JANUARY 2008
Short story: Superstition
Perhaps your character avoids walking under ladders, never goes out on Friday 13th, or wouldn’t open an umbrella indoors... Whatever superstitions you write about, you need to explore how they affect your characters.

Poetry: Paradise today
John Milton was born in 1608. We mark his 400th anniversary with a competition to explore what we see as ‘paradise’ in today’s world.

FEBRUARY 2008
Short story: Ghost story
Your ghost has to be a thoroughly modern ghost that manifests itself in our 21st century world – so for your setting, your ghost might haunt a block of flats, a housing estate or even an airport...

Poetry: Cautionary Tale
100 years ago, Hilaire Belloc published his Cautionary Tales for Children. You are invited to write a ‘cautionary tale’ in rhyming couplets about someone whose bad character trait lands them in trouble.

MARCH 2008
Short story: Writing for Children
A topical theme – bullying. We are looking for stories with a positive message for children who may find themselves in that situation.

APRIL 2008
Short story: Nightmares
Maybe your hero or heroine sees their worst nightmares come true – or they face up to their problems and banish their nightmares forever.

Poetry: Mini-competition
The challenge to your rhyming skills is to write an eight-line rhyming poem in which line two ends with the word ‘page’ and line four ends with the word ‘might’.

MAY 2008
Short story: Teen love
Teen love may be first love but that’s not always the case... It can be a time of emotional crisis. Is the love made to last or is it just a passing phase?

Poetry: Terza rima
Once you have mastered this poetic form, it is surprisingly logical and simple – as well as enjoyable. In the same issue you will find a how-to feature from expert Alison Chisholm explaining how to write a winning terza rima.

JUNE 2008
Short story: Package holidays
Having your arrangements made for you can be idyllic – or it can all go wrong. Your story might begin with the holiday preparations, the experience abroad or the repercussions when your characters return home.

JULY 2008
Short story: Photo story
For our Annual Photo Story competition, we show you a photograph and invite you to write the story it inspires. This year’s photo
is of a bar and cafe. Who meets there and what part does it play in their lives?

Poetry: Short poems
Your poem can be on any theme, rhymed or unrhymed but it must not exceed twelve lines.

AUGUST 2008
Short story: Walking the dog
Every morning and evening, 48-year old Emily takes her dog for a walk and things are generally pretty uneventful. Your story, however, will be a dramatic take on that everyday event.

Poetry: Mini competition
Your poem for this competition, in no more than eight lines, is an epitaph... for a cat.

SEPTEMBER 2008
Short story: Addiction
Who is addicted to what is up to you. Can they be cured? Does their problem lead to crime? It’s up to you.

OCTOBER 2008
Short story: The office party
Christmas is coming and the round of office parties will soon be underway. Does someone do (or say) something they might regret in the cold light of day?

Poetry: Humour
There is no set theme but the main requirement is that you should bring a smile to the judges’ faces.

NOVEMBER 2008
Short story: Window dresser
Your heroine works as a window dresser in her local department store. Her window attracts plenty of attention – but why?

Poetry: Cinquain
The cinquain is a five-line stanza with a set number of syllables per line. To help you along, there will be a how-to article in this
month’s magazine from expert and judge Alison Chisholm.

DECEMBER 2008
Short story: Seance
You can spin your story around what happens at a seance or what happens afterwards – or simply explore your character’s attitude to the whole subject.
For full details (including opening and closing dates) and entry forms, see the appropriate issue of Writing Magazine

Competition details on these pages are correct at the time of this Competition Guide going to press but may be subject to last-minute changes. Notices of any changes will be given in Writing Magazine.

Subscribe to Writing Magazine to ensure that you regularly receive each issue.

For Writers' News competitions click here...