Plus two optional extras: a week’s writing retreat at Gladstone Library, and a day with an editor at Virago Press.

Plus two optional extras: a week’s writing retreat at Gladstone Library, and a day with an editor at Virago Press.
Three other finalists will each receive £100. All four winning stories will be published in the March 2019 issue of Mslexia.

Judge: TBC
Fee: £10 per story
Closing date: 1 October 2018

Our Women’s Short Story Competition is back for its tenth year, now as part of our fabulous Women’s Fiction Awards. Not only will the winning writer get £5,000, they will also have the prestige of being published in Mslexia, a credit shared with writers like Costa winner Angela Readman and novelist Peggy Riley. In addition, there is the opportunity to spend a week in glorious isolation working on their writing at the stunning Gladstone’s Library, and a day with an editor at Virago – an experience that money can’t buy and one that could really help you take your writing to the next level.

The competition is open to women of any nationality from any country, and welcomes stories of between 300 and 3,000 words in length (not including the title). If you would also like to enter a flash fiction piece, please click here.

All genres welcome. Please include a cover sheet with your entry.

Please ensure you’ve read the rules and FAQs before entering.

For any questions about your entry, email competitions@mslexia.co.uk, or call 0191 204 8860.

Each entry fee allows you to submit one short story. If you would like to enter more than one story, please ensure you select the correct number of entries below.

ALL ENTRIES

• Please submit your work typed, double-spaced on A4 pages, single sided, with pages numbered.
• Your entry will be judged anonymously, so do not put your name on the text pages of your entry.
• Add a separate cover page with your contact details, plus the title(s) of the work you are submitting and the word count(s).
• Once submitted, no alterations may be made to your entry.
• Your entry will not be returned, so please keep a copy. If you require confirmation of receipt of a postal entry, please enclose an SAE labelled ‘Acknowledgement’.
• No competitor will win more than one prize in any one category.
• We do not send copies of the results to entrants, but results are published in Mslexia magazine and listed on the Mslexia website.
• The winners and finalists of our four fiction competitions will be announced in Mslexia magazine as follows: Short Story and Flash Fiction in the March 2019 edition; Adult Novella and Children’s Novel in the June 2019 edition.
• Winning entries of the Short Story and Flash Fiction competitions will be published in the March 2019 edition of Mslexia. The winning novella will be published in June 2019.
• Copyright of any entry remains with the author, but Mslexia has the unrestricted right to publish the winning entries in its magazine, on its website, and in any related material for PR purposes.

ELIGIBILITY

• Entries should be in English (or English dialect) and should not have been published or accepted for publication elsewhere.
• Entries that have won or are under consideration in other fiction competitions are not eligible.
• The Children’s Novel Award is for unpublished novelists only. Self-published manuscripts are eligible, but women who have had a novel published commercially, for any age group, in any country, are not eligible.
• The Novella Award competition is open to women who have not yet had a novella accepted for commercial publication in any country.
• Entries should not be a translation of another author’s work.
• You do not have to subscribe to Mslexia to be eligible, but you do have to be or identify as a woman.
• We will accept entries from women of any nationality from any country.

HOW TO ENTER

• You may enter online at www.mslexia.co.uk/competitions or send your entry by post.If entering online, there are full instructions on the website.
• If entering by post, mark your envelope ‘Women’s Fiction Awards’ and send it to: Mslexia Publications Ltd, PO Box 656, Newcastle upon Tyne NE99 1PZ.
• If entering by post, you can pay by cheque (payable to Mslexia Publications Ltd.) or by debit/credit card (phone +44 (0)191 204 8860 with your details).
• You may enter as many competitions with as many submissions as you like, but please enter every submission separately, accompanied by a separate fee.

PRIZE TERMS

Short Story Award

• The Gladstone’s Library retreat and Virago mentoring session are optional additions to the first prize. If the winner opts not to take advantage of either or both, they will be offered to another finalist.
• The Gladstone’s Library retreat includes accommodation and food only; dates should be agreed between Gladstone’s Library and the competition winner.
• The date of the Virago mentoring session should be agreed between Virago and the competition winner.
• The winner is responsible for any other expenses involved with attending the Gladstone’s retreat and the day with a Virago editor, i.e. travel, etc.
• These additional prizes must be taken before 1 October 2019.

Novel Award

• Manuscript feedback from The Literary Consultancy is optional. Practical arrangements should be agreed between the finalists and TLC.
• The pitch training is a day-long professional workshop in Newcastle upon Tyne. The personal introduction to agents and editors will take place at a special ‘talent party’ in central London. Both events are arranged in partnership with New Writing North. Mslexia will contribute a total of £100 towards each finalists’ travel expenses.
• These additional prizes must be taken before 1 October 2019.

The closing date for all competitions is 1 October 2018