Competition
Opens 1st Sept 2022
Federation of Writers Scotland Autumn Equinox Competition 2022
Prizes in each category:
1st prize £100
2nd prize £25
3rd prize £10
Please pay for your entries before sending them to us by email or post as you will need to include your reference in the header if your word document. Do not put any other identifying marks on your entry.
How To Enter
Before Entering
Send the appropriate fee (see 17 below) using Paypal. If you are not able to send money by Paypal please send a cheque or postal order (pounds sterling only) made out to The Federation of Writers (Scotland) by post to the address above.
Entry fee is £4 for first entry in any one category,
£8 for two entries in any one category,
£10 for three entries in any one category,
£3 for each subsequent entry (after the first three) in any one category.
The Five Categories
Open Poetry (which may be in Scots or English)
Open Short Story (which may be in Scots or English)
Open Flash Fiction (which may be in Scots or English)
Scottish Gaelic (poetry and flash fiction)
Scots (Poetry and flash fiction

Key Dates
Competition opens
Competition closes
Notification by
Awards Celebration
1st September, 2022
13th October, 2022
30th November, 2022
Christmas, 2022 /
New Year, 2023
By Email
Email your entry with a completed cover sheet (see 11 below) as a Word document to momacquarrie@live.com to arrive by midnight on 13 October 2022. Email submission of entries is preferred.
Please put COMPETITION in the subject heading of your email followed by your Paypal reference, or cheque or postal order number.
By Post
Send your entry (two copies) with a separate cover sheet (see 10 below) to:
Anne Clarke
0/1 25 Craigmillar Rd
Glasgow
G42 9JZ
If you are submitting the same entry for both the Scottish Gaelic or Scots competition and the appropriate category in the open competition please make sure you have clearly indicated this in your cover sheet and have paid the appropriate fees. If you have any query about fees please don't hesitate to email Mo MacQuarrie at momacquarrie@live.com
All Entrants
Please add the Paypal reference number, or cheque or postal order number to the header of your entry document. Do not put any identifying marks, such as names, on your entry.
Email entries will be acknowledged on receipt.
Postal entrants wishing confirmation that their entries have been received should either include their email address on their cover sheet or enclose a stamped addressed postcard.
No entries will be entered in the competition until the entry fee has been received.
PLEASE NOTE: Proof of posting does not mean proof of delivery.
Once an entry has been submitted and the fee paid please do not contact the competition secretary unless the piece you submitted has been accepted for publication elsewhere or placed in another competition prior to 30 November 2022, which would automatically disqualify it.
Rules of Entry
1. There will be five categories: open poetry; open short stories; open flash fiction; poetry or flash fiction in Scottish Gaelic; poetry or flash fiction in Scots. Entrants may submit an unlimited number of entries in each category provided they are accompanied by the correct entry fee. The same poem or piece of flash fiction may be entered for the Scots competition and for the appropriate category of the open competition, provided that it is accompanied by the correct entry fee. The same poem or piece of flash fiction may be entered for the Scottish Gaelic competition and in its English form (if translated by the entrant) for the appropriate category of the open competition, provided that it is accompanied by the correct entry fee. In both cases the open competition category selected counts as a separate category.
See 17 below for fee structure which is the same across all categories
2. No entrant may receive more than one prize in each category.
3. Entry is open: you do not have to be a member of the Federation of Writers (Scotland).
4. In the poetry category you may submit an unlimited number of entries. No poem should exceed forty lines in length excluding the title. Please indicate the number of lines at the end of the poem.
5. In the short story category you may submit an unlimited number of stories not exceeding 2000 words in length. Any story submitted in this category which is less than 501 words in length will automatically be transferred to the Flash Fiction category for judging. The fee will not be affected since the fees are now the same for both categories. Please indicate the word count at the end of the story.
6. In the flash fiction category you may submit an unlimited number of pieces not exceeding 500 words in length. Please indicate the word count at the end of the story.
7. In the Scottish Gaelic category you may submit an unlimited number of poems and/or flash fiction. No poem should exceed forty lines in length excluding the title. Please indicate the number of lines at the end of the poem. No flash fiction story should exceed 500 words in length. Please indicate the word count at the end of the piece.
8. In the Scots category you may submit an unlimited number of poems and/or flash fiction. No poem should exceed forty lines in length excluding the title. Please indicate the number of lines at the end of the poem. No flash fiction story should exceed 500 words in length. Please indicate the word count at the end of the piece.
9. Work submitted must be in English, Scots or Scottish Gaelic and must be your own work (no translations of others' work or poems which are 'erasures' of another's text).
10. No work submitted should have been previously published/broadcast/e-published or posted on-line in any form.
11. Entries must be typewritten, double-spaced (single-spacing is acceptable for poems) on one side only of A4 paper using at least a 12pt font and, if sent by email, sent as a Word document. Please do not send in any other format. Please number each page. No name or other mark which could identify the author should appear on any page of the entry but you should instead use a reference number (Paypal, cheque or postal order) which should appear on each page. Your entry should be accompanied by a cover sheet either attached as a separate document or in the body of the email, not in the submitted entry itself. Make sure you include your name, address and email address, the category or categories entered, the number and title(s) of entries, the total fee due and the Paypal transaction number or the cheque number (please also include this in the heading of your email if sending by email, see 19 below).
12. If you are sending your entry by post please use a paperclip to secure pages NOT a staple and send two copies of each entry.
13. Entries will not be returned so please keep a copy of your entry.
14. No alteration can be made to an entry once submitted.
15. The judges’ decision is final. The judges cannot enter into any correspondence regarding entries. The organisers reserve the right to withhold prizes in any category if the number of entries received is insufficient or if entries received are judged not to meet the required standard.
16. Closing date for the competition is midnight on 13 October 2022.
17. Entry fee is £4 for first entry in any one category, £8 for two entries in any one category, £10 for three entries in any one category, £3 for each subsequent entry (after the first three) in any one category. See above for the five categories.
18. Failure to comply with the above rules or to pay the appropriate entry fee will result in automatic disqualification.
19. Successful entrants will be notified by 30 November If you have not heard from us by this date your entry will not be among the prizewinners. Full results will be published online after 30 November. Email your entry with a completed cover sheet (see 11 above) as a Word document to momacquarrie@live.com to arrive by midnight on 13 October 2022. Email submission of entries is preferred. Your email subject should read COMPETITION followed by the Paypal, cheque or post order reference number.
Competition Rules
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Competition Judges
Find out about the judges in each category and what they are looking for from entrants. More information, as and when we have it.