Annual SiWC Writing Contest

The 30th Annual SiWC Writing Contest is now OPEN!

First prize: $1000 plus publication

Honourable Mention: $150 plus publication

Cost: $15/entry Deadline: September 15, 2022: All entries must be emailed by midnight, Friday, September 15, 2022. No late entries will be considered.

Open to all writers except SiWC paid staff, board members, and immediate families.

Young writers are welcome to enter, but must be aware that their work will be judged blind among submissions made by adult writers.

Please read the contest rules below before entering.

Contest Rules and Regulations

• Short stories in any genre are welcome. Story length must be 2,500 – 4000 words.
• Manuscript format: standard format: double-spaced, 12-pt Times New Roman or Arial font, 1″ margins, indented paragraphs, footer with page number and title only. Blind submissions only— the author’s name must not appear anywhere on the manuscript. Submit as a .docx or .pdf file.
• Cover page, to be attached as a separate document: includes title, author’s name, address, email address, phone number and word length. All contact information is held in strict confidence.
• Email your entry to ‘contest @siwc.ca’. Each entry must include TWO [2] documents: the manuscript, formatted as noted above; and the cover page. 
• All entries will be acknowledged by return email.
• To pay for your contest entry by credit card or PayPal, please use the PayPal button on the Contest Page, and be sure to note the author’s name and title. Paypal will process your payment and send you a receipt by email.
• PayPal payments must be submitted individually, one per entry. Remember to push the button only once for each entry, or you may be charged twice. Refunds are not available.
• Please note, entries may only submitted via email. There is no mailing address or drop off point for hard copies.
• All submissions must contain original material, and may not have been previously published, accepted for publication, or have been a winner in another contest prior to the deadline.
• Please note our internet policy: If a work has been briefly excerpted anywhere on the internet it is still eligible as an entry, but if it has been published or posted in its entirety on a blog or any other internet site, it is not eligible for our contest, as we retain right of first publication as a part of our mandate.
• Short-listed writers will be notified in early October.
• Judges and conference/contest organizers cannot comment on individual entries.
• Enter as many pieces as you like, at $15 for each entry.
• Winners will be informed before the conference in October. Prizes will be awarded at the Friday night Awards Ceremony. Winners will be listed on the website as soon as possible after the conference.
• Submission implies the author is granting first right of publication to the SiWC. Rights then revert to the author.
• Entering the contest grants the SIWC the right to publish the entrant’s name on the SIWC website, should the entrant be short-listed for, or win, a SIWC writing contest prize. The SIWC privacy policy link can be found at the bottom of every page on the site.