Rules

1. Closing date for receipt of entries is 31st March 2012 at midnight BST.

2. Entrants must be over 16 years old.

3. The maximum length of submissions is 3,000 words. There is no minimum length. Stories can be on any theme or subject and are welcome in any style whether it be graphic, verse or genre-based (Crime, Science Fiction, Fantasy, Historical, Romance, Children's etc..) .

4. Entries can be made online or by post. There is no geographical restriction on entry- the Bristol Short Story Prize is open to everyone, whether they are based in the UK or outside the UK. All entries should be in English. Postal entries will only be accepted as printed typescripts. There are no specific formatting requirements - font type, font size, line spacing etc.. Writers may format their work in the way they feel is most appropriate. Please send postal entry/entries to : Bristol Short Story Prize, Unit 5.16, Paintworks, Bath Road Bristol BS4 3EH

5. Authors may enter as many stories as they like. There is a fee of £7.00 for each story submitted. Payment for online entries should be made via the website. Payment for postal entries should be made by cheque. Cheque payments must be in pounds sterling and cheques should be made payable to ‘Bristol Short Story Prize Ltd.’. Each postal submission must be accompanied by an entry form.

6. Entries will not be returned. Please keep a copy. No corrections or alterations can be made after receipt.

7. Entries must be entirely the work of the entrant and must never have been previously published, in print or online (including websites, blogs, social network sites), or broadcast or been commended, longlisted or shortlisted in another writing competition.  Any entry found to have been plagiarised will be disqualified. Simultaneous submissions are welcome - but please let us know as soon as possible if a story is to be published elsewhere or has won a prize or been longlisted or shortlisted in another writing competition.

8. Entries will be read and judged anonymously; entrants names should only appear on the entry form and not anywhere on their stories/manuscripts. The stories/manuscripts must be free of all personal information about the author. This includes age and address.

9. If you require acknowledgement of receipt of your postal entry then please enclose a stamped addressed postcard marked ACKNOWLEDGEMENT. Online entries will be acknowledged by email.

10. All entrants must agree to have their work published in the Bristol Short Story Prize Anthology Volume 5, in both print and ebook formats, should they be one of the authors of the 20 shortlisted stories. Authors will retain worldwide copyright on their work (including film and dramatic rights) but Bristol Short Story Prize has first publication rights to publish the 20 shortlisted stories in the Bristol Short Story Prize Anthology Volume 5, in both print and ebook formats. All entrants must, also, agree to have their story published in Bristol Review of Books magazine and Venue magazine if their story wins the 2012 Bristol Short Story Prize.

11. Each of the shortlisted authors will receive 2 free copies of the print version of Bristol Short Story Prize Anthology Volume 5 and will be able to purchase further copies at a discount of 50%. Any profit from the sale of the BSSP Anthology Vol. 5  will go towards developing ShortStoryVille, our short story festival, our schools' projects and funding help for the Bristol Review of Books.

12. No competitor may win more than one prize. Entries will be read by a panel of professional publishers, reviewers and published writers. They will select a longlist of 40 for the named judging panel. The judging panel will select the 20 stories to be published in the Bristol Short Story Prize Anthology Volume 5 and the top 3 prize winning stories. The judges decision is final and no individual correspondence will be entered into. Judges or readers are unable to comment on individual entries.

13. Prizes for 2012 are: 1st-£1000 plus £150 Waterstone’s Gift Card, 2nd -£700 plus £100 Waterstone’s Gift Card, 3rd -£400 plus £100 Waterstone’s Gift Card. Each of the 17 remaining shortlisted finalists will receive a cheque for £100.

14. Prizes will be awarded on 14th July 2012 and will be sent to any of the 20 finalists who are unable to attend the awards ceremony. Entrants will not be contacted individually about the competition results unless they are selected for the shortlist. The 2012 longlist and shortlist will be posted on the BSSP website. The longlist will be posted on the BSSP website towards the end of May 2012 and the shortlist will be posted on the BSSP website by June 15th. The list of prize-winners will be displayed on the website within one week after the awards ceremony.

15. Any entrant wishing to withdraw a story from the competition before the closing date of midnight (BST) March 31st 2012 will receive a full refund. Please contact us by email. We will not be able to refund any withdrawn stories after the closing date of midnight (BST) March 31st 2012.

16. Entry implies an acceptance of all the Bristol Short Story Prize rules. Entries that fail to comply with the entry rules and requirements will be disqualified.