Writing Contest

Judging Criteria | Submission Guidelines | Details | Prizes

Law enforcement, fire, military and other emergency services personnel are our American Heroes. Did one of your parents, a sibling, a friend or even an anonymous American Hero touch your life? Who is your American Hero and what is their story? American Heroes Press is looking for the best stories about our heroes. You don't have to be a member of the law enforcement, fire, military or emergency services to enter. You simply need to share your story concerning these unique individuals – whether funny, compelling or truly life-altering.

Judging Criteria

Submissions will be judged on the following criteria:

  • Originality
  • Story Development
  • Quality of Writing
  • Ability to Engage the Reader
  • Adherence to Submission Guidelines (including length limitations)

Submission Guidelines: How to Enter

Please review the contest rules and guidelines in full before submitting your entry!

  • Story must be focused on or about a current or retired member of law enforcement, fire service, U.S. military or other emergency services personnel.
  • Up to three stories per author are permitted per entrant. If more than three stories are submitted, all entries by said writer will be disqualified. If submitting more than one entry, still send only one e-mail, with multiple attachments.
  • Here's how to enter. Please follow the additional instructions below:
    • Clearly list your name as a header on each page of your submission.
    • In the subject line of the e-mail, type "American Hero Short Story Contest".
    • In the body of the e-mail, include:
      • Your full name
      • Physical mailing address (no P.O. Box, please)
      • Phone number
      • E-mail address
      • Title of your submission(s)
    • Each entry must be double-spaced, in Times New Roman, with a maximum length of 5,000 words. You may enter a maximum of three short stories.
    • If you submit more than one story, each story should be separated and saved as its own, individual Microsoft Word document.
    • Include, as a separate attachment, a 100-word or less biography about the yourself, the author of the story.
    • American Heroes Press will only accept your first e-mail with submissions. Be certain the e-mail you initially submit is your final draft. All subsequent e-mails from an individual with revisions or additional submissions will be ignored, and may lead to disqualification.

    Deadlines – The contest launches Nov. 3, 2008. We will accept submissions through Jan. 31, 2009. Winners will be announced April 1, 2009.

Contest Details

    All literature is by nature unique and individual. We are supportive of all forms of expression; however, for this contest, we ask that you adhere to these terms:

    • The entry must be an original, unpublished work written by you, the entrant.
    • There are no entry fees, no subsidy payments and no purchases of any kind required to enter and/or win the contest.
    • There are no previous publishing requirements required to enter the contest.
    • Each writer retains the copyright to his or her work. However, by entering the contest the writer grants American Heroes Press first run serial printed and electronic rights to the story.
    • Fifteen of the finalists' stories will be included in an anthology published through American Heroes Press. All non-finalists will be eligible to receive a free electronic copy of the finished collection. The finalists with work included in the anthology will receive a printed-and-bound copy of the finished book at no cost.
    • American Heroes Press is under no obligation to publish every short story that is entered and can disqualify an entry at any time for any reason.
    • The contestant is under no obligation whatsoever to purchase a copy of the publication in which his or her story may appear.
    • Due to formatting restrictions within the finished collection, American Heroes Press retains the right to reformat the story for size and placement. Moreover, American Heroes Press reserves the right to make reasonable edits to the work. Though we will make every effort to preserve section breaks and forms, we will no be able to guarantee retention of format from the writer's original file.

All prize winners will be notified via e-mail. It is the responsibility of the entrant to ensure their e-mail address is correct and current.

Note: While we respect the right of individuals to freely express themselves in literature, we do not accept prose that is explicitly offensive. Therefore, we ask that writers who submit their work to our contest be considerate of this policy.

Prizes

Grand Prize — One Grand-Prize-winning story will be selected. The author of the story will receive the following prizes:

  • Choice of $200 cash, or $250 credit toward an American Heroes Publishing package
  • Featured spot for his/her Grand-Prize winning story in the contest anthology
  • Printed and bound copy of the finished anthology

Runner-Up — One Runner-Up-winning story will be selected. The author of the story will receive the following prizes:

  • Choice of $100 cash, or $150 credit toward an American Heroes Publishing package
  • Featured spot for his/her Runner-Up winning story in the contest anthology
  • Printed and bound copy of the finished anthology

Finalists — Fifteen Finalist stories will be selected. Each finalist author will receive the following prizes:

  • Inclusion of his/her winning story in the contest anthology
  • Printed and bound copy of the finished anthology

Participants — All participants will be eligible to receive the following:

  • Electronic copy of the finished anthology

All prize winners will be notified via e-mail. It is the responsibility of the entrant to ensure their e-mail address is correct and current.

Grand-prize, runner-up and finalist winners will receive their print copy of the anthology via mail. It is the responsibility of the entrant to ensure their mailing address is correct and current.

We welcome your submissions and wish you the best of luck!

 

Back to Top