50-word competition

** Opened Wed 1st May 2024! **

I ran a free 100-word competition from 2015 to 2021 but due to family commitments, I had to close it. I really enjoyed the process but didn’t have the time so I’ve deliberated in the past few months whether to bring it back.

Time is still precious so I’ve decided to return it but in a shorter version, as 50 words (no more, no less) rather than 100, still excluding the title.

The competition will open on the first of each month, starting Wednesday 1st May 2024, and close at midnight (UK time) on the last day of each month. A maximum of three stories per author. My favourite of the three will go through to the final.

Entrants have until midnight (UK time) on the last day of each month to submit their pieces for consideration. All stories should be written to the theme. If you have a story already that would fit, that’s fine but it has to be 50 words exactly.

• Deadline: the deadline for the inaugral competition is midnight (UK time) on Friday 31st May 2024. It will open on Wednesday 1st May so please don’t submit before then.
  Each theme will open on the first day of each month, closing on the last day of each month.
• Theme: the theme (which changes each month, the next few are listed below) for May 2024 is: ‘second time round’… however the theme strikes you. Please do stick to the theme or your story will be disqualified. The top stories are usually ones that closely follow the theme and are well written, this is a writing competition after all.
• Submissions: Max three stories per entrant. I will pick my favourite of the three to go through to the final. I’ve had trouble with contact forms on my site where they’ve garnered a lot (many each day) of spam messages so this time I’m inviting submissions via email (one email per story please and within the body of the email rather than an attachment – thanks!) with the month, theme and story title as the subject line, e.g. MAY: Second  Time Round – Bobby’s Girl. This means you won’t receive an automated confirmation but I will reply within a week confirming receipt. All stories must be in English.
  Please include a title for each story and your name please. If you’d like a website (or sales page) linked to your name please include that. So…
  Name:
  Title:
  Story Title:
  Story:
  Thank you!
• Fee: there is no fee for entering this competition. I enjoy reading flash fiction and being a competition judge.
• Prizes: the top three stories/authors chosen will receive the following prizes:
  1st prize: 1,500 words free critique.
  2nd prize: 1,000 words free critique.
  3rd prize: 500 words free critique.
  Each prize is valid for six months from the closing date (i.e. the prizes for the top three stories for May are valid until end November) so you can combine your ‘winnings’.
• If only two stories, from two authors, qualify in any month, there will only be two stories ‘winning’/published. They will receive the first and second prizes.
• If only one story, from one author, qualifies in any month, there will only be one story ‘winning’/published. That author will receive the first prize.
• Word count: You must stick to the 50-word count, no less, no more, or your story will be disqualified. This does not include the title, solely the story itself.
  Bullet points do not count as words, neither do ellipses (e.g. ‘and… we’ counts as two words), and hyphenated words (e.g. well-known) count as one not two, and dashes on their own aren’t words (Word does count a hyphen on its own as a word so be careful of that – it should be a dash rather than a hyphen). (See ‘rules’ below.)
  To check you can use the likes of https://wordcounter.net. Be careful though that it (rightly) doesn’t include a hyphen, dash, or other punctuation, as a word. So do ensure you don’t include solitary dashes (long hyphens) in your word count. You can send three stories and I pick my favourite to go through to judging.
• Entries: Please submit your story/stories via email, one story per email to a maximum of three stories/emails. You can submit them elsewhere but if they do make the top three then please let the other market/s know that they have been published. Some markets want unpublished stories so bear this in mind before you submit your stories.
  The most you’d have to wait is six weeks: the competition month plus two weeks max. to the results being announced around the middle of the following month.
• Entrants: This competition is open to anyone of any age or geographical location, as long as the story is in English.
• Results: The results will be announced around the middle of the month following the relevant deadlines (see ‘Themes’ below for full details).
• Previous competitions: The links to the winning stories will be linked below.
• And finally… the judge’s (Morgen’s) decision is final. Good luck!

So, getting the red tape out the way first, here are the…

Rules

1. Your story must stick to the theme, which varies each month and can be used in any way you like. The word / words don’t have to be included in the story but it must be clear that they are alluded to.
2. Your story must be no longer or no shorter than 50 words. This excludes the title which can be as long or as short as you like. Any stories of less than or greater than 50 words will be disqualified so please check before submitting. Hyphenated words (e.g. well-known) count as one word so 49-word stories because of a hyphenated word will be disqualified. This may sound harsh but it’s then fair on everyone. Also, although Microsoft Word does think they are, bullet points (as with any other symbols) don’t count as words so don’t include them in your word count. Neither do ellipses (e.g. ‘and… we’ counts as two words), ages, e.g. ‘a two-year-old child’ also counts as one word (according to Word, which is what I use). To check you can use the likes of https://wordcounter.net. Be careful though that it doesn’t include a dash (or other punctuation) as a word. Thank you, Sue B, for suggesting that.
3. Stories submitted via email only. Just the text, no pictures, website addresses etc.. Please do not type them into the comments box below or they will be deleted.
4. Your story must be written to, or suit, the theme for the relevant month (list below) within the relevant month. Any stories not fitting the theme (or less / more than 50 words (excluding the title) will be disqualified. They will not be kept back for a month where the theme will fit.
5. If you have submitted a story or stories for a different month (regardless whether early or late) in error then, unfortunately, you won’t be able to submit in the correct month because I’ll have seen them already. It does mean, of course, that you can submit them somewhere else and I have a list of places on Submissions – flash fiction & short stories, although it’s rather out of date.
6. Your story / stories can be submitted at any time during the appropriate month (see below for a list of the upcoming themes) but not before the first or last day (midnight UK time) of that month.
7. Please keep a copy of your story as only the top three placed will be published on this blog.
8. By entering this competition, you confirm that you have read the rules and that you give your permission for your story to be published on this blog should it be successful.
9. The winners will be announced on this blog (via a new blog post) around the middle of the month following each deadline. The successful entrants will be contacted by email with the details of their prizes. There is six months from the relevant month’s date to claim the prize(s) with the ability to ‘bank’ editing word counts. I will keep track of who’s won what.
10. Your story does not have to be exclusive to this site, i.e. you can have had it published elsewhere (including your own website) and / or send it elsewhere thereafter but if it is one of the top three winners, you will need to tell a subsequent site / publication that it has been published on this site, and yes, publication online means published so if you are a winner (top three) and have had nothing published before, you go from being a writer to an author! NB. Most competitions and paying markets require exclusivity so check before submitting to them or to this competiion.
11. There is no fee to enter this competition but you may only enter a maximum of three stories per month. The first three will be accepted (one story per email), any sent thereafter will be discounted.
12. The first version of a story will be accepted. Subsequent versions of the same story (e.g. amendments made to correct errors) will be discounted so do ensure that it is the best it can be before you submit.
13. Please spell-check your entries before you submit. Morgen recommends you read your work aloud as it is easier to pick out errors that way. Careless errors will lose points (brownie or otherwise). Allowances will be made if English is not your first language.
14. The closing date for each competition is the last day of each month (midnight UK time). Entries received after this date / time will not be included but may still be charged (only kidding!).
15. The judge’s decision (Morgen’s) is final.
16. Anyone can enter regardless of age or location and whether you know Morgen personally or not. She is a professional, she will not let a name (or any amount of banoffee pie!) sway her decision either way. The winning three stories will do so upon their merit only.
17. There will be one winner, one second placed and one third placed – i.e. three authors.
18. You can enter the competitions as many times as you like (max three stories per month).
19. And finally… your story must stick to the theme (which varies each month). I’ve previously disqualified a few stories because it has nothing to do with the theme. Please ensure it’s not yours.

Prizes

• 1st prize: free prose critique up to 1,500 words;
• 2nd prize: free prose critique up to 1,000 words;
• 3rd prize: free prose critique up to 500 words.
• Each prize will be valid for six months from the closing date (i.e. the prizes for the top three stories for May are valid until end November) so you can combine your ‘winnings’.

Themes:
NB. Please do not submit stories early or they will be disqualified. Only submit themed stories during the relevant month. Thank you.

1. May 2024: second time round (winning stories will be published mid-June 2024 and the link here)
2. June 2024: full support  (winning stories will be published mid-July 2024 and the link here)
3. July 2024: money for nothing (winning stories will be published mid-August 2024 and the link here)
4. August 2024: let it sink (winning stories will be published mid-September 2024 and the link here)
5. September 2024: Adam and George (winning stories will be published mid-October 2024 and the link here)
6. October 2024: the new sofa (winning stories will be published mid-November 2024 and the link here)
7. November 2024: Christmas in Iceland (winning stories will be published mid-December 2024 and the link here)
8. December 2024: can she do it? (winning stories will be published mid-January 2025 and the link here)

If you have any queries, feel free to email me.