We are organising a short story competition (or StorC)! Would you like to flex your creative muscles and weave words into an enchanting tale? Then make sure to join! As a nice added bonus we want to print a bundle of all (valid) entries as a physical paperback, and each contestant will be able to order a copy to take home.

To assist in your endeavours, February 14th 2024, 20:00 will be a special writing evening to work on your story and get inspired by others.

Rules:

• the deadline of submission is March 3rd 2024 at midnight (23:59:59.99)

• the theme of the competition is Keys; your story will have to tie into this theme in some manner;

• there is an absolute maximum word count of 2000 words. There is no minimum wordcount, so long as the entry can be judged as a written story;

• the story must be handed in in a format Microsoft Word can open, and if you want fancy positioning we will only guarantee that on A5 (we might return mails to make sure we get things right);

• it is up to the jury to judge any dubious entries and decide on their validity;

• the story must be in English;

• the story must not have been previously published (sharing it on the Discord counts as previously published);

• you need not be a member of Bellettrie to participate;

• maximum of one story per individual;

• any images/drawings/doodles etc. will not be included in the version send to the judges and we reserve the right not to include them in the printed version either

The costs of a physical copy will be at most €8, hopefully less. For members of Bellettrie the price will be reduced. You will need to indicate at sign-up that you want to pay for a physical copy. The book will have to be picked up at the library at some point (we will not be able to deliver them to your house).

Signing up for the competition beforehand is mandatory, and is a separate action from submitting your story. Signing up is possible at any time before the deadline via this form:

Sign-up form

Please sign up as soon as you know you will participate, since this will be of great help for the logistic organisation of the competition.

Then, the most important part, you can send in your story by mail once submissions are open. Mention the word count as it was counted in your word processor. For the publication there are a few legal requirements, therefore we ask you to fill out the PDF that we will sent to the mail with which you signed up. Send both this and your entry as attachments to the same mail: inkcie.bellettrie@gmail.com. You will keep all rights, we only get the right to publish.

After the deadline the jury will take some time to judge all entries and decide on a winner. There might be a small prize involved, but we make no promises except for the fame and glory the winner can surely claim. Our judges shall be three in total, all previous board members of our amazing association that do not partake in the competition. The winner will be announced on a writing evening, a Wednesday evening.