richardmurray

ALL HALLOWS TALES

The Contest

This is a Halloween-inspired, Literature-only contest asking for submissions of PROSE FICTION.

This year, you will be writing stories around the theme of major life changes. We'll be looking for new beginnings grounded in reality i.e. any supernatural, fantasy or sci-fi element should not in itself be the change. You know what I mean: the kind of thing that happened to Harry Potter (coming into magical powers) or Katniss Everdeen (being overtaken by the events of a dystopian society) will not fit the theme of the contest. Of course, what extraordinary things come of that ordinary life change could be absolutely anything...

What kind of story you write - and what you choose to write about - is up to you, but please remember that this is a Halloween contest. We're looking for pieces that are scary, disturbing, morbid, chilling, creepy, thrilling, suspenseful, ironic, satirical, or even darkly funny. Halloween, most of all, is supposed to be fun. Your entry should be entertaining to read, regardless of all else. So have fun with it!

How to Enter

When you have completed your story, save it as a Literature deviation (no journals) and send a note to [@ThornyEnglishRose] with a link to your entry, and AHT Contest Entry in the subject line. [S]he will then save it to an Entry Gallery. Please be aware that your entry is fair game for judging as soon as it is placed in the Entry Gallery, so make sure it's good to go!

Sending me a link via the Chat would also be acceptable.

Rules

Deadline is 11:59 PM Tuesday night, October 25 (GMT+1). This does give you several hours fewer than Jay allows; if that becomes an issue, contact me and we'll see if I'm feeling lenient! Winners will be announced on October 31 (bar unforeseen circumstances).

One entry per person. Judges are not eligible to enter.

Maximum word count is 3,000. No exceptions. Don't even ask.

Entries must be written in English. Entries must be new pieces posted after the contest begins.

Entries earning Daily Deviations or major features before the end of the contest will be disqualified. No fan-fiction will be accepted.

The official judging period will be the week after the contest deadline. HOWEVER, judges will be encouraged to read and score the entries as they come in. Please be aware that your entry is fair game for judging as soon as I place it in the entry gallery, so don't send it to me until you're ready for it to be judged!

https://www.deviantart.com/thornyenglishrose/journal/All-Hallows-Tales-Nightmarish-New-Beginnings-931458838