Messages from the Past Writing Challenge

Open Date: 2/5/2025

Close Date: 3/7/2025

Fiction:
- Write a short story or a poem about a character receiving a message from the past.
  - **Food for thought: Is the message from someone they know/knew or is the message from a stranger? Is the message tied to a physical location (i.e. an old house that your character just moved into) or was the message designed to find your character specifically (or both)? Does the message they receive launch them into action or is its impact more social/psychological than physical? Does the message have a positive or negative impact?**
Non-fiction:
- Write a short narrative essay or poem about finding or receiving a message from the past.
  - **Food for thought: Was the message from someone you knew? What significance did the message have? Did the message change your perspective of the world or something/someone the message was associated with? Did the message cause you to take action or was its impact primarily social/psychological? Did the message permanently change things? How do you feel about the message now in retrospect?**

Guidelines:

The file should be in .doc, .docx, or .pdf format
The content should be double-spaced in 12 pt. Calibri, Arial, or Times New Roman font.
You may submit multiple entries.
You may have simultaneous submissions for your works with other publications/contests. However, if your work is accepted elsewhere, please let us know immediately so we can withdraw it from consideration.
Prose
- Fiction or nonfiction are both accepted as long as the work follows other guidelines and one of the prompts. (if prompts are applicable).
- Word count should be a minimum of 700 words and a maximum of 2,000.
- Two separate pieces of prose can be submitted on the same file if both pieces are under 1,000 words in length. You may also submit one prose piece under 1,000 words with up to two poems on one file.
Poetry
- Poems can be in any form or style as long as the work follows other guidelines and one of the prompts. (if prompts are applicable).
- No more than 5 poems can be submitted on one file.
- Each poem should be titled and should start on a new page. If multiple poems are submitted, we should be able to easily discern one poem from the next.