Southam Book Festival

Flash Fiction Competition 2026

This Year's Competition is now open ​

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Writers submitting 100 word stories for Southam Book Festival’s Flash Fiction competition  

 must include one particular word selected by one of the judges.

This years chosen word is HORIZON - we opted for a noun for a change.

We will be looking for works that are original and can be entertaining, thought-provoking, witty, have a relevant message or observation of society, for example.

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Please take note of the rules below:

                                    

The closing date for entries is 5th September - noon.

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1st prize £60

2nd prize £30

3rd prize £20

 

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RULES, CONDITIONS & HOW TO ENTER

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1. The competition is open to anyone who is 16 years and over.

2. The competition is for an original work of fiction no longer than 100 words in length.

3. Each story must have a title and the title must be included in the word count. Hyphenated words count as one word.

4. The work must contain the following word : horizon

5. The key word must not be used as the title of your story.

6. The work must be previously unpublished and not be simultaneously entered into any other competition. It must be that the work has been created solely by the person submitting the entry to the competition.

7. The closing date is 3rd September 2026 at noon.

8. The entry fee is £3 per story. Competitors may enter as many stories as they wish. Up to five stories may be entered for £10.

9. Entries must be made electronically.

10. The judges' decision is final. Judges will not enter into any discussion.

11. The names of short-listed competition entrants will be published on the Southam Book Festival web site shortly after the closing date.

12. The names of winner and runners up will be published on the Southam Book Festival web site as soon as possible after the day of the festival and listed on the Festival social media page. Winner and runners up will be contacted individually. 

13. Submission of work will be taken as acceptance of rules and conditions.

14. Copyright of each story remains with the author, but Southam Book Festival reserves the right to publish a selection of the stories at some point during or after the Book Festival.

 

 

HOW TO ENTER

 

 All entries must be made via Email. 

 

• Choose the £3 or £10 PayPal button below

 

• Next email your story or stories to southambookfest@gmail.com.

 

• Please put FF and your name in the subject box eg FFPennySmith

 

• For further emails simply add B, or C etc   eg FFPennySmithB

 

• On the email sheet please give details of your name, address, email address, the name of your story/stories and your PayPal transaction number.

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• ​Your story, with its title, should be included as an attachment. If you are submitting more than one story, please use a separate attachment for each story. Please check the title in the attachment matches the title in the email.

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