Celtic Mythology Short Story competition #seanocarolan #writing #contest

Celtic Mythology Short Story competition   

Introduction from Brian O’Sullivan

With the Celtic Mythology Short Story competition, we’re hoping to collect the best contemporary narratives on Gaelic/Celtic mythology that we can find. Stories from Celtic mythology have been lying dormant in the shadow of “Children’s fairytales” for far too long and we’re determined to haul them back out into the open.

There’s a new wave of Irish/Celtic authors out there, writers ready to draw on their cultural heritage to create a rich and compelling portfolio of new works. We’re hoping this competition is going to help kindle that process!
First Prize

$500 and story published in Irish Imbas Celtic Mythology Collection
Second Prize

$250 and story published in Irish Imbas Celtic Mythology Collection
Third Prize

$100 and story published in Irish Imbas Celtic Mythology Collection
What We’re Looking For

Any kind of fiction short story will be considered (action, romance, drama, humour etc.) as long as they meet the following criteria:
Celtic mythology or folklore forms a fundamental element of the story (i.e. the characters can be characters from Celtic mythology, the action can take place in a mythological location, mythological concepts can be used etc.).
Any Celtic folklore or mythological reference used should be as authentic as you can make it (for example; no dedicated pantheon of Irish Gods, no werewolves or vampires etc.)
A compelling story/theme, engaging characters. You’re a writer – you know what we mean.

At the end of the day, of course, the success of a story comes down to the judgement of the individual reader and it’s impossible to tell what one person will like over another. The stronger your narrative however, and the stronger the cultural element, the greater your chances of getting through to the short-list.
The Process and Important Dates

1. Submitted stories will be read and assessed by a panel of three judges and a shortlist compiled.

2. The judges will score each story and choose the top three prize-winning stories. The top 9-10 scoring stories will be published in the 2016 Irish Imbas Celtic Mythology Collection. In this respect, Irish Imbas Books retains one-time, non-exclusive publication rights to the top-ten winning entries.

3. Submissions will be accepted from midnight 10 September 2015 to midnight 10 December 2015.

4. This will be an annual competition so any submission received after midnight 10 December 2015 will be entered into the competition for the following year.

5. The shortlist will be announced on irishimbasbooks.com before 31 January 2016.

6. Winners will be contacted by email.

7. Prize money will be paid to the authors of the three prize-winning stories in February 2016.

8. The Irish Imbas Celtic Mythology Collection will be released in March 2016. The ebook version will be free.

9. Hard copies of the Irish Imbas Celtic Mythology Collection will be provided to all authors published in the collection.

Terms and Conditions
Irish Imbas Books reserves the right to decline a story for entry to the competition for any reason at its absolute discretion.
All successful authors will be contacted by email.
The judges’ decision is final and no correspondence will be entered into once the winners have been announced.
By submitting a story to the competition the author warrants that the story is original, and entirely the author’s own work. The author warrants that the story they have entered does not infringe the copyright or any other rights of any third party and is not libellous, unlawful or defamatory of any living person or corporate body.
By submitting a story to the Irish Imbas Books Celtic Mythology Short Story Competition the author acknowledges that, free of any fees or royalty payments, their short story, biography and photo (if you’re happy to submit a photo):
will be made available for publication in the Irish Imbas Celtic Mythology Collection (digital and hard copy version);
can be used (in whole or in part) in advertising and marketing material in any format via any medium for the purposes of this competition
By entering the competition you agree that Irish Imbas Books may email you with news of subsequent competitions). We hate spam as much as anyone so any email sent to you will enable you to unsubscribe at any time.

Enter HERE