How do I submit?
Submission details are available on the relevant competition page. Submission links are typically made available about six weeks before the deadline.
Does my story have to be unpublished?
We are looking for unpublished stories BUT it depends: if you have a story that has been published, but with a low distribution and you plan to make several adaptations to fit the criteria for the competition then we may accept it – email greenstories@soton.ac.uk with details so we can make a decision.
Who will be the judges?
The judges vary by the competition format. The process is that entries are screened for quality and sustainability content by someone with professional or academic experience in in Creative Writing relevant to that format and rated from 1-5. Those that are rated 4 or 5 are then sent to a team of volunteer readers and the top ten are reviewed by a panel of judges to decide upon the shortlist see http://www.greenstories.org.uk/judges/.
What is the aim of the competition?
Our mission is to create a cultural body of work that both entertains and informs about green solutions, inspires green behaviour and raises awareness of the necessary transformations towards a sustainable economy.
What are the criteria for winning?
There are two key priorities:
- story telling ability – the story should be engaging and
- incorporate green solutions e.g. by
- showcasing what a green/sustainable society might look like and/or how we might get there.
- smuggling green solutions into a story aimed at mainstream readers – this can be quite subtle.
- using positive role models
Just as some books/films product place products, we aim to ‘product place’ sustainable attitudes behaviours products and policies. The story doesn’t have to be specifically about climate change or catastrophic shortages, it can be any kind of genre – rom com, crime drama, legal drama, children’s book, sci fi etc. as long as it showcases sustainable technologies, practices, products or ideas in the background. Or another acceptable approach could be to focus on characters. Currently characters in fiction who are green/ethical are often portrayed as priggish or aggressive, we’d like to see attractive characters behaving in sustainable ways.
For the novel competition do I have to purchase a book?
The Green stories project is not a commercial venture, but rather a community of writers and shared knowledge about how to effectively communicate climate solutions and inspire hope and action using fiction. We ask entrants to purchase a book partly to ensure they can see the difference between a solution-focused approach and a story that just raises awareness of the climate crisis. We rely on volunteer judges and don’t want to waste their time reading entries that don’t meet the criteria. Also, we want to use this platform to promote books that have emerged from the green stories project. If you win, your book will hopefully appear on the suggested list in future years! However, for those who can’t afford the discounted price of £2.99, there is an option to access a free green stories sample instead. When you submit you will be asked questions about what you read, and your answers inform our choice of which stories to keep in future and also help authors to understand what works well and what doesn’t.
Who counts as a student?
Some of our competitions include prizes for under 18s and a prize for higher education students (18-25). We will include MAs and PhDs and those still in school or college as students.
Can students and < 18 will top prize?
Yes. Some of our competitions include prizes for under 18s and a prize for higher education students (18-25). But if a student or under 18 entry is the best overall then it will win first prize regardless if the entry is from a student and the student prize will go to the next best student entry.
Can anyone submit?
Yes, we will accept submissions from anyone in any country as long as they are in English, haven’t been published before and meet the criteria i.e. includes sustainable solutions/characters in the backdrop of a mainstream story or offers a positive vision of what a sustainable society might look like.
Can I submit to more than one format, or more than one entry?
Most competitions allow up to two submissions, but we have limited judges so make sure each submission is of good quality and meets the criteria i.e. either includes sustainable solutions/characters in the backdrop of a mainstream story or offers a positive vision of what a sustainable society might look like.
Do I have to have the whole novel/series written?
We may only ask for an extract (see competition guidelines) but it’s a good idea to have the rest written as we will probably ask for the whole thing when making decisions about the finalists.
Copyright
Copyright remains with the author for the purposes of the competition. But if your submission is a winner and forwarded onto publishers/production companies, they will communicate with you direct about copyright terms etc.
Any Other Questions?
Just contact us.
