A $1,000 $1,500 prize package will be divvied up like so: $750 first place, $500 second place, $250 third place
Story Unlikely Annual Short Story Contest 2024
Attention storytellers: we just want good stories! There are no restrictions on genre: fantasy, sci fi, memoir, fiction/nonfiction, etc - we don't care as long as it's written and told with quality and care. The story itself cannot exceed 4,500 words. There are no restrictions on age or location of participant, and no need to ask us for permission to participate in the contest - just follow the guidelines below.
What do I win?
A $1,000 $1,500 prize package will be divvied up like so: $750 first place, $500 second place, $250 third place. The winning story will be featured on Story Unlikely's website, will be strongly considered for our annual (print) sample magazine, and may be sent out as the bonus story for signing up, which means a lot of exposure to the winner.
All three placing stories will be published in the monthly issue, and all three will be illustrated by our crackpot team of digital editors!
Don't forget about the honorable mentions! That's right, you honorable little losers, you. Is that harsh? It's supposed to be a compliment. Anyway, we do NOT notify honorable mentions ahead of time, because we're lazy busy, so very, very lazy busy. Rather, we announce them in the monthly issue along with the winning story, which you need to sign up for in order to be eligible to enter. If your name appears on this list of honorables, you'll be prompted to contact us and we'll send you a fancy-schmancy certificate for proof that you, indeed, almost won a writing contest. But not quite. Plus, if there is a strong showing, some honorable mentions may be considered for publication in our monthly magazine or podcast.
Also Read:
When can I submit?
The submission period runs from October 1st through January 31st.
When will my story be published?
Stories will be published - at our whimsical discretion - the following calendar year between June and December. Winning authors will be notified, at the latest, by May 31st. All authors MUST be signed up for the Story Unlikely monthly magazine (free!) to be eligible for prize and publication. (Don’t worry, we only send out ONE issue (email) a month – we can’t stand getting our emails blown up, and we know we’re not alone in that). Please note that although you're welcome to unsubscribe at any time, just wait until the contest is over, otherwise we'll consider that a disqualification of your entry. DO NOT mark our emails as spam (and we know when this is done) - not only will you forfeit your entry, but you'll be barred from future submissions. Harsh judgement, sure, but easily avoided.
How do I submit?
We accept email submissions only, and from legitimate email addresses, not tied to some private school server that will bounce back. If your submission (or email you use to subscribe) comes from one of these, it will be disqualified. Attach the entire story to the email (Microsoft word doc or docx). Be sure to remove ALL forms of identification from the story (If your story happens to be about you, just be sure to remove your last name).
Due to our endless quest to get our stories past overreactive spam blockers, we've changed our submission email to: dan@storyunlikely.com.
Sure, organization was easier with a different address, but as long as you type the word 'Submission' in the title, your story will end up in the right place. And this is important, so we'll say it again: make sure you type the word 'submission' in the title of your email, otherwise it may be lost!
So email submissions to dan@storyunlikely.com in the following format:
(Email Subject Line) Submission: TITLE/GENRE
(In the body of the email)
Dear Editor,
TITLE, GENRE, WORD COUNT
[Insert FIRST 250 words of your story (rounded to the nearest sentence) here]
# (insert page break)
(Insert short author bio, including any previously published stories, as you want it to appear below your story if/when published)
(Tell us how you found Story Unlikely)
Sincerely,
NAME
Contact information (best email contact, phone number (just in case), country and state, and email)
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