Writers' & Artists' Yearbook Short Story Competition

For published and aspiring writers alike - enter our free annual short story competition and be in with a chance of winning a place on one of Arvon's four- or six-day Clockhouse writing retreats, as well as seeing your story published on www.writersandartists.co.uk.

To enter, all you have to do is submit a short story (for adults) of no more than 2,000 words. And that's it. Unlike previous years, there's no theme for you to base your story on; all you have to do is make sure you're registered with the website, the subject line of your email reads 'W&A Short Story Competition 2019' and you send it to waybcompetitions@bloomsbury.com.

The closing date for entries is midnight on Wednesday 13th February, 2019. The winner of the competition - along with two runners-up - will be announced on the blog pages of this site in March 2019.

Don't forget to read the terms and conditions in full (below) before you enter. Please remember to register on www.writersandartists.co.uk before submitting your entry.

Good luck!
This year's judge



Alysoun Owen is a publisher with over 20 years' experience as a commissioning editor and running her own publishing consultancy business. She has been the Editor of the Writers' & Artists' Yearbook and the Children's Writers' & Artists' Yearbook for six years and is a regular speaker on how to get published at literary festivals and writer events.
About Arvon

Arvon runs three historic writing houses in the UK, where published writers lead week-long residential courses. Covering a diverse range of genres, from poetry and fiction to screenwriting and comedy, Arvon courses have provided inspiration to thousands of people at all stages of their writing lives. You can find out more and book a course online at www.arvon.org

Terms and conditions

These are the full terms and conditions for Writers' & Artists' Yearbook Short Story Competition 2019.

1. No purchase necessary, but entrants must be registered on www.writersandartists.co.uk.

2. The competition is open to all ages, professions and nationalities, and you don’t have to reside in the UK to enter.

3. All entries must be original and unpublished.

4. Writers may submit one entry only.

5. Winners will be notified at the email address stated in their entry. Sign-up for our newsletter here if you want to be notified about the winner or check back on www.writersandartists.co.uk. You can also follow us on Twitter and Facebook, where competition updates will also be posted.

6. Entries must be submitted via email to waybcompetitions@bloomsbury.com with the subject heading: "W&A Short Story Competition 2019"

Please include your email address and other contact details in the body of the email. Your entry can appear in the body of the email or as a Word/PDF attachment. As long as it’s clear and easy to read, we have no other formatting requirements.

7. Your entry must be submitted before midnight on Wednesday 13th February, 2019. Entries will not be accepted after this date.

8. By submitting, all entrants thereby grant The Bloomsbury Publishing Group the right to publish their entry on www.writersandartists.co.uk in the event of their work being shortlisted and/or winning the competition.

9. The Bloomsbury Publishing Group cannot accept responsibility for entries which are not received or which are received after the closing date due to technical failure or for any other reason.

10. Winners agree to participate in publicity events in connection with the competition.

11. The Bloomsbury Publishing Group and the winners may enter into agreements which will grant The Bloomsbury Publishing Group the publishing, broadcasting, serial and electronic rights in the shortlisted and winning entries.

12. The Bloomsbury Publishing Group reserves the right to change the rules of this competition without notice.

13. The winners of the competition will be notified in March 2019 and the winning entries published on www.writersandartists.co.uk.

14. Prizes must be taken by 31st December 2019 and are subject to availability.

15. Bloomsbury are not responsible for travel costs to and from the writing retreat, so if you live outside of the UK, you will be responsible for your own travel costs.

16. The winning prize cannot be exchanged for the monetary equivalent.

17. The decision of the competition judges will be final and no correspondence will be entered into.

18. Employees of The Bloomsbury Publishing Group, and members of their immediate family, are excluded from participating in the competition.

19. We may, from time to time, inform you of new books and special offers that we think will be of interest.

20. Please send direct competition queries to waybcustomerservices@bloomsbury.com. Any sent to competition@bloomsbury.com will not be answered.