Contests

Say Something!

The Say Something! contest is for short fiction that makes a point. While we encourage literary techniques, we also welcome stories that fit squarely in the mainstream. A good Say Something! story can reflect any genre. If you want to write about a vampire, that’s fine—just make it about more than whether or not he gets his nightly blood. Maybe you show how he’s like the rest of us in so many ways, how we all act a bit vampire from time to time, how vampires face prejudice… The possibilities are limitless, but potentially wondrous and enlightening. Show us how you see the world, or how you think the rest of us should. Shine a light on the best in people—or the worst. Let your story explain something we should all understand but maybe don’t take the time to notice.

Show us you’re more than a good writer; you’re a writer with something important to say. Then grab our attention and don’t let go until you’ve had your say.

The best of the best will earn a spot in Fresh Ink Group Short Story Showcase #2, exposure for you and your other works, a way to promote all your writing to a wider audience.

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Mini Memoir!

The Mini Memoir! contest is exclusively for TRUE anecdotes that explain the meanings we can all find in them. Funny or saddening, serious or whimsical, each essay needs to include a bit of interesting real-life happening mixed with what the writer wants us to learn from it. The meaning can be stated outright, or subtly woven in. It can be stated up front, revealed in stages, or summed up at the end. Tell the story your way. Just grab our attention, make us say aha, and make your point.

The best of the best will earn a spot in Fresh Ink Group anthology. We hope to devote an entire book to just mini memoirs, or we might mix them with a compelling collection of fiction. In either case, you can expect exposure for your other work and yourself, a way to promote all your writing to a wider audience.

Submission Guidelines

• Fresh Ink Group writing contests charge no entry fee and pay no cash prizes.
• Submission grants the non-exclusive perpetual right for Fresh Ink Group to publish the material and to use the material in promotion. The author retains all copyright and is free to submit and/or publish elsewhere. Any use of the material by Fresh Ink Group will be credited to the author.
• The person submitting confirms that she or he is the author, and that the material is not encumbered by assignment of rights elsewhere. If an image accompanies the submission, the author must own the rights to that image.
• Authors under the 18 may submit only with guardian permission disclosed on the entry form.
• Each short may be submitted only once, in one contest, in one category.
• Fresh Ink Group accepts and supports a wide range of material and viewpoints, but we are not likely to select hard-core porn, direct advocacy of political or other causes, and anything that seeks to incite violence, hatred, or discrimination. Tell a story; don’t spew a rant.
• We are flexible about length, but below 500 words stories tend to be too thin, and at the 5,000 to 6,000-word range we start weighing the benefits of fitting several shorter stories into the available space.
• You’ll receive email confirmation of your submission. Please allow us significant time for judging. We do this because we love to discover new voices and revisit old friends, but it takes us a while to explore so many entries. You worked hard on your material. We respect that by considering it thoroughly.
• If you don’t win a spot this time, don’t be discouraged. We’re putting together a mix of what we think fits each collection. We have to let a lot of excellent material get away. Keep looking until you find the right place for yours, then try us again with something else. Enjoy the write!

Discover 42 Fresh Ink Group winning entries and their most-impressive authors in Short Story Showcase #1.

Linda Wei

(British Columbia, Canada)

Historical

Jessica Scaggs

(Georgia, USA)

Suspense

Amy Turk

(Ohio, USA)

Romance

Dan Dumitru

(New Jersey, USA)

Science Fiction

C.F. Boehlke

(Indiana, USA)

Short Fiction

Talya Tate Boerner

(Texas, USA)

Historical

McKenzie Rae Swenson

(Minnesota, USA)

Suspense

Adithya Bandari

(Datthagiri Colony, Allipur, Zaheerabad, Madak)

Say Something

Holly Riordan

(New York, USA)

Romance

Anna Cates

(Ohio, USA)

Science Fiction

Jasper Grawl

(Tokyo, Japan)

Humor

L.T. Gathings

(Mississipi, USA)

Crimefighter

Maynard

(Oregon, USA)

Regional

Briar Falgoust

(Louisiana, USA)

Suspense

Larry Hunter

(North Carolina, USA)

Regional

Holly Riordan

(New York, USA)

Crimefighter

Lyndsey Werner

(California, USA)

Science Fiction

Anna Cates & Geoff Porter

(Ohio/Ohio, USA)

Fantasy

Priscilla Ng

(California, USA)

Short Fiction

Mikayla Rivera

(Idaho, USA)

Fantasy

Jeptha Storm

(California, USA)

Crimefighter

Kelly Marino

(New York, USA)

Humor

Ruby Fink

(California, USA)

Fantasy

Jill Clark

(Florida, USA)

Regional

Holly Riordan

(New York, USA)

Fantasy

Eli Hopkins

(Oregon, USA) Humor

A.H. Furlong

(Arizona, USA)

Zombies, Vampires, Lycans, and More

Thomas Joseph Cienki

(Massachusetts, USA)

Say Something

Beem Weeks

(Michigan, USA)

Humor

Anna Midkiff

(Texas, USA)

Zombies, Vampires, Lycans, and More

Nicole Conway

(Georgia, USA)

Short Fiction

Grace Lin

(California, USA)

Historical

Mark Leigh

(Minnesota, USA)

Science Fiction

Joyce E.S. Pyka

(Illinois, USA)

Historical

Enter now to join this list of esteemed Fresh Ink Group winners!