Sunday 17 May 2015

June Short Fiction Contest

By Cyberjunkie (Own work) via Wikimedia Commons
Quite often it can take ages to find the image for the next month's contest. This month's proved an exception. I'm sure that you'll agree that this is quite an awesome door! It might be a bit much for my house but it does make a good piece for inspiring June's contest submissions. I wonder what lies behind that door...

As always the stories can be of any genre. They just have to be inspired by this month's image and no more than 500 words.

Entry to the contest remains free and there are prizes for the three winners. I will also feature any of the stories that don't win but I believe are worth showcasing on this blog.
  • First prize is a £50 Amazon gift card or PayPal prize
  • Second prize is a £20 Amazon gift card or PayPal prize
  • Third prize is a £10 Amazon gift card or PayPal prize
The money for the prizes come out of my own pocket, although I do make a little from advertising on this blog. So if you see something of interest then feel free to click on the links and purchase away! If you haven't tried my books yet then check them out at the top of the page, as well as buying a good read you'll be helping this contest.

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 July 1st 2015.

As with everything in life there are a few rules:
  • Only one entry per person.
  • The story must not be longer than 500 words.
  • Closing date for submissions is June 21st 2015.
  • By submitting the story you grant me a non-exclusive license to post the story on this blog. I do ask that I post it here first.
  • You also grant me a one time non-exclusive license to include the story in an e-book release.
  • The judge's 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. Great stories deserve great readers!




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!




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

39 comments:

  1. Thanks again Michael for the competition. I'm submitting earlier this time - must be the interesting picture.

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    1. Thanks Rick - I'm wondering if my landlord would mind me replacing my front door :-)

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    2. Maybe you could charge for viewings?

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    3. Hi Michael , I've submitted too. In fact, I've submitted it twice, so please delete the first version of the story as I tweaked it slightly, if that's possible, Many thanks on another great picture to inspire your fellow writers.
      Thanks
      Nav

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  2. Just submitted my entry. Thanks for hosting this competition.

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  3. Hi, I just found your site through the Horror Writers group on Facebook, and submitted a story for your consideration for June's Contest. I hope you like it. As others have said, thanks for hosting this competition!

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  4. Thanks for setting up this competition and encouraging members of this circle to write.

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  5. I wonder where my comment from yesterday disappeared to. I had to write you something on the spot for this awesome doorway pic. Michael, sometimes they just don't inspire me but when they do, like this one did, Wow! Thanks for this opportunity. I hope you like the tale.

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  6. I've just submitted an entry. I'm excited to see what everybody else has submitted! Thanks for the cool contest.

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  7. Mr. Brooks,

    Do you only pay in Pounds? What about U.S. Dollars?

    Thank you,

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    Replies
    1. Yes, but that will automatically be converted by PayPal and Amazon depending on what you choose if you win. Pounds are worth more that follars too :-)

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    2. I know it's unlikely I will win, but for the record, if I do, I am totally cool with being paid in Pounds. I have both a US and UK Amazon account (to order books by my favourite British authors). I think that 50 Pounds is currently about 77 US Dollars, so it's all good :)

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  8. I just submitted my entry. Thanks for hosting the competition and for including such an inspiring image for it!

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  9. Submitted my story - first time in doing so. Looking forward to seeing how different the entries will be in response to a single stimuli.

    Wilverus Thorndike

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  10. Submitted. Found an hour or two to write something at last. Good luck all.

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  11. Just submitted. Once again, Michael, thank you for the contest. Last month I released an anthology. A small handful of the stories within were inspired by the contests that you held, and as a result, I mentioned you and your blog in the gratitude section of my book, Night as a Catalyst.

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  12. I submitted after seeing your blog linked on horrortree.com. I'm excited to see what comes out of it because geez, what a door.

    Cheers!

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  13. Just submitted. Love the photo. Can't wait to see all the different interpretations! Thanks!

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  14. Mr. Brookes

    Thanks so much for the quick reply on the Pound/Dollars query.

    Eh! And I just noticed that I misspelled your last name in that same query. My apologies.

    A couple things. Firstly, is the deadline midnight on the 21st?

    Secondly: I'm in the Midwest part of the U.S. and want to be sure of the time difference between here and the U.K. I don't want a rejection due to my not knowing. I went to the world clock and you're six hours ahead of where I am. Is that correct?

    Thanks again.

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    Replies
    1. I tend to close the form on Monday my time to allow for time zones around the world.

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  15. Mr. Brookes,

    I just submitted my story.

    Thanks for reviewing my work.

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  16. I submitted my story. Hopefully, I made it in time before the deadline. Thank you for taking time to read it.

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