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NOW CLOSED

The Presence Short Story Award
Closed August 31, 2024. See current contests

We have reopened the Presence Award by popular demand to include short stories that highlight ghosts and/or spiritual entities imposing on the natural world. We specifically want unique stories incorporating the cultures, traditions, and/or histories of BIPOC and underrepresented communities. Stories should lean towards psychological terror instead of excessive use of gore. Submissions portal closes August 31, 2024.

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Short stories can be between 1000-5000 words. Top winners receive prizes up to $500 and publication within the Presence collection and the Kinsman Quarterly literary journal. 

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Those eligible should submit an original, unpublished work in English. Selected submissions may be featured in the Kinsman Quarterly, its social media sites, and printed promotions. Copyrights of the individual submissions remain with the authors. Kinsman Avenue Publishing, Inc owns the copyrights to the collection as a unit.  

 

Simultaneous submissions are accepted, however submissions should be withdrawn if accepted elsewhere. To ensure that we are able to publish the unpublished work, winning contestants and finalists are asked to wait a full year after winning announcements before they republish the short stories themselves or with another organization.

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Those Eligible

  • individuals 18 years or older

  • authors of BIPOC and underrepresented communities preferred, but not restrictive

  • must be able to receive payment through Paypal 

 

Contest Guidelines

  • Each entry should be an original, unpublished work by the submitting author, which does not infringe upon the copyrights of another individual or entity. 

  • Submissions must be received by August 31st at 7 p.m. EST.

  • Submissions should feature themes of ghosts and the paranormal

  • Participants may enter more than one submission.

  • Changes to the competition entry cannot be made once a work is submitted. However, a revised version may be resubmitted. In such cases, include the word "revision" in the file name. 

 

Formatting Guidelines (MUST READ) 

  • Submission files must be named by Title_Author's LastFirst Name. Example: "Missing Mary_DoeJohn".

  • All entries must be submitted as an MS Word doc/docx or .pdf file. 

  • All entries must be in Times New Roman, font size 12, double-spaced. 

  • Remove extra space between paragraphs (in MS Word, right-click, select "paragraph", select "don't add space between paragraphs..."

  • Be sure to remove all track changes from edited text. 

  • Entries that do not adhere to guidelines will not be considered. 

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Prizes

  • Grand Prize = $500 cash prize and publication in the Presence collection and Kinsman Quarterly journal

  • 1st Runner Up = $250 cash prize and publication in the Presence collection and Kinsman Quarterly journal

  • 2nd Runner Up = $100 cash prize and publication in the Presence collection and Kinsman Quarterly journal

  • Top 6 Finalists receive a $25 Amazon gift card and publication in the Presence collection and Kinsman Quarterly journal

 

Announcements are scheduled for October 15, 2024. Kinsman Quarterly reserves the right to extend this deadline and announcements for up to 30 days.

Short Story Submission
for the Presence Collection

The following survey provides important details that helps Kinsman Quarterly measure its efforts to provide opportunities to underrepresented authors. 

Ethnic origin. Check all that apply:
Check all that apply:

All contest entrants will be automatically subscribed to our mailing list and free newsletter for updates on winners and upcoming contests. Subscription is free. Your personal information will not be given or sold to an outside party under any circumstance. You may cancel subscription at any time. 

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Entries that do not meet the required criteria will be disqualified without notice. Only one entry can be made per submission form. No alterations can be made to the document or artwork once submissions are received. You may, however, submit a revision in a second form, stating so in the title (example: Lord of the Bears.(revised). Top winners will be published by Kinsman Avenue Publishing Inc. Authors will be notified of acceptance by October 15th,  2024. BE SURE TO TITLE YOUR FILE ACCORDING TO THE GUIDELINES ABOVE. Note that you will be directed to upload your file through Submittable. If you do not have a Submittable account, you may create one in a few easy steps.  

SORRY, THE CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED.

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