We hold four contests a year. Click on the Current or Latest Contest box on www.writeradvice.com for details.
Questions? Please ask. Thanks!
Did you know that Writer Advice has been running Flash Contests since before the genre was popular? We’re getting really good at recognizing what works and why. This quarter our contest is for FLASH MEMOIR.
What is Flash Memoir?
Everybody has great stories to tell. What’s yours. A flash memoir shows readers how you (the narrator) experienced and reacted to a turning point in your life. Write about something that changed the way you viewed yourself or your world. Show what happened and how it affected you. Invite us into your emotional truths.
Please send us 750-words or less. We look for a protagonist, a conflict, a setting, excellent use of language, and an ending that makes a point. We enjoy stories with a discovery, complex characters, language that engages us, and a tone that rings true.
There is no formula for success, but a protagonist we care about or are shocked by, a distinctive voice, and a clear impact on the reader all matter. Setting helps. So do conflict and resolution. We’re not fond of graphic horror of anything pornographic.
If the story feels squeezed at 750-words, don’t force it. There are plenty of journals where you can send your longer pieces.
PRIZES: There will be cash prizes and publication.
Depending on the quality of submissions I might publish more than 3 as I did in the Micro Contest—maybe 2 a month for a total of 6 total. It will depend on what comes in and how much it resonates. I hope you will see this as a positive, inclusive opportunity.
If I publish more than 3 each of you will earn $40 or more, and you can all say you’re winners in Writer Advice’s 2024 Flash Memoir Contest. Add that credit to your resume. It’s a great way to build your platform.
This contest officially opens as soon as it’s available on Submittable, and I’ll let you know when that is. It closes on March 2, 2024.
How do you write something so short?
- Focus on the moment that changed the protagonist.
- Start far into the story.
- Cut everything that isn’t essential.
- Let your verbs and nouns describe.
- Let tone, attitude, and behavior as well as dialogue get your ideas across.
If you’d like to know what’s working in your writing and what trips up an award-winning writer, I’m happy to send a personalized, detailed letter, but I have to ask that you pay an additional $10 fee. You’d pay the $5 submission fee and add the $10 feedback option on Submittable. If you have the money, I strongly recommend it. It’s a good bargain and a worker is worthy of her hire. Thank you for understanding.
Strong suggestion: Don’t try to compress a longer story to fit the length. It never works. Submit longer stories to any of the many places seeking those.
Writer Advice gives opportunities to all writers—especially ones who share a story that touches our hearts and makes us look at the world more wisely. We enjoy stories with a discovery, maybe a surprise, and a tone that rings true. Enlighten, dazzle, and delight us.
Fees: We ask for $5 to help defray the cost of prizes and an additional $10 if you’d like detailed feedback about what’s working and what tripped us up.
HOW TO SUBMIT: Use the black box that says “Submit Here” at the bottom of this page. If there’s a problem, please use the Contact Box to let me know. Technology can be imperfect.
QUESTIONS: Please ask. Use the Contact Box.
COPYRIGHT: You own it. If you republish, please say that it first appeared at Writer Advice, www.writeradvice.com.
JUDGES: Watch this space. I usually use former winners, but this is a new contest.
SUBMISSIONS: Keep scrolling. The Submittable box is at the bottom of the page.
FOR BEST RESULTS:
- Include your name, e-mail address, and title on the Submittable form, but include only your title in the submission so it remains anonymous. Please leave the header and footer blank.
- Since we judge these anonymously, you don’t need a cover letter. If you are a finalist, we’ll ask for a bio.
- Please double-space your submission. We recommend that you use a 14-point font that is easy to read. Cambria, Ariel, and Verdana are all good. If you forget, we may fix it for you.
- You own the copyright. If we publish your work, the rights still belong to you, though we ask you not to resubmit until 90 days after it appears on Writer Advice and give us credit if it is published elsewhere.
- Simultaneous submissions accepted.
- If your work is accepted elsewhere, please notify us immediately.
- Please hit the contact button and ask questions if anything is unclear or missing. Thank you!
Tips for Success:
- Let readers care.
- Leave out details that don’t help you tell this story.
- Know why your story is unique. (If you don’t know, ask your characters.)
- We only need your contact information instead of a whole query letter, but if you want to send your query, we won’t stop you.
- NOTE: We had an excellent piece in the last contest that did not win an award because it was too long. The length matters! Following directions matters.
- We like double-spaced manuscripts with standard, one-inch margins.
- We prefer an easy-to-read font.
- Please use the Submittable box below. Manuscripts sent in other ways will not be read. If anything about the form is unclear, please contact me using the contact box on the home page of writeradvice.com.
Thank you for sharing your work with us.
We want to share your stories about your publishing journey and your writing life here. Write to entertain, to enlighten, and to advise (but not preach). Write to share your gratitude, amazement, and disbelief.
Share the good, the bad, and the silly, but don’t share them all in one submission. Think of a blog post or a short-short story. No epics.
No fiction here. These are real-life stories ranging from 250 to 750 words. Less is more. Make your point clearly and move on.
Who knows what your experience might inspire?
New submissions will be added quarterly. Send through Submittable, <!-- Link to the Writer Advice submission manager. --->
<a target = _blank href="https://writeradvice.submittable.com/submit"><img src="//manager.submittable.com/Public/Images/submittable-submit-button.png" alt="submit" border="0" /></a>
$6 submission fee covers our time, possible editing, and the
decision-making process.
You get a credit for your resume plus a brief bio and the satisfaction of sharing your experience Sorry that we do not have the income to pay you at this time.