Seen and Done

Here’s my regular look at writing competitions I might enter during the coming month – some interesting ones this time.

• First, we have one of the most prestigious competitions in the calendar, from Manchester. Up to 2,500 words, £18 to enter and a top prize of £10,000. The deadline is 1 September, so I hope you’ve got something nearly ready.
• Also among the early ones is On the Premises magazine, which wants stories of 1-5,000 words by 1 September. It’s free to enter and first prize is $250. Stories must be inspired by a picture on the site (of closely packed trees).
• Also with a deadline of 1 September, is the strange Owl Canyon Hackathon. Teams of two writers collaborate, each given a different final paragraph; they take it in turns to write the preceding 49 paragraphs, trying to steer events towards their own conclusion. The two stories are then split off and judged separately. I think that’s how it works. There may not be enough time to get organised, but the good news is it’s free to enter, with a $2,000 top prize
• Terrain wants stories up to 5,000 words: entry is $20, the top prize $1,000, and the deadline is 4 September.
• Juxtaprose wants stories up to 10,000 words: entry is $15, first prize $1,000, and the deadline is 6 September.
• Publication is the only prize for Horror and Ghost stories of up to 5,000 words, but entry is free The deadline is 10 September.
• Ovacome wants stories up to 1,500 words:entry is £8 and the prize £250. The contest supports an ovarian cancer charity, but stories need not be related to that. The deadline is 15^th.
• The Silver Apples Redemption prize is for stories rejected by other competitions or publishers. 1,500 to 4,00 words, £10 entry and a prize of £200 – the deadline is 15 September.
• The Green Stories Project wants stories on the theme of ‘microbes’, highlighting the benefits of Environmental Biotechnology (you may want to watch their video). Stories should be 1000-3000 words and they also want two hundred words explaining the thinking behind the story. It’s free to enter and the prize is £500: enter by 21 September.
• The annual contest in memory of Dinesh Allirajah is on the theme ‘The Uncanny’ this year. It’s free, the top prize is £500 and length must be 2-7,500 words. The competition closes on 22 September.

All the rest have a deadline of 30 September.

• SaveAs want stories up to 3,500 words on the theme ‘All In the Mind’. Entry is £4 and the prize £200
• The annual Hammond House competition is back, with the theme ‘Fate’. Entry is £10, top prize £1,000 and the word count should be between 1,000 and 5,000.
• Crowvus would like a Christmas ghost story in the good old tradition. Up to 4,000 words, just £3 to enter, and a prize of £100.
• Then we have Henshaw Press (now run by Hobeck Books) with their regular competition. 2,000 words, £6 to enter, and £200 prize.
• Galley Beggar Press want up to 6,000 words. It’s $10 to enter and you could win $2,500
• The Iowa  and John Simmons contest, for collections of stories of at least 150 pages, offers no prize except publication, but is free to enter.
• Finally, Quagmire magazine’s second competition offers a prize of $350 CAD for stories between 1,000 and 5,000 words on the theme ‘Meaning, Purpose, Existentialism, Absurdism’. Entry is $10 CAD

Good luck if you enter any of these, and do let me know if you get anywhere!