The Big Issue in the North is proud to announce its Award for Short Fiction, a national award to promote excellence in the art of short story writing. The winning author will receive £1,000 to support them and their career and Valley Press will publish the short list of ten in an anthology. Five of the short list will also receive a Kobo Touch.

 

It costs £10 to enter one piece of short fiction up to 3,000 words long and £2 for each subsequent entry. All proceeds go to the Big Issue in the North Trust. Kevin Gopal, Editor of The Big Issue in the North, Jamie McGarry, Editor of Valley Press, and short fiction writer David Gaffney will choose the winning short stories and the recipient of the award.

 

Our proud sponsors make the Award for Short Fiction possible: Creative Industries Trafford and Waterside Arts Centre. This Award will raise funds for The Big Issue in the North Trust, our registered charity (no. 1056041) that supports the homeless and vulnerably housed in the North of England. 

 

The judges are looking for contemporary writing that displays originality, voice and vision. There is no theme and the wining short stories are expected to display outstanding literary quality. The award will be presented at a special event taking place as part of Manchester Literature Festival on the 12 of October at the International Anthony Burgess Foundation.

 

The Award will be supported by a number of workshops across the region assisting vendors of The Big Issue in the North to engage with literature and writing as a means of expression. We believe that great fiction breaks down barriers and helps to end isolation.

 

All submissions to the Award should be sent to award@bigissueinthenorth.com along with a completed submissions form and your Just Giving reference.

 

We wish you good luck in entering the competition and we look forward to reading all of your submissions.

 

Regards,

 

The Big Issue in the North

 

 

Entry - £10

 

Subsequent entries - +£2

 

 

 

1 Place - £1,000

 

2 to 6 Place – Kobo Touch

 

1 to 10 place – Publication of your short story in Anthology produced by Valley Press.

 

 

 

Deadline for submissions – 01/08/13

 

 

 

The writers chosen for publication in the Valley Press Anthology will be expected to engage in an editorial process. By submitting your story to The Big Issue in the North you give non-exclusive right to reproduce the story to Valley Press and The Big Issue in the North. Stories submitted to the Award for Short Fiction cannot be currently under consideration by any other publication, competition or award between the date of submission and 07/08/13. Proceeds from the sale of the anthology produced by Valley Press will go to The Big Issue in the North Trust.