Short Story Challenge 2008

Click here to learn more & register for

the Short Story Challenge 2011!

▪ Anyone may compete from anywhere in the world

▪ There are 2 rounds

▪ 1st Round (January 11-19, 2008) : Writers are placed randomly in heats. Each heat is assigned a genre and a subject (ex. comedy : competing lemonade stands or horror : a family reunion).

▪ Writers have 1 week to write an original short story (2,500 words max).

▪ Winners are chosen from the 1st Round to advance to the 2nd round and compete for thousands in cash and prizes.

▪ 2nd Round (March 14-15, 2008) : All of the writers receive the same genre and subject at midnight (EST time) and have just 24 hours to write an original short story.

▪ A panel of judges review the final round stories and winners are chosen!

Congratulations to all of the writers for rising to the challenge and for submitting such unique and inventive stories in both rounds of the competition this year!

1ST ROUND RESULTS:

Click here to view the 1st Round Assignments and Results.

FINAL ROUND RESULTS:

1st Place - 'Raising Awareness' by Adam Zang

SYNOPSIS - A little boy, believing that his parents can see ghosts, searches for ways to see them as well. Through a sales game that his father teaches him, the boy is finally able to see the tragedy in his world.

2nd Place - 'Deliverance Ministry' by Russell Detty

SYNOPSIS - A wayward minister and a young boy with a terrible power sell their services for profit.

3rd Place - 'The Accordion Player' by Victoria LaCorte

SYNOPSIS - A young girl returns to haunt the child trafficker responsible for her death.

4th Place - 'The Best of a Situation' by Anne Sagel

SYNOPSIS - A teenage boy sells candy for his high school fundraiser and bravely approaches the town recluse—-an odd old man with an invisible dog.

5th Place - 'Humean Understanding' by Tom Jubert

SYNOPSIS - In 1748, David Hume’s philosophy rendered the world a contradiction. In 2008, we began to realise how, and why.

6th Place - 'A Haunting Revenge' by Joel Steverson

SYNOPSIS - If you could get even with everyone who ever wronged you by haunting them, would it be worth the price you’d have to pay?

7th Place - 'Booker Brush Business' by Kate Sullivan

SYNOPSIS - Even after his death, Kalil Kalicki can't stop trying to meet his quota. Unfortunately, his ghoulish rotting corpse scares the shit out of everyone he meets - well, almost everyone.

8th Place - 'Like Clockwork' by Benjamin Gould

SYNOPSIS - A young man seeking a summer of no responsibilities discovers that the great beyond may only be as far away as the path to the front door.

9th Place - 'The Card' by E.D. Lindquist

SYNOPSIS - Death goes door to door these days and a pale parade follows behind. Don't forget to use protection!

10th Place - 'The Pocket Watch' by Tiffiny Whitney

SYNOPSIS - A traveling salesman finds fortune in an old pocket watch, only to discover that some things are better left alone.

Honorable Mention - 'Cold Call' by Candace Leigh Coulombe

SYNOPSIS - An optimistic cosmetics saleslady pays a call on a spectral customer. Perhaps they each have just what the other needs.

Honorable Mention - 'Dreams of the Damned' by Paige Varney

SYNOPSIS - A man moves into a boarding house murderous knife salesman used to live. His dreams soon lead him to fall under the murderer’s influence.

Honorable Mention - 'Lindsey Wagner's Saleswoman's Bible' by Christopher Hutt

SYNOPSIS - In the world of competitive reality, every saleswoman needs her edge. Wendy Baker applies the lessons of her favorite author on the subject to a property with a sinister problem.

Honorable Mention - 'Pygmalion's Antique Shop' by John Post

SYNOPSIS - Jeremy Simmons is a collector, a purveyor of all things material. When he enters Pygmalion’s Antique Shop, though, he begins to rethink his view of materials as simply material.

Honorable Mention - 'The Fine Lint' by Jacob Mendelsohn

SYNOPSIS - A widow buys a vacuum cleaner that may be possessed by the spirit of her dead husband. This is not necessarily a good thing.

Registration is now closed. We will have many more writing contests, so make sure to sign up for our mailing list so we can let you know about our next challenge.