fantasy short story Writing challenge
Join our fall challenge starting November 6th, 2024
We are giving away over $3,500 in cash prizes!
Registration Fee: $38
REGISTRATION IS CLOSED
what is a writing challenge?
A writing challenge is as a simple as that: it’s meant to challenge you in your writing. That means that you’ll have seven days to write a brand new short story that goes along with the theme of the challenge. All we will give you are a couple prompts & elements that you’ll need to include in your story, and the rest is up to you!
Our writing challenges are made specifically for fantasy writers of all skill-levels and expertise. This way, you get to participate in a challenge where you can write what you love to write the most: fantastical, magical worlds full of mythical creatures, enemies-to-lovers, and so much more.
Who is this for?
This is for you if:
You are over 18 and love reading fantasy novels, and have also been curious about writing one
Or maybe you have already started dabbling in writing fantasy and are obsessed
Perhaps you are looking for something to push you outside your writing comfort zone, to write about something that you don’t normally write about
Maybe you’re a writing challenge addict, but you’re tired of getting drama and political satire prompts and just want to write fantasy
No matter where you are at in your writing journey, these challenges will help you grow as a writer, refine your craft, and challenge yourself to expand your scope
What is the theme?
We’re so glad you asked….
The theme of this challenge is
cozy
Fantasy
Think
Fireside chats, tea, cauldrons, woodland creatures, warm, big hearths, taverns, soups and stews, little adventures
How does it work?
1) Register. Once you register, you’ll receive a confirmation email. If you don’t see the email, make sure to check your spam folder. But don’t start writing just yet!
2) Challenge Start! At the time of the challenge start, you’ll receive an email with specific instructions including writing prompts, elements that must be included in the story, and uploading instructions.
3) Let your imagination run wild! This is your time to shine. To let your creativity have its way with you. To see what you can create in just 7 days with specific prompts.
4) Submit. After 7 days, it will be time to submit your story of 2,000 words or less. Look back to that email you received at the start of the challenge for your submission link.
5) Wait for results. Some would say this is the hardest part. Results will be announced approximately 3 months after the completion of the challenge.
Registration closes:
Wednesday, Nov 6th, 2024 @ 8:00 pm EST
Challenge starts:
Wednesday, Nov 6th 2024 @ 9:00 pm EST
Challenge ends:
Wednesday, Nov 13th, 2024 @ 9:00 pm EST
Results will be announced by:
Mid February
MARK YOUR CALENDAR
Prizes
first place
$1,800 cash prizE
Story published on the Forest & Fawn website.
Second place
$900 cash prizE
Story published on the Forest & Fawn website.
Third place
$400 cash prizE
Story published on the Forest & Fawn website.
4th, 5th, & 6th place
$150 cash prizE
Story published on the Forest & Fawn website.
7th, 8th, 9th, & 10th place
$75 cash prizE
Meet the Review Panel
-
Alexandra Neri
Alexandra (or Alli) is the other half of Forest & Fawn. She has a background in creative non-fiction writing, but a few years ago decided to dabble in fantasy and hasn’t looked back yet. Her first novelette, Woven, is published in an anthology by Azala Press callled Winter’s Enchantment. Alli is so excited to be building a community of fantasy writers here at Forest & Fawn.
-
Sarah Lockwood
Sarah (aka half of Forest & Fawn) is a booktoker/bookstagrammer who creates content on her favorite fantasy reads, womanhood, queerness, ane more. Her goal is to share her unfiltered, authentic self through her platform and build a community where people can laugh, relate to one another, and talk about their favorite things together.
Sarah also runs an online community called Slumber Party where fantasy readers, swifties, and more can connect and make friends with each other from all over the world, as well as a book club for fantasy readers called the Book Fairies Book Club.
-
Nina Haines
Nina Haines is a writer, freelance marketer & content creator, and the founder of the sapphic book club Sapph-Lit. With over seven years of experience in the influencer marketing industry, she has worked on the brand teams of Papier, Curology, Supergoop!, Package Free, amika, and Unbound. She is based in Brooklyn, New York and is currently working on her debut novel.
-
Gabriella Guava
Gabriella Guava (who most people call Gabi) is a book-lover, content creator, and photographer from Chicago. She hosts a virtual romantasy book club with over 500 members, makes silly videos, and talks about her decision to leave teaching for a more creative career.
To learn more or contact Gabi, visit https://www.gabriellaguava.com/
-
Nicole - Fantasy Fangirls Podcast
Nicole is one of the hosts of the popular bookish podcast, Fantasy Fangirls.
Nicole is the younger sister and romantic of the Fantasy Fangirls! After 5 years of entrepreneurship (and lots of non-fiction to go along with it), she picked up a random book, ACOTAR and the analyst part of her brain immediately devoted itself from neuroscience/psychology to romantasy. And as a result, she feels more like herself than ever before.
-
Lexi - Fantasy Fangirls Podcast
Lexi is the other host for the Fantasy Fangirls Podcast!
Lexi was climbing the corporate ladder in B2B tech marketing before she became a mom. Then her identity was wrapped up in motherhood for several years, and this rediscovered love for fantasy reading (plus the catapult into content creation) has largely helped her find herself outside of being a mom.
She has always loved writing and is the fantasy lore nerd of the two who specializes in analyzing world-building, walking through timelines, and understanding the cultures and politics that make up these stories.
-
You'll gain access to a private facebook group where you can connect to all the other writers who are participating in the challenge. Find your next critique partner(s) or simply bounce ideas off one another!
-
We are giving over $1,800 in cash prizes!
-
We know how valuable feedback is when you're a writer, so we will be providing you with feedback within several months after winners are announced!
-
The top 3 stories will have their stories published on the Forest & Fawn website (aka, a place where a lot of fantasy readers frequent)!
-
Whether you are already a seasoned fantasy writer or you've never written a single thing, this challenge is meant to push you into the unknown, try something new, and stretch your creativity muscle.
Why join?
Let's get writing
Dream it
Let's get writing Dream it
Registration Price:
$38 per entry
***Only 1 entry per writer per challenge allowed
REgistration FAQs
-
Online! You can write from the comfort of your own home or your favorite coffee shop. As long as you turn in your submission on time, it doesn’t matter where you do the rest!
-
Heck no! This challenge is exactly that: a challenge. That means that no matter what level of writing you at currently at, participating in this challenge will only help you get better! This challenge is for seasoned writers and newcomers alike!
-
You must be over 18 to participate.
-
YES! Forest & Fawn reserves the right to publish the story on the website, but the rights to the story remain yours.
-
Yes!
-
Yes!
-
Yes! Forest & Fawn is not responsible for translating your story into English. You may, however, use phrases or quotes in other languages throughout the story.
-
We will refund the cost of your ticket minus the cost of processing fees up to 72 hours before the challenge start time. After that time, tickets will be non-refundable, no exceptions.
-
The stories will go through 2 rounds of preliminary judging based on a consistent rubric with various criteria. The top stories from the preliminary rounds of judging will go on to be read by our review panel, which you find listed above.
-
Yes, international participants are welcome! Just make sure to adjust the time zone so you get your assignment in on time.
-
We have a rich grading system that calculates based on the following elements:
How well a story read as a comprehensive, standalone short story
How strong was the theme is in the story
How creatively the story utilized the theme and prompts
Overall use of imagery
Overall character development
How cohesive the story felt
How the pacing was
How the world building was
Whether there was an appropriate amount of worldbuilding
Whether or not the story read like an edited piece
Whether or not the story felt unique
How enjoyable and easy to following along the writing style was
The use of prose and whether it enhanced or detracted from the story
How likely we would be to recommend this story to a friend in the target audience
Whether or not the story included elements of the fantasy genre
Whether or not the story followed the formatting guidelines
Whether or not the story included all of the required prompts
Whether or not the story sent some kind of message to the readers
writing FAQs
-
Your story should be a maximum of 2,000 words. There is no minimum. This does not include the title page/synopsis.
-
Your file should be saved as a pdf (Portable Document Format).
The name of your file should be the title of your short story. DO NOT include your name in the file name. This is to ensure that we keep submissions anonymous for our readers. For example, if the title of your story is “Wicked,” your file should look like this: wicked.pdf.
-
At the start of the challenge, you’ll receive an email that will include all of the instructions for submission. There will be a link to a form in Submittable where you will be able to submit your story.
-
No, all submissions must be original to this challenge! That is how we keep the challenge fair for everyone participating.
-
Stories should be written in 12 pt font. Acceptable fonts are: Times New Roman, Garamond, Courier, or New Courier.
-
No. At the start of the challenge, you’ll receive an email with specific prompts and elements that you’ll need to include in your story. So, if you start writing before receiving those instructions, you’ll likely need to start all over anyway!
-
Yes, but it needs to be a story that was written specifically for this challenge, and it needs to read as a stand alone story. An excerpt from a larger work will be disqualified.
-
Yes, you may submit a retelling. Fanfics, however, will not be accepted and will be disqualified.
