Deadline: 31 October 2013
The first annual Wuxia Short Fiction Award is a short story contest aiming to recognize the best English-language wuxia stories. The contest is brought to you by Among the Rivers and Lakes Wuxia Community. You can follow the contest there. New updates will also be posted here.
GUIDELINES:
How long can it be? Up to 30,000 words. 30,000 words might seem long for a short story, but it isn't too long for a wuxia story. Wuxia as a genre tends to run long, the average novel being about 900 pages long. A 30k ceiling leaves plenty of room for the author to tell a well-developed story with interesting characters. However, flash fiction is also accepted. It doesn't matter how short the story is as long as it is good. And if yours comes in at a little over 30,000, that's okay. You can still submit it.
When is the deadline? Submissions are open from January 1, 2013, to October 31, 2013. That's a full ten months to get your story ready for submission. After October 31, a shortlist will be published with the finalist stories, which will be voted on by Among the Rivers and Lakes forum members. The shortlisted stories will be made available on the forum for members to read and vote on.
Do I have to be a forum member to enter the contest? No. Anyone can submit a story for the contest. However, only registered members of the Among the Rivers and Lakes forum will be able to vote for the winner from the finalists on the shortlist. Of course, anyone can register to become a member of the forum.
May I submit something I've already published elsewhere? Yes. Since this is the first year of the Wuxia Short Fiction Award, we'll be accepting any wuxia stories that currently exist, as well as any written specifically for this contest. So if your story has never been published before, you can submit it. Likewise, if your story has been published somewhere already, you can still submit it. Just keep in mind that by submitting a story for the contest, you agree to have your story made available for forum members to read so that they can vote on it, if your story makes the shortlist. Only shortlisted stories will be made availabe for forum members to read and vote on.
How many stories may I submit? As many as you like. There is no limit to the number of stories an author may submit, at least not for this first year of the contest. Since the contest is open to all currently-existing wuxia short fiction, it only makes sense to allow an author to submit more than one story. But make sure they all adhere to the guidelines.
What is the prize for winning this contest? To be determined. It will not be a cash prize. There will be an award of some kind, a physical object you can hold in your hand, but the award has not been finalized at this time. When the award has been decided, the news will be updated on the website and on the Among the Rivers and Lakes forum.
Is there a fee for entering the contest? No. There is no entry fee. It's totally free to submit a story for this contest.
What kind of story are you looking for? We're looking for straight-up wuxia stories, as defined by the literary tradition of the genre. We want to see well-written stories with interesting, characters faced with compelling conflicts. We want to see experimentation......or not. You can submit a traditional wuxia story, or you can submit a story that experiments with point of view, narrative techniques, etc. As long as it is wuxia, we want to read it.
Any content restrictions? No. Include whatever violence, sex, themes, etc. that you need to make your story its best. There are no specific restrictions to content.
Any special formatting requirements? Just make sure to include the name you want associated with the story, and a way to contact you, such as an email address. Please make the story as easy to read as possible regarding formatting. Use either whitespace before paragraphs, or use a tab indent to indicate a new paragraph. No walls of text, please. Make it look presentable. Please do not submit PDF files. Anything else is fine.
How long before I know if I've won? A shortlist of finalists will be published sometime after October 31, 2013. If you did not make the shortlist, consider yourself rejected. However, formal notices of rejection will be sent to all non-shortlisted stories after the shortlist has been published.
WHAT ARE YOU NOT LOOKING FOR?
No hybrids. We are not interested in seeing wuxia stories fused with other genres. A wuxia story might read like a mystery, but we don't want to see two genres blended together. We want wuxia stories, not ______ stories with “wuxia elements”. Just wuxia.
Nothing related to Romance of the Three Kingdoms. Romance of the Three Kingdoms is NOT wuxia. We are not interested in seeing any ROTK fan fiction, nor stories dealing with prominent or side characters from the novel. A wuxia story may be set during the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history, but it needs to be a wuxia story, not historical fiction.
No fantasy settings. Meaning, the world of the story should be set in China, at least implicitly. A specific dynastic period need not be mentioned, but we are not interested in seeing stories set in made-up worlds “inspired” by China or Chinese history or culture (ex. Under Heaven by Guy Gavriel Kay), nor stories set in a “China that never was”. Often times, wuxia stories are not given a specic dynasty as a setting, yet they always deal with Chinese culture. A dragon has a certain symbolic meaning in Chinese culture, whereas a made-up setting might have different symbols or religions, practices, etc. We are not interested in seeing that for this contest.
No modern settings. We're not saying a story set in a contemporary setting cannot be wuxia, but we are saying we are not interested in reading such stories for this contest. As a rule, consider anything from the Qing dynasty and prior as an appropriate setting. Or use a generic pre-modern Chinese setting, such as Gu Long was fond of doing.
No non-Chinese stories. We are not interested in reading stories set in Japan, Korea, the US, UK, or anywhere else except for China. Again, we are not limiting the definition of wuxia per se, but we are excluding such stories from consideration in this contest. So no stories set in the States, or medieval Japan, etc. Wuxia is a Chinese genre, and we would like to read straight-up wuxia stories.
No fan fiction. All stories you submit must be your original work, using original characters and settings. You may not submit a story that features a character or setting or plot from another author's work, even if you have permission from that author.
No non-Wuxia stories. Going back to what was said earlier, please do not submit a story that is really a romance novel, for example, with “wuxia elements”, or a crime novel with “wuxia elements”, or a fantasy novel “inspired by wuxia”, or a science fiction story with “wuxia elements”, etc. Only wuxia stories, please.
No excerpts. We are not interested in reading novel excerpts, or any other portion of a larger work. Please submit only self-contained stories with a beginning, middle, and an end.
CONTACT INFORMATION:
For submissions: via Submittable
Website: http://wuxia.genreverse.com/
The first annual Wuxia Short Fiction Award is a short story contest aiming to recognize the best English-language wuxia stories. The contest is brought to you by Among the Rivers and Lakes Wuxia Community. You can follow the contest there. New updates will also be posted here.
GUIDELINES:
How long can it be? Up to 30,000 words. 30,000 words might seem long for a short story, but it isn't too long for a wuxia story. Wuxia as a genre tends to run long, the average novel being about 900 pages long. A 30k ceiling leaves plenty of room for the author to tell a well-developed story with interesting characters. However, flash fiction is also accepted. It doesn't matter how short the story is as long as it is good. And if yours comes in at a little over 30,000, that's okay. You can still submit it.
When is the deadline? Submissions are open from January 1, 2013, to October 31, 2013. That's a full ten months to get your story ready for submission. After October 31, a shortlist will be published with the finalist stories, which will be voted on by Among the Rivers and Lakes forum members. The shortlisted stories will be made available on the forum for members to read and vote on.
Do I have to be a forum member to enter the contest? No. Anyone can submit a story for the contest. However, only registered members of the Among the Rivers and Lakes forum will be able to vote for the winner from the finalists on the shortlist. Of course, anyone can register to become a member of the forum.
May I submit something I've already published elsewhere? Yes. Since this is the first year of the Wuxia Short Fiction Award, we'll be accepting any wuxia stories that currently exist, as well as any written specifically for this contest. So if your story has never been published before, you can submit it. Likewise, if your story has been published somewhere already, you can still submit it. Just keep in mind that by submitting a story for the contest, you agree to have your story made available for forum members to read so that they can vote on it, if your story makes the shortlist. Only shortlisted stories will be made availabe for forum members to read and vote on.
How many stories may I submit? As many as you like. There is no limit to the number of stories an author may submit, at least not for this first year of the contest. Since the contest is open to all currently-existing wuxia short fiction, it only makes sense to allow an author to submit more than one story. But make sure they all adhere to the guidelines.
What is the prize for winning this contest? To be determined. It will not be a cash prize. There will be an award of some kind, a physical object you can hold in your hand, but the award has not been finalized at this time. When the award has been decided, the news will be updated on the website and on the Among the Rivers and Lakes forum.
Is there a fee for entering the contest? No. There is no entry fee. It's totally free to submit a story for this contest.
What kind of story are you looking for? We're looking for straight-up wuxia stories, as defined by the literary tradition of the genre. We want to see well-written stories with interesting, characters faced with compelling conflicts. We want to see experimentation......or not. You can submit a traditional wuxia story, or you can submit a story that experiments with point of view, narrative techniques, etc. As long as it is wuxia, we want to read it.
Any content restrictions? No. Include whatever violence, sex, themes, etc. that you need to make your story its best. There are no specific restrictions to content.
Any special formatting requirements? Just make sure to include the name you want associated with the story, and a way to contact you, such as an email address. Please make the story as easy to read as possible regarding formatting. Use either whitespace before paragraphs, or use a tab indent to indicate a new paragraph. No walls of text, please. Make it look presentable. Please do not submit PDF files. Anything else is fine.
How long before I know if I've won? A shortlist of finalists will be published sometime after October 31, 2013. If you did not make the shortlist, consider yourself rejected. However, formal notices of rejection will be sent to all non-shortlisted stories after the shortlist has been published.
WHAT ARE YOU NOT LOOKING FOR?
No hybrids. We are not interested in seeing wuxia stories fused with other genres. A wuxia story might read like a mystery, but we don't want to see two genres blended together. We want wuxia stories, not ______ stories with “wuxia elements”. Just wuxia.
Nothing related to Romance of the Three Kingdoms. Romance of the Three Kingdoms is NOT wuxia. We are not interested in seeing any ROTK fan fiction, nor stories dealing with prominent or side characters from the novel. A wuxia story may be set during the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history, but it needs to be a wuxia story, not historical fiction.
No fantasy settings. Meaning, the world of the story should be set in China, at least implicitly. A specific dynastic period need not be mentioned, but we are not interested in seeing stories set in made-up worlds “inspired” by China or Chinese history or culture (ex. Under Heaven by Guy Gavriel Kay), nor stories set in a “China that never was”. Often times, wuxia stories are not given a specic dynasty as a setting, yet they always deal with Chinese culture. A dragon has a certain symbolic meaning in Chinese culture, whereas a made-up setting might have different symbols or religions, practices, etc. We are not interested in seeing that for this contest.
No modern settings. We're not saying a story set in a contemporary setting cannot be wuxia, but we are saying we are not interested in reading such stories for this contest. As a rule, consider anything from the Qing dynasty and prior as an appropriate setting. Or use a generic pre-modern Chinese setting, such as Gu Long was fond of doing.
No non-Chinese stories. We are not interested in reading stories set in Japan, Korea, the US, UK, or anywhere else except for China. Again, we are not limiting the definition of wuxia per se, but we are excluding such stories from consideration in this contest. So no stories set in the States, or medieval Japan, etc. Wuxia is a Chinese genre, and we would like to read straight-up wuxia stories.
No fan fiction. All stories you submit must be your original work, using original characters and settings. You may not submit a story that features a character or setting or plot from another author's work, even if you have permission from that author.
No non-Wuxia stories. Going back to what was said earlier, please do not submit a story that is really a romance novel, for example, with “wuxia elements”, or a crime novel with “wuxia elements”, or a fantasy novel “inspired by wuxia”, or a science fiction story with “wuxia elements”, etc. Only wuxia stories, please.
No excerpts. We are not interested in reading novel excerpts, or any other portion of a larger work. Please submit only self-contained stories with a beginning, middle, and an end.
CONTACT INFORMATION:
For submissions: via Submittable
Website: http://wuxia.genreverse.com/
