2010 Family Circle Fiction Contest (USA)

31 July 2010
2010 Family Circle Fiction Contest (USA)
Contest begins March 1, 2010 and ends September 8, 2010. Entries must be postmarked on or before September 8, 2010 and received by September 15, 2010. Entries will not be acknowledged or returned. Sponsor: Meredith Corporation, 1716 Locust St., Des Moines, Iowa. Sponsor assumes no responsibility for illegible, lost, late, misdirected, incomplete, or stolen entries or mail.

ENTRY: Submit an original (written by entrant), fiction short story of no more than 2,500 words, typed on 8-1/2x11paper. Entries must be unpublished and may not have won any prize or award. Include your name, address, daytime telephone number and e-mail address (optional) on each page and send to: Family Circle Fiction Contest, c/o Family Circle Magazine, 375 Lexington Avenue, Ninth Floor, New York, NY 10017.

LIMIT: Up to two (2) entries per person will be accepted but each entry must be a unique short story. No group entries. Sponsor reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to reject, disqualify, modify, edit, and revise any entries, subjects, stories, or related materials that Sponsor deems to be nude, obscene, defamatory, profane, offensive, lewd, pornographic, false, misleading, deceptive, or otherwise inconsistent with its editorial standards, audience expectations, or reputational interests or that Sponsor believes may violate any applicable law or regulation or the rights of any third party. By entering this contest, entrants consent to a background check, and Sponsor reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to verify any element of any entry or related materials and to disqualify any entrant whose participation may subject the contest, Sponsor, or Sponsor's advertisers, clients, or customers to controversy, negative publicity, scorn, or ridicule.

ELIGIBILITY: Legal residents of the 50 United States, and the District of Columbia, 21 years of age or older are eligible to enter, except employees of Sponsor, and any other organizations affiliated with the sponsorship, fulfillment, administration, prize support, advertisement or promotion of the contest and/or their respective agents, affiliates, subsidiaries, and members of their immediate families or persons residing at the same address.

WINNER SELECTION: On or about October 15, 2010 a qualified panel of judges will judge eligible entries equally on the basis of sustained writing ability (25%), topic creativity (25%), originality (25%), and overall excellence (25%). One (1) grand prize winner and two (2) runners-up will be selected. In the event of a tie, a qualified panel of judges will determine the winner based on the criterion of overall excellence. Sponsor reserves the right to choose fewer than two runners-up if, in its sole discretion, it does not receive a sufficient number of eligible and qualified entries. Potential winners will be notified by phone and/or mail and the prizes delivered on or about November 30, 2010. Decisions of judges are final and binding in all respects.

PRIZING: One (1) Grand Prize winner will receive a prize package including a check for $750.00, a gift certificate to one (1) mediabistro.com course of his or her choice, up to a value of $610.00, one (1) year mediabistro.com AvantGuild membership valued at $55.00 and a one (1) year mediabistro.com On Demand Videos membership valued at $160.00. Total approximate retail value of grand prize package $1,575.00. One (1) Second Place winner will receive a check for $250.00, a one (1) year mediabistro.com AvantGuild membership valued at $55.00 and a one (1) year mediabistro.com on Demand Videos membership valued at $160.00. Total retail value ("RV") of second place prize package $465.00. One (1) Third Place winner will receive a check for $250.00 and a one (1) year mediabistro.com AvantGuild membership valued at $55.00. Total RV of third place prize package $305.00. One (1) prize per household. Prizes may not be assigned, transferred, or changed, except at the sole discretion of Sponsor. The awarding of any prize is contingent upon full compliance with these Official Rules. The Grand Prize winner's story may, in the sole discretion of Sponsor, be published in a future issue of Family Circle magazine. Runner up stories may, in the sole discretion of sponsor, appear on the Family Circle website, currently located at www.familycircle.com. Publication of winning entries is not guaranteed, and has no retail value.

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