» The SWG Short Manuscript Awards Competition

The SWG Short Manuscript Awards competition recognizes literary excellence in works of creative writing by Saskatchewan authors. 

Entries are judged by out-of-province judges who will be named when the winners of the awards are announced in October 2011. As is the practice in these competitions we do not publicize the numbers of entries in any category. As well the out-of-province judges are not revealed until after the awards are announced. 

Copyright for all works remains with the author. No submissions will be published; instead, winners receive a cash prize.

To submit:

1. Entries can be submitted by e-mail. Please email to info@skwriter.com.
2. Entries can also be mailed or dropped off to the Guild office.
3. Non-Members: There is a $10 entry fee for each piece submitted.
   Please send a cheque with your submission.

Rules

1. Entrants must be Saskatchewan residents as of 31 December 2010.

2. Entrants must be 19 years of age or older.

3. This competition is open to both SWG members and non-members.

4. Entrants may not have published a book (or have had a book manuscript accepted for publication) in the category or categories in which they are entering.

5. Entrants may submit one piece for each category for which they are eligible.

6. There is no entry fee for members of the SWG; non-members will pay a fee of $10 per entry (regardless of its length). Your fee must accompany your entry. Make cheques and money orders payable to the Saskatchewan Writers Guild.

7. The word limits for the categories are as follows:

• poetry: maximum 100 lines
• short fiction:  maximum 5,000 words
• literary non-fiction:  maximum 5,000 words
• children's literature (prose or poetry): maximum 5,000 words for prose or 200 lines for poetry

8. Do not send illustrations—they will be discarded.

9. Entries must be original, unpublished material, not entered simultaneously in any other competition nor submitted for publication or broadcast.

10. Entries must be submitted by the author of the piece.

11. Manuscripts will not be returned, so keep a copy of your entry.

12. There is no application form; instead, the entry must be accompanied by a cover letter that includes the following:

• your name and all contact information (including address, home and work numbers, and E-mail address)
• the name of each piece
• the category for which each piece is intended (if this information is missing the administrator will assign the piece to a category) 
• confirmation that the work has not been previously published or broadcast at the time of submission and will not be submitted for publication or broadcast elsewhere until the competition winners have been announced
• confirmation that you have not had a book published (or have had a book manuscript accepted for publication) in the categories you are entering
• confirmation that you were a resident of Saskatchewan as of 31 December 2010
• confirmation that you are 19 years of age or older
  

13. If the writer’s name appears on any page of an entry, it will not be accepted for the competition. All entries will be numbered upon receipt so that they may be judged anonymously. The name of the work may appear on both the cover page and subsequent pages.

14. These guidelines must be followed or submissions will be rejected:

• entries must be in English
• the work must be typed using body-text fonts like Times New Roman, Courier, or Arial (not in display fonts like Gigi or Algerian)
• font size should be 12 point
• entries must be in black ink on 8 ½ x 11-inch white copy bond paper
• the paper must be clean (no smudges, drawings, hand-written corrections, or stamped words)
• prose must be double-spaced; poetry can be double-spaced or single-spaced
• at least a one inch margin on all sides
• entries must be single-sided
• to fasten submissions, use paper clips (including fold-back clips)—avoid staples or any other fastener which goes through the paper (including binders, presentation covers, or coil binding)
• avoid hole punched paper
• multiple-page entries should be numbered sequentially

15. Award amounts in each category will be as follows:

• first prize:  $100
• second prize: $75
• third prize:  $50
• honourable mention: $25

16. Judges may decide not to award a particular prize if they believe no submission merits it.

17. Judges' decisions are final.

18. Submissions must be postmarked by Thursday, June 30, 2011. If you are sending material close to this date, please consider Xpress Post, Priority Post, courier, or special delivery. If you are sending it via courier, make sure you send it to the courier address below, NOT the box number. Late submissions will not be accepted.

For more information, contact the Program Officer at 791-7743 (phone); 565-8554 (fax); or programs@skwriter.com

Mailing Address
Saskatchewan Writers' Guild
Box 3986
Regina SK  S4P 3R9

Courier Or Drop-Off Address
Saskatchewan Writers' Guild
#100, 1150 - 8th Avenue
Regina SK  S4R 1C9