories – up to 4,000 words – and poems – up to 50 lines – can win £1,000, £300, £100 and two £50 highly commendeds in each category. The deadline is 31 December and their website is: http://www.magicoxygen.co.uk

Not only are the prizes handsome, but every entry will also be published in an anthology, with the organisation planting another tree for each anthology sold and also giving part of the royalties to help build an urgently needed schoolhouse at the Kundeni School in Bore.

Do take a look at the happy Kenyan youngsters on their video, saying thank you for the help already given. They now have wooden bars on the schoolroom to prevent wild monkeys climbing in and destroying their few books.

Writing is our thing. The environment is something we care about. Those children in Bore need a helping hand. Let’s do something about it before the 31st December- and get writing!