Sapiens Plurum Short Fiction Contest (Prize: $1800)

Sapiens Plurum is excited to announce the eighth annual short fiction writing contest “Building Communities in the Face of Climate Change”. 

They invite stories that explore how we can use science and technology to build resilient communities in a rapidly changing world. They are most interested in the ways that science and technology can help us to ride out the coming storms, especially in communities already under stress. Let your imagination run free. They encourage submissions that explore the impacts of climate change in a very expansive sense. A changing climate puts the entire system at risk, creating compounding crises not only for human civilization but for the entire biosphere.

So, they seek stories that explore how communities can evolve to survive and even flourish in a shifting background, not only with sea-level rise, warming temperatures, increased droughts, storms, and wildfires, but also from the by-products of climate change: the increased prevalence of pandemics; biodiversity loss; human and non-human migrations. They encourage stories that explore how we might creatively respond to these threats. Simply put, they are interested in your thoughts, expressed through fiction, around how science and technology can be used to promote positive change in a world where everything is at risk, and nothing is guaranteed.

Winning entries will need all the traditional aspects of good storytelling: strong plots, believable character development, fascinating worlds and interesting settings, all in a form that reflects the Sapiens Plurum Mission Statement. Finally, just a heads-up that upon choosing the winners, they might suggest some light copyediting before posting the stories.

Proper storytelling is crucial in the Sapiens Plurum Short Fiction Contest, learn how to write entertaining stories for your submission.

Submission Guidelines for Sapiens Plurum Short Fiction Contest

• There is no entry fee.
• Authors must be 18 or older to win.
• Writers can be from anywhere in the world.
• Submissions must be the original work of the submitter, 1500-3000 words, in English. STORIES GENERATED BY ALGORITHM, SUCH AS CHATGPT, WILL BE DISCARDED.
• Word count between 1500-3000 words in English.
• You should also ensure to edit your story efficiently.
• The decisions of the judges are final.

How To Enter 

• Save your story, without your name, as a .pdf file. In order to provide an unbiased, anonymous review, please do not include your name on the story itself. You will be required to enter your name and contact details when you submit.
• Visit our Easy Chair submission page for SPSFC 2023 Sapiens Plurum/FLI Short-Fiction Contest, after the contest opening date.
• You will be asked to log in or to register as a new user at Easy Chair.
• Once you have logged in, click “Add submission”. Fill in your name and address and title of the story. Choose any keyword; it is required, but we don’t use it.
• Authors must agree to the Terms and Conditions in order to submit their story.
• Upload the .pdf file containing your story.
• Press SUBMIT to complete your entry.
• Judging will take about 6-8 weeks, depending upon the number of entries. Entrants will be informed by email when winners are posted. 

Prizes 

• 1st – $1,000
• 2nd – $500
• 3rd – $300

Deadline

Submissions open Earth Day, April 22 and close midnight anywhere June 15, 2023.

If interested, be sure to check out previous winning stories on the Sapiens Plurum Website. Good Luck!