Our 2024 Open Short Story Competition has Just Opened!

Date for your diaries: The next free 7 Day Story Writing Challenge (£500 prize) is due to start at 9am (UK time) Monday 7th October! To find out more and register, click here.

Dear Globers,

We are excited to announce our 2024 Open Short Story Competition—a fantastic opportunity for writers of all genres and styles to showcase their best work. Whether you write literary fiction, sci-fi, historical, horror, or anything else, we want to read your story!

The competition is open to stories of any length, up to 8,000 words. While we’ve set the maximum limit high to accommodate longer short stories that might not fit other contests with stricter word limits, there’s no minimum word count. So don’t feel pressured to come close to the word limit. All stories will be judged on their own merits, and if a 1,000 word story is successful as a 1,000 word story, it won’t be at a disadvantage in this contest.

One talented winner will take home an exciting prize of £2,000!

Closing Date: December 16th, 2024

To make this competition even more rewarding, we’re offering participants the chance to receive peer feedback on their stories before submitting. We’ll be hosting two feedback exchanges in our Facebook group where you can share your story privately with other participants to give and receive helpful critiques:

• First Feedback Exchange: November 1st

• Second Feedback Exchange: December 6th

The feedback exchanges are completely optional but we strongly recommended participating. Engaging with other writers is a great way to see your story through fresh eyes, refine your narrative, and get tips to make your submission even stronger. Plus, it’s a wonderful chance to connect with a community of fellow storytellers.

We know that not everyone uses Facebook, but don’t worry—you can set up a simple dummy account just for this purpose, which is quick and easy to do.

Whether you’re entering for the £2,000 prize or looking to improve your craft, this competition is a fantastic chance to grow as a writer, get feedback, and share your unique voice with the world.

We can't wait to read your story!

Please note: you can enter a story you’ve previously submitted to one of our contests into the Open Short Story Comp, unless you received feedback on that story from someone on the Globe Soup team.