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Sunday, 23 February 2014

March Short Fiction Contest

Welcome to the latest monthly short fiction writing competition here on The Cult of Me blog. Every month I post a new picture and you can then write and submit a short story (with a maximum word count of 500 words). At the end of the month I will pick the winners and announce them on this blog.

The winner's stories will be available here (and promoted across KUF, Goodreads, Twitter, Facebook and Stumbleupon and anywhere else I can) and you'll also have a link to your blog or website displayed alongside your story if you win.

Winning stories will also be compiled in a collection later in the year, proceeds from the sales of that collection will be used to help fund the prizes for this competition.

The winners will also receive an Amazon gift card:
  1. First Prize is a £50 gift card
  2. Second prize is a £20 gift card
  3. Third prize is a £10 gift card
Details on how you can enter are provided below and I'm looking forward to reading your entries!



Last month's scary clown inspired a decent collection of horror stories, this month we have a less obviously horror inspiration with a mysterious African mask, I'm already looking forward to the stories this image will inspire.

As always, thanks to everyone who has entered and a big thank you to everyone who has supported the contest. Please continue that support by sharing the link to this contest wherever you can, it's much appreciated!

Please make sure to check your story for typos before submitting. I don't mind a few errors, but my enjoyment of a story is diminished if I have to wade through too many.

I'll post the winning entries by April 1st 2014.

As with everything in life there are a few rules:
  1. Only one entry per person.
  2. The story must not be longer than 500 words.
  3. Closing date for submissions is March 23rd 2013.
  4. By submitting the story you grant me a non-exclusive license to use it. I'll only post the winning entries.
  5. You also grant me a one time non-exclusive license to include the story in an e-book release.
  6. The judges decision is final.
Use the form below to enter your submission. After you've submitted please leave a comment on this page stating that you have submitted. And please help spread the word. I'm working to make this a regular feature so I need readers for the stories as well as entrants.
As well as comments section below you can chat about this competition in any of the threads I've listed below. If you don't know the sites then entering the competition is a good way to introduce yourself. Note that these sites are not affiliated with the competition in any way!

KUF: http://www.kuforum.co.uk/kindleusersforum/thread-13760.html

Goodreads (UK Amazon kindle Forum group): http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/977021-michael-brookes-horror-science-fiction

Kboards: http://www.kboards.com/index.php/topic,152168.0.html

If you've started you're own thread or discussion somewhere about this month's competition then let me know and I'll add the link to this page.
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33 comments:

  1. anonymous23 February 2014 at 21:09

    Good luck to everyone and shared .

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  2. Unknown23 February 2014 at 23:12

    I've just shared this.

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  3. Jonathan Rowe25 February 2014 at 09:07

    Entered the competition and don't you just know it, found a hitherto undetectable typo on the draft version. Ah well, too late now.

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  4. Laura Johnson1 March 2014 at 06:12

    This is a magnificent idea, a picture to inspire stories! Good luck to everyone!!!! :D Michael, when I put the body of my story into your text box, it made it sort of "non-formatted" looking, as in no paragraph indents. Is that OK with you? thanks again for this great idea!!!

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  5. Darren Grey3 March 2014 at 17:06

    Entered and shared :) Very cool image again this month! I'm looking forward to the stories that come of it.

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  6. P.B. Cannon8 March 2014 at 01:10

    Entered. Thanks, again, Michael, for this contest. I gives me great practice on writing shorts!

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  7. centurionman8 March 2014 at 12:38

    Hi Michael

    Thanks for the opportunity as ever

    Andrew

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  8. Unknown8 March 2014 at 18:04

    I just entered and have spread the word to a few people thus far, including my husband who is in the midst of refining his own entry. While I am the aspiring writer in the family, he and I sometimes have a competitive union! If he places, or otherwise, out-does me--ooooh! Like you, Michael, he works in computer games but generally writes code! This is a cool idea for a competition, by the way, and I still needing to work on my brevity some! Best wishes to you!

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  9. Anonymous11 March 2014 at 15:06

    Thought I'd give this a whirl, great idea. I'll share on Twitter as well.

    Thanks

    Philip Coutts

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  10. Anonymous12 March 2014 at 12:58

    Just sent my entry and shared on Twitter - thank you for another inspiring image!

    Sarah

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  11. Anonymous13 March 2014 at 20:44

    Yes, Michael you have inspired me to write a new submission.... The first submission I made after getting your e-male was rushed. I wrote a new story that doesn't just add a mask at the end. I understand that we can just make one submission, but may I change mine?
    Please respond with a yah or nah. I will understand if you don't change the rules just for me.

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  12. Unknown17 March 2014 at 21:59

    This comment has been removed by the author.

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  13. Anonymous17 March 2014 at 22:09

    Okay, I submitted. Thank you for having this contest. Am I safe in assuming that the mask is for inspiration only. Or do we need to mention it directly?

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    Replies
    1. Michael Brookes18 March 2014 at 16:17

      Thanks Willow, the story has to connect to the mask in some way, when I read it I'll expect to see some connection.

      Delete
  14. Pizopop20 March 2014 at 12:20

    Hi,

    This is a really fun idea for a contest - have just submitted my entry.

    Best regards,

    Andy

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  15. Anonymous22 March 2014 at 10:39

    Entered. Thanks for the opportunity

    ReplyDelete
  16. Unknown23 March 2014 at 08:31

    I finally got my entry in, better late than never, I guess. Thanks for the opportunity!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Michael Brookes23 March 2014 at 09:30

      No problem and it isn't late, today's the last day to enter.

      Delete