1.
The 2020 Brno
Short Story Writing Contest (BSSWC) is designed to stimulate culture in the
South Moravia region by providing a significant set of prizes for a jury-based
competition in creative writing.
2. The contest is for anyone who lives or goes to school in
Brno or the South Morava region. People with a significant connection to Brno
may also enter.
3. The theme for each entry must be: “Brno.” Some
interpretation of the theme must be a significant part of the story.
4. Entry is free.
5. One entry per person.
6. The maximum length for each short story is 2,500 words.
7. The entry must be original. Previously published work
will be disqualified.
8. All submissions must be in English. Some foreign words —
e.g., Czech names, terms — are allowed, but it should be assumed that the jury
and the audience knows only English.
9. The prize structure will be:
• First
place: 6,000kc
• Second
place: 3,000kc
• Third
place: 1,000kc
Prize money will be paid in Czech
crowns. Any additional banking fees will be the responsibility of the
contestant.
12. Important dates:
Sunday, March 1, 2020: The contest begins, publicity and
promotion begins.
Sunday, May 17, 2020: Deadline for submissions.
June 2020: Announcement of winners.
13. Entries must be emailed to
brnowritersgroup@gmail.com by
11:59 p.m. CET on Sunday, May 17, 2020. Entries that are not received by the
deadline will not be reviewed and will be ineligible.
14. The actual Short
Story entry should be a Word document (.doc) or Text file (.txt) and follow
these guidelines:
A. NAME — The name of the file must
be: “The Title of your Short Story”. For
example, if the title of your Short Story is “Love in Luzanky”, then the name
of your Short Story must be saved as “Love in Luzanky.doc” or “Love in Luzanky.txt”
B. FONT — Each individual Short
Story must be in 12-point, Calibri or Times New Roman typeface. Please double-space
and number the pages.
C. TITLE PAGE — Each entry should
have a title page. The title page should contain the title of the Short Story
and a brief synopsis. The brief synopsis can be a maximum of two sentences and
a minimum of one sentence (and no longer than one-half page in length). The
brief synopsis will serve as a description of the Short Story, and possibly be
used in online promotion.
D. ANONYMITY — The author’s name
must NOT appear anywhere on the Short Story, including the title page.
E. LENGTH — The maximum length for
each individual Short Story is 2,500 words. Stories that are longer than 2,500
words will be disqualified. This word total does not include the title-page
synopsis. (Judges are not required to provide feedback on disqualified
submissions.)
15. All stories must
be submitted via email as an attachment to the following address: brnowritersgroup@gmail.com
. The body of the email must include the following information:
Title of the Short Story
Author’s first and last name
Author’s address
Author’s email address
Author’s phone number
16. Please keep your entry within the realms of decency.
Overtly questionable content without artistic merit may be disqualified.
Similarly, any work deemed to be promoting any brand or organization may face
disqualification.
17. The BSSWC shall take every possible action to protect
the privacy of all entrants, including their email address. Any individual
concerned about such privacy issues should contact the contest administrator directly
by email at brnowritersgroup@gmail.com .
18. The jury for the competition includes the following:
- Don Sparling
- Tomáš Kačer
- Anna Formánková
- Theo Singleton
19. The contest
administrator is Bruno Zalubil.
20. The jury will be
instructed that the contest is focused on creating a story that includes the theme
“Brno” in some significant way. The story is the most important aspect,
including writing, originality, character development, and plot development. It
is understood that most of the entrants will not be native English speakers and
that, in fact, this may be their first attempt to write creatively in English.
All entrants should endeavor to adhere to the rules of English; however,
spelling and grammar will not be critical for success.
21. Results will be announced on the contest websites in
early to mid-June.
23. There may be media interest in the competition. Winners
would be encouraged to speak to the media. Brno Daily (brnodaily.cz) and Brno
Expats Centre (brnoexpatcentre.eu) are Media Sponsors of the contest.
24. The Brno Short Story Writing Contest was made possible
by anonymous donations.
25. In the event that 10 entries or less are received, the
contest will be canceled. Each entrant would receive 200kc. The remainder of
the money would be returned to the donors.
26. The administrator of the BSSWC reserves the right to
disqualify any entrant or submission that does not comply with these Official
Rules and other contest requirements. Entries that are deemed completely off
topic will be considered for disqualification.
28. A confirmation email is sent when an entry is received.
If you do not receive a confirmation email within 24 hours of your submission,
please contact the administrator as soon as possible.
29. All decisions as to compliance with these Official Rules
are within the sole discretion of the contest administrator. Any decisions by
the contest administrator are final, conclusive, and binding upon all entrants.
