You are invited to enter our
OPEN SHORT STORY COMPETITION 2018
Judged by Helen Laycock
@helen_laycock
https://www.facebook.com/helenlaycockauthor/
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Helen-Laycock/e/B006PGFVL6
Six prizes to be awarded:
£100 First, £70 Second, £30 Third
two 'Highly Commended' each win 2019 comp free entry
and a charitable donation will be made*
2,500 words maximum
closes Thursday 27th September 2018
Entry fee: £3.00 for one entry,
£5.00 for two, £2.50 thereon
(plus £1.00 if making online payment)
Please scroll down this page to read our full Rules of Entry
There is no theme for this competition, you can write anything you like.
No minimum word count, maximum 2,500 words.
We enjoy reading entries from novice writers and from the more experienced.
Please state on the entry form if you are a 'New Writer'.
See full details in our RULES OF ENTRY below.
We are delighted Helen Laycock is our judge
Helen Laycock’s flash fiction has been featured in The Best of CafeLit 3, 4, 5 & 6
(Chapeltown). Several short stories have been successful in writing competitions,
publication including An Earthless Melting Pot (Quinn), and her first attempt at play-writing
secured her a shortlisting in Pint-Sized Plays.
Most recently, Helen Laycock's poetry has appeared in Popshot, The Caterpillar, Full Moon and Foxglove (Three
Drops Press) and Poems for Grenfell (Onslaught). Since winning the David St. John Writing Award for Novice
Poetry in 2006, her work has been acknowledged in many competitions. She has also had humorous poetry
published on Jonathan Pinnock's website Spilling Cocoa Over Martin Amis.
She is a regular contributor to Visual Verse and was commissioned as one of the leads in June.
Helen has compiled three short story collections and eight works of children’s fiction, all of which can be found on
her Amazon Page
She has two websites:
Helen Laycock | Fiction in a Flash and Helen Laycock | Children's Author
She blogs at Catching Cotton Clouds and can be followed via her Facebook Author Page and Twitter
Please note - our email address has changed as from May 2018 to erewashwriterscomps2 at gmail.com
If you have sent an entry to us before 10th May we have received it and will confirm receipt of entry before end of May 2018
RULES OF ENTRY
EREWASH WRITERS' GROUP OPEN SHORT STORY COMPETITION 2018
1 Let us know if you are a 'New Writer' This competition is open to new writers, improvers and the more experienced writer. If you are a new writer, please let us know.
You're a new writer if
- you’ve never had a paid article or story published in a magazine, newspaper or on-line
- you’ve never won a competition or been runner-up (regardless of whether it was published or not)
- you've been shortlisted but have never won or been runner-up in a competition
- you’ve done none of the above but you have written (or posted work on) a blog; had letters published in a magazine or if you’ve written for a non-profit making publication and not been paid (eg: an article for the local parish magazine or a school magazine).
If you’re in any doubt, email or write to Debbie who will tell you whether you qualify as a 'New Writer’.
email Debbie at [email protected]
2 How to present your entry
All entries must be in English. Double line spacing is preferable. Use a font size of 12 or 14. Make sure word count is included at the end of your entry and on the entry form. Page number and title of entry is permitted on each page. As entries will be judged anonymously you must ensure the entry form is completed. If you can't download the form, it is acceptable for you to key the details on the form into the body of an email. You can find the entry form using this link:
https://erewashwriterscompetition.weebly.com/2018-entry-form-open-short-story-competition-with-helen-laycock.html
Email or write to Debbie if you have any problems.
3 Submit your entry by either email or by post
3 (i) Entry by email : In the body of an email, send your completed entry form to Debbie at
[email protected]
The subject heading of your email will be:
ENTRY OPEN 2018 (your name) eg ENTRY OPEN 2018 (Debbie Wilkinson).
It is preferable you send your entry attached to this email although you can send your entry in the same body of the entry form email, or in the body of a separate email subject heading EMAILED ENTRY OPEN 2018 (your name).
If you choose to attach your entry, please send each entry as a separate attachment in WORD and make sure the title of the attachment or file is exactly the same as the story title you put on the entry form. It is possible we may ask you to convert your entry to an rtf document if there are problems reading your entry.
Attachments will be opened when your payment has cleared. Expect a slight delay between sending your entry and confirmation of receipt. For this reason, we suggest the earlier you send your entry, the better it will be for your peace of mind and will help our admin process.
If you wish to enter by email, either send your entry fee in a cheque or postal order separately through the post, or you can use Paypal or bank transfer. Please see note (7) below about how to make a payment.
3 (ii) Entry by by post: Complete the entry form and enclose it with your entry/fee. Make sure you do not put anything on the entry to identify yourself. All entries are judged anonymously. Any identifying marks will result in your entry not being entered into competition and we will retain the fee.
Send two copies of your entry.
Ensure correct postage is paid otherwise your entry will remain at the sorting office. Our postal address is:
EWG Competition, Parklands Connexion, Stanhope Street, Long Eaton, NG10 4QN.
You can enclose entries to more than one competition in one envelope if you wish. Please make sure each entry is accompanied by the correct entry form. It is acceptable to fold your entry once only if you wish to use a smaller size envelope.
If you require an entry form and the Rules of Entry to be sent to you by post, please provide us with a self-addressed, stamped envelope.
4 Entries will be acknowledged by email
PLEASE ENSURE YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS IS WRITTEN CLEARLY otherwise we will not be able to provide confirmation of receipt. Your email address is seen by only our competition organiser and is not passed to anyone. It is used only to contact you to confirm receipt of entry, and to inform you of our further competitions.
If you don’t use email and wish to send a self-addressed stamped postcard, we will use that to acknowledge your entry.
5 There is no theme for this competition
It is an OPEN themed competition. You can write about anything.
6 Word count
No minimum word count, maximum 2,500 words, not including title. This means you can write any amount of words but must not exceed 2,500 words. Please ensure you include the word count on your entry form and at the end of your entry.
7 Payment
PLEASE MAKE CHEQUES PAYABLE TO D WILKINSON
£3.00 for one entry, £5.00 for two entries, £2.50 per entry thereon. We accept payment by cheque, postal order or bank transfer. If you wish to pay via Paypal, please add £1.00 to your total amount. We do not advise you send cash by post although we will accept payment by cash.
You can enter as many times as you wish but only one entry per entrant can win a prize. Every entry must be accompanied by the appropriate payment.
If you wish to pay by Paypal, please email your entry form and entry first, then contact Debbie for the Paypal address (if you don't already have it). Please ensure you add £1.00 to pay online via Paypal. You're welcome to email Debbie if you want to clarify the total amount payable before making payment. If we only receive a part-payment from you, It is possible your entry may not be included in the competition but we will retain the part-payment.
8 Entrants can be any age
All entries will be judged anonymously and no allowance made for age.
9 Publication of winning entries
We will publish winning entries on this website and will remove at a later date if required to do so. You are welcome to put a link to your blog, website or email with your winning entry if you wish (subject to editorial approval). Winners may also be mentioned by us on Twitter:
Website pages and blog
http://erewashwriterscompetition.weebly.com/blog.html
Twitter @EWGCompetition
10 Copyright
Copyright remains with author.
11 Only send us original and non-published entries
Please do not send entries which have been previously published. Entries must be the original work of the entrant. For this competition, we do not want to read entries found to be in print or online anywhere, including blogs.
12 Do not send entries that have received an award from other competitions, or anywhere else. Please do not send entries currently waiting to be judged in other competitions, or that have been submitted for publication and are awaiting response. Please do not send an entry to us which you will also submit to another competition or for publication elsewhere before our competition results have been announced.
13 Closing date
Noon (GMT) Thursday 27th September 2018. Entries received after this date may not be entered into the competition although we will retain the fee. Winners will be announced on this site, on or before Wednesday 28th November 2018.
14 Prizes
Six prizes - £100 First, £70 Second, £30 Third. Two 'Highly Commended' each win free entry to our 2019 comp. A charitable donation will be made* if we receive enough funds to do so. For further info see
http://erewashwriterscompetition.weebly.com/we-donate-to-charity.html .
15 Judge's decision is final. No correspondence will be entered into.
16 No corrections will be accepted.
17 Critique service: A basic critique for your entry can be provided, with notes on opening, ending, characterisation, etc for £3.00. A detailed critique service is also available, which includes advice about how to improve any weak areas in your story, a rewrite and more feedback for £12.00. We accept non-competition submissions and will consider works with a high word count.
Please email Debbie for more information at [email protected]
If you would like to receive a critique, please send a cheque payable to D Wilkinson for the correct amount to EWG Competition, Parklands Connexion, Stanhope St, Long Eaton, NG10 4QN or request Paypal details with your entry.
18 Entry implies acceptance of the rules.
19 No refunds given. Only exception to this rule will be if the organisers cancel the competition (eg if not enough entries have been received to cover the prize fund).
20 We donate to charity
Erewash Writers' Competitions are non-profit making. Our competitions exist to encourage and reward writing. If we have cash remaining after our prize fund has been paid out, we donate to a charity or voluntary organisation.
More info here about where and how we have donated cash:
http://erewashwriterscompetition.weebly.com/we-donate-to-charity.html
WRITING COURSES
Short Story Writing Course (correspondence course via email or post): We are pleased to offer a Short Story Writing Course. This course is suitable for beginners and for those who have been writing for a while yet would appreciate a helping hand. Our six-module course is £39. This fee is reduced to £36 if you have entered any of our Open Short Story Competitions. Please contact Debbie [email protected] to find out more or if you wish to enrol on the course.
Short Story Writing Course (local classes): We are pleased to offer a Short Story Writing Course held locally at venues around the Nottinghamshire area and in Long Eaton. The course is suitable for beginners and for those who have been writing for a while yet would appreciate a helping hand. Small classes, booking essential. Please contact Debbie [email protected] to find dates, times and venues of courses and if you wish to enrol on a course. http://erewashwriterscompetition.weebly.com/short-story-writing-course-local-classes.html.
Creative Writing Workshops: More creative writing workshops have been organised for 2018. Please contact Debbie if you would like to attend. Day and evening sessions are available. Small classes, booking essential.
