Are you a short story writer or have you been thinking about trying your hand at this fun and fulfilling genre? It is all well and good to send in stories to publishers and I recommend it, but there are other ways of making money with short stories. Following are a few great writing contests for beginners and experts alike:
Reedsy has a weekly short story contest. It is based on prompts, costs $5 to enter and has a top prize of $250. Second place winners are awarded $50 and all submissions are published.
Reedsy is a fantastic platform for writers as it not only gives you a place to display your work, you can seek advice and help from editors and fellow writers, take self-paced writing courses through email, read the work of writers of poems, flash fiction, and of course, short stories. Subscribe to Reedsy and check out the Reedsy contest guidelines!
SaveAs Writers’ International Writing Competition 2022
Based in Canterbury, U.K., this competition is for everyone around the world. This year’s challenge is to write a story based on myth or AS a myth. The contest ends on October 31, 2022. Check out the terms and details.
This contest includes poetry, short fiction, and short essays. 500 WORDS short! You can win as much as $1,000 dollars. Honorable mentions are given $250 and are published in the Gulf Coast Journal. Hurry, as the deadline for entries is August 31st. Try for the Barthelme Prize
Gemini Magazine Flash Fiction Contest
The deadline is August 31st. The top prize is $1,000 and publication in the October issue of Gemini Magazine. This is just one of the contests they hold throughout the year on an annual basis, so be sure to check out the other’s while you are visiting the website. Gemini’s Flash Fiction Contest
“I agreed with George, and suggested that we should seek out some retired and old-world spot, far from the maddening crowd, and dream away a sunny week among its drowsy lanes – some half-forgotten nook, hidden away by the fairies, out of reach of the noisy world – some quaint-perched eyrie on the cliffs of Time, from whence the surging waves of the nineteenth century would sound off far and faint.”
Jerome, Jerome K, Three Men In A Boat from 50 Masterpieces You Have To Read Before You Die, Volume 2
This bestselling thriller is mystery, suspense, horror, and a touch of hope all wrapped up in an attractively grotesque package. As the layers are unwrapped, anticipation keeps the reader there.
Abandoned at six years old and left alone again as a young man, Addison Goodheart hides himself from the world. He lives under the streets and comes out only at night — wearing a hood and mask. He is not a danger to people. People are a danger to him. The mere sight of him drives ordinary citizens to violence.
Here, when I was seen, my capacity for love earned me no mercy. Quite the opposite. When they saw me, men and women alike recoiled, but their fear quickly gave way to fury. I would not harm them to defend myself, and I remained therefore defenseless. ~ Addison Goodheart
He spends six years alone, and then one night, in the library, he meets Gwyneth. She is a young woman with her own reasons for staying hidden. Strangely, he finds her beautiful, though she paints herself to resemble one of his biggest fears. They form a twisted bond. She is not allowed to look at him and he cannot touch her.
In the end, they have even more in common than Addison had thought. That which makes them different allows them to love even more deeply and survive what would lie ahead.
One of the amazing things about Koontz is his ability to take something that seems as if it would not have anything to do with the plot and blend it in perfectly. For example, in Innocence, he includes a chapter on dogs and as you read this book that is not really about dogs, you will not only understand why it is there, you can appreciate the chapter as it stands alone.
Personal note: Innocence is even better than Watchers, which is unbelievably good.
The French Girl by Lexie Elliott
The French Girl by Lexie Elliott – Hardback edition
A young woman is murdered and one in a group of so-called “friends” did it. But who, and why? Did a woman do it out of jealousy? What reason would one of the guys have for ending the life of a beautiful girl?
Elliott captures the dark side of friendships and all of us have had similar personalities in our lives at some point, but how many of us accept them over the long-term? Hopefully, not many.
When I read a book, I want to like somebody and it is best when that somebody is the hero/heroine. Unfortunately, I don’t care much for Kate Channing. And yet – it is the author’s description that brings me to that conclusion and that is well done.
Jealousy. Greed. Deception. Hate. The French girl wasn’t an angel, but in the end, I found her to be the most likable, though she died early on in the story.
Elliott is a good writer. One sign of this is that I could not put the book down until the killer was found.
Personal note: I am not especially attractive, but I have never hated someone for their beauty. I suppose my blah feelings for the book have to do with that. Of all the people I might have liked to get to know, it was the most disliked that I liked.
Why? Because she did not just go away.
Where The Forest Meets The Stars by Glendy Vanderah
After traumatic experiences, a couple moves to the country to start their lives again. Then a young girl enters their lives. She comes out of the forest, dirty and bruised. But she’s not “just” an abused child. Ursa is special and she has come to witness five miracles.
Mysterious, suspenseful, and feel-good.
Personal note: I don’t have the book in front of me because I loaned it to my daughter. Actually, I pushed it on her. In other words, Ursa’s story deserves to be spread around. 😉
We are relaunching Scattered Daisy with a focus on reading, writing, discussing, and doing. As “Scattered” suggests, we’ll be touching on several genres. We’ll share more of our exciting new plans before the official relaunch. 🙂 🙂 🙂 STAY TUNED!
You must be logged in to post a comment.