St. Louis Writers Guild Annual Short Story Contest
For decades, the St. Louis Writers Guild, has sponsored an annual short story contest, which must be one of the oldest, if not the oldest, writing contests in the country. It is certainly one of the most prestigious. Tennessee Williams won first place in this contest in 1935 for his story, "Stella for Star." (University of Delaware library; Special Collections Department; Tennessee Williams Collection, 1939-1994; www.lib.udel.edu/ud/spec/findaids/williams_t/willtenn.htm.)
The St. Louis Writers Guild Annual Short Story Contest opens for submissions every October and prizes are awarded in December. Historically, entries have come from all across the nation and Canada. Stories are blind-judged by one or more expert(s) in the fields of writing and literature. Writers do not need to be a member of the Guild in order to participate in this contest.
Our Short Story Contest Opens Oct. 1, 2009
GUIDELINES
Printable Short Story Contest Guidelines (pdf)
| Topic | The work must meet the specific form requirements of a short story, be a work of fiction written in English, represent the author's original and unpublished work, and be intended for an audience composed of adult readers (as opposed to a story intended for children).
Any topic is allowed, but works that include pornography, extreme violence, racism, and/or other content that is not appropriate for a mainstream literary audience are not eligible. |
| Contest Opening | 2009 contest opens for submissions on October 1. Do not mail entries prior to October as they will be disqualified and cannot be returned.
|
| Deadline | Entries must be postmarked on or before December 5, 2009.
|
| Entry Fee | $15 per manuscript; limit one entry per person.
|
| Submission Rules | Story must not exceed 3,000 words. Title does not count in word limit. Submit two copies of story mailed together in one envelope. One typed cover page must be paper-clipped to the top page of both manuscript copies, indicating the story’s title, followed by the author’s name, address, telephone number, email address (if available), and the total number of words in the story. Manuscript must be typed in double-spaced format on standard white paper (8-1/2 x 11) in black ink using a standard typeface or font, such as Courier, Times New Roman, or Arial. All story pages must be stapled together in the upper left corner of the manuscript. You must include a page number in the lower right corner of every page. The story’s title must appear on the first page of the manuscript—about midway down the page. The story’s title must also be typed in the upper left corner of every page of the manuscript. The story’s text must begin two lines beneath the title on the first page. DO NOT INCLUDE THE AUTHOR’S NAME ON ANY PAGES OF THE MANUSCRIPT. Please note: The previous year’s first place winner is prohibited from entering this contest. |
| Judge | The judge this year will be bestselling thriller author John Lutz.
|
| Announcement of Winners | Winners’ names and story titles will be posted on the St. Louis Writers Guild website during the week of January 1 and announced in the SLWG’s electronic newsletter, Here’s News! Entrants can subscribe to Here’s News! on the SLWG website’s Home page |
| Prizes | Certificates and cash prizes will be awarded as follows to the top place winners:
1st Place $300 The top three finalist entries that do not place for the top cash prizes will receive Honorable Mention certificates and $10. Provided that winners email an electronic file (.doc file in Word), the full text of the top three winning entries and all Honorable Mention stories will be published on the website’s Contest page for the enjoyment of website visitors. Additionally, the three top place winners are invited to read excerpts of their winning entries before a live audience at a special SLWG open mic reading event on Tuesday, January 12, 2010 at Wired Coffee Open Mic Night at 7 pm. See Calendar page for directions. St. Louis media will be contacted to publicize the contest’s outcomes and the winners’ names and stories will be retained in the St. Louis Writers Guild archives at Central Public Library in St. Louis for posterity. |
| Submission Mailing Address |
All submissions are required to be MAILED,
using the United States Postal Service and must bear a postmark date on or before the Deadline (December 5, 2009).
Mail entry to: St. Louis Writers Guild IMPORTANT: Please note that “Signature Required” mail will not be accepted. SLWG cannot respond to telephone and email inquiries concerning receipt of entries. MANUSCRIPTS WILL NOT BE RETURNED. DO NOT ENCLOSE A SELF-ADDRESSED ENVELOPE. Entrants may enclose a SASE postcard which SLWG will mail back to confirm receipt (this is optional). |
St. Louis Writers Guild is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization with a mission to further literary arts by connecting, encouraging, and promoting writers and literary organizations.
Best of luck with the contest!