THE SEÁN Ó FAOLÁIN SHORT
STORY COMPETITION
The 8th Annual Seán Ó Faoláin Short Story Competition 2010
Seán Ó Faoláin Short Story Award Winner 2008 Julia van Middlesworth and Frank O'Connor International Short Story Award 2008 Winner Jhumpa Lahiri.Photo ©2009 John Minihan.
First Prize: €1,500 (approx US $2000) and publication in the literary journal Southword.
Second Prize: €500 (approx US $650) and publication in Southword.
Four other shortlisted entries will be selected for publication in Southword and receive a fee of €120 (approx USD $150).
The Seán Ó Faoláin Short Story Competition is an annual short story competition dedicated to one of Ireland’s most accomplished story writers and theorists, sponsored by the Munster Literature Centre.
Judge: For 2010 Short Review founder and editor Tania Hershman.
Tania Hershman, a former science journalist, is the author of The White Road and Other Stories, (Salt Modern Fiction, 2008) which was commended by the judges of the 2009 Orange Award for New Writers. Her award-winning short stories, one of which has recently been nominated for a Pushcart Prize, have been widely published in print and online and broadcast on BBC Radio 4. Tania is founder and editor of The Short Review, a journal dedicated to reviewing short story collections. Her website is www.taniahershman.com and she blogs at TaniaWrites www.titaniawrites.blogspot.com.
SUBMISSION GUIDELINES1. The competition is open to original, unpublished short stories in the English language of 3,000 words or fewer. The story can be on any subject, in any style, by a writer of any nationality, living anywhere in the world. Unfortunately, translated work is not in the scope of this competition.
2. Judging for this competition is ANONYMOUS. The entrant's name and contact details (address, phone number) must be on a separate piece of paper. Manuscripts cannot be returned. Entries should be typed.
3. Each entry must be accompanied by an entry fee of €15, US $20 or £15. You may submit as many entries as you wish. Cheques and money orders must be made payable to THE MUNSTER LITERATURE CENTRE. Paypal link available below for Euro payments. VERY IMPORTANT: We DO NOT accept US Postal Orders as they cannot be redeemed outside of the United States. Pleae do not send cash. No entry form is necessary.
4. Closing date is 31st July 2010. All non-email entries must be postmarked before or on that date (i.e. entries posted before or on the date will be accepted after 31st July provided they are sent via airmail). Entries must be sent to The Seán Ó Faoláin Short Story Competition, The Munster Literature Centre, Frank O'Connor House, 84 Douglas Street, Cork, Ireland (no postal/zipcode).
5. The winners will be announced at the Frank O'Connor International Short Story Festival in Cork in September 2010. The winners will be invited to read their prize-winning stories at the festival.
6. If you require acknowledgement of your entry, you must submit a self-addressed stamped postcard. SASEs for international entries should include money for IRISH stamps. Please do not include SASEs with foreign stamps.
7. The Judge's decision is final. Due to the volume of entries we receive each year, the judge will not be able to reply individually to unsuccessful submissions. However, we will notify all entrants of the longlist via our e-mail newsletter. A shortlist will be posted on our website in September and the winner will be announced at the festival. Shortlistees will be notified individually.
8. It would greatly assist us if you let us know how you heard of the competition (whether through mailshot, word of mouth, advertisements, newspaper, website, etc.) with your entry.
ADDITIONAL SUBMISSION GUIDELINES FOR EMAIL ENTRIESEmail entries should be submitted as follows:
1. Send your entry as a word document (files ending with ".doc"). Please ensure that you do NOT send PDF files or Word files marked '.docx'.
2. Include the story and cover letter as separate documents in the same email.
3. Pay your entry fee through Paypal (see link below). Paypal accepts Mastercard and Visa and guarantees secure transactions. All Paypal payments are in Euro.
4. In the body of the email, list your name, address, short story title and Paypal receipt number. If you have paid using a credit card under a different name, or from a different email address please include this in the body of the email as well.
5. Use the subject header "SOF 2010 Entry".
6. Email submissions to competitions(AT)munsterlit(DOT)ie or by clicking here.
For further information contact The Munster Literature Centre, Frank O'Connor House, 84 Douglas Street, Cork or email the administrator at administrator(AT)munsterlit(DOT)ie.
