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Short fiction contests offer cash prizes, exposure, and publication opportunities. Many publishers and schools host them, with varying requirements such as genre, length, and fees. Winners receive cash prizes and publication in literary magazines or anthologies.
Short fiction contests allow writers to compete for cash prizes, publications, and additional exposure for their work. Many different publishers will hold annual short fiction contests; the most common are those that regularly publish literary journals. Some colleges and universities will host them for students as well. Many contests require a nominal fee to enter; experts generally advise avoiding contests that require a large fee or the purchase of a book, since in reality the submitter of the fiction only pays to publish the book. Some contests require contestants to submit a piece of a particular genre or length, but others are more open-ended.
Most short fiction contests require writers to keep their submissions to a certain length, simply to ensure fairness for everyone. Otherwise, it would probably be too difficult and time consuming to judge the contest. Applicants may be required to submit a full story; other contests may allow them to simply submit part of a story, such as a chapter from a book. In some cases, writers may also be allowed to submit poems for the competition, but generally poetry competitions are conducted separately from short fiction competitions.
Occasionally, short fiction competitions will have even stricter requirements. Some will require writers to keep their stories under a certain number of words or take a certain amount of time when reading them aloud. Some may even require that all submissions begin with the same first sentence; for example, a slightly ironic contest once required that all stories begin with the infamous “It was a dark and stormy night.” Writers may also need to keep their story within a certain genre, such as fantasy, science fiction, or romance in order to qualify for particular contests. These are just a few of the different types of fiction competitions that can be hosted by various publishers or schools.
Writers will be required to submit their piece by the deadline. It is often free to submit a piece to a short fiction competition, although in other cases a small fee may be charged, often simply to narrow the entry pool a bit or to cover the cost of the prize. The winners can then receive a cash prize for their work, which is usually published on a website, in an anthology or in a literary magazine. This can be a great way for new writers to gain exposure for their work and potentially make valuable contacts for later publication.
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