SUBMISSIONS ACCEPTED: Complete short stories, written in English, fitting into the broad category of speculative fiction. See Guidelines on Speculative Fiction. See also guidelines for manuscripts submissions below.

DEADLINE: Postmarked on or before May 1, 2008*, correctly addressed. Only the first 3,000 entries will be accepted. Entries that are mailed late or received after the maximum number of entries are accepted will be returned to sender if a SASE is provided.

CATEGORIES AND PRIZES: All speculative fiction which will fit into one of the following categories. The author indicates the category in which he or she wishes the submission to be judged. Judges reserve the right to re-categorize any entry if appropriate. There will be one prize in each category, as indicated, with a grand prize winner chosen from one of the category winners.


a) Science Fiction: $1,000.00 prize
Must have some integral element of a scientific nature

b) Fantasy $1,000.00 prizeAny departure from generally accepted limits of present or past reality

c) Humor or Horror $1,000.00 prize
Any speculative fiction grounded in humor or horror.

d) Alaskana $1,000.00 prize
Any speculative fiction with an Alaskan theme or integrated setting. Merely placing the story in Anchorage, if the setting is not integral to the story, will not qualify the entry as Alaskana. Some unique aspect of life in Alaska must be an integral element of story.

e) Young adult $1,000.00 prize
Speculative fiction, which might otherwise fall into any of the above categories, written for and appealing particularly to an audience from upper elementary through high-school level.

GRAND PRIZE: $5,000 ($4,000 in addition to $1,000 first place prize = $5,000)

Five to six finalists will be chosen in each category, with the final judging to be from this short list. Prizes will be awarded and winning entries read at the Alaska Conference on Speculative Fiction, presently scheduled for October 2008.

The Alaska Writers Guild acquires first North American publication rights to all winning stories and may publish winning stories in an anthology available to the public. Finalists or other entries of merit will be given the opportunity to have their stories included in any anthology, but no payment will be made for publication of non-prize winning stories.

No poetry or anime or illustrated work is accepted.

CRITIQUE:
No accepted entries will be returned. However, all non-winning entries will be critiqued by at least two judges and written critiques provided to entrants who submit a SASE with their entry.

FEES: $50.00 ea. entry, non-refundable, check or money order.

Individuals may submit as many entries as desired in the same or different categories, but each submission must be accompanied by a $50.00 entry fee and a separate entry form.

MANUSCRIPT CRITERIA: Entries in English only. 25 page limit, double spaced, Courier 12-point type, one-inch margins, title in caps at top of first page, single or double-sided, stapled in upper left corner. The title and page number must appear on the lower right corner, but the author's name must not appear anywhere on the manuscript. Each manuscript must be accompanied by a completed entry form, which may be downloaded or printed from the web site, or obtained by writing and sending an SASE to the address below. Two copies of each manuscript must be submitted, postmarked on or before May 1, 2008*, and properly addressed to:

 * The deadline has been extended for two weeks due to some delays in dissemination of information

Download the application packet (800k PDF)