Goldfinch Mini Writer Award 2024

IN PARTNERSHIP WITH

Submissions invited until 15th May 2024

How long to go….?

Overview

  • The Goldfinch Books Mini Writer Award is a £50 book token local prize for story manuscripts by children, hosted by Goldfinch in partnership with the Alton Arts Festival.

  • Submissions are Open from Friday 19th January.

  • Deadline for submissions is 11:59pm on Wednesday 15th May 2024.

  • For writers aged up to 12 years, resident in the GU34 postcode area and/or attending a school in Alton and/or within a ten mile radius of Goldfinch.

  • One submission per person.

  • Submissions are the opening 500 to 1,000 words plus a short ½ page summary of the entire story for any age which may or may not be complete.

  • Shortlist announced 14th June 2024.

  • Shortlisted stories will be judged and the winner announced at the Alton Arts Festival on the 14th July.

  • Entry is free.

Judges

The Mini Writer Award will be judged by a pool of writers from the Goldfinch and AAF teams - more details to follow

Submissions

For full details, please read the TERMS.

  • Submission is required of 500 to 1,000 words of your story plus a short ½ page summary of the entire story.

  • Submission should be by email to submissions@goldfinch-books.com.

  • In the subject field of the email submission it should state “Mini Writer Award”

  • Submissions should be a single Word file or PDF with the synopsis at the end of the document.

  • Submissions should be double-line spaced in a size 12 font (Arial or Times New Roman), followed by a 1/2 page synopsis which should be single-line spaced in the same font.

  • Submissions are ‘blind’. Your name should NOT be seen anywhere on the document. Each entry will be assigned a reference number which will be linked to applicant details only by the submissions team, not by the judging team.

  • Submissions should be delivered by email by 23:59 on 15th May 2024.

  • There is no entry fee.

  • A submission comprises two parts:

  • A confirmation email will be sent once both of the submission steps have been registered. If no confirmation email is received, you should contact gary@goldfinch-books.com.

  • Submissions which do not comply with the TERMS may be disqualified.

TERMS

  • The Goldfinch Books Mini Writer Award 2024, in partnership with Alton Arts Festival 2024 is a prize for emerging authors who are unagented writers yet to accept an offer of publication for a novel (for any age of readers), chapter book or picture book which includes an advance / pre-publication payment from the publisher.

  • Entries may be submitted from 19th January until 23:59 GMT on May 15th 2024.

  • The prize is open locally to writers aged under 12 on the closing date.

  • Locally is defined as those living within the GU34 postcode, or those living within a 10-mile radius of Goldfinch Books, or those attending school in these zones.

  • Books should be unpublished. Previously published or self-published books are not eligible.

  • Entries should be your text only without any photographs, maps or artwork.

  • Entries must be between 500 and 1,000 words.

  • Books must be submitted in English and must be the author’s own work.

  • The winner of The Goldfinch Books Mini Writer Award will receive £50 in Goldfinch Book Tokens. In the event of a joint win, the prize will be shared equally between winners.

  • The winner of the Goldfinch Books Mini Writer Award 2024 will be announced at the Alton Arts Festival 2024 closing weekend on 14th July 2024.

  • Prize tokens will be presented with a trophy on a day to be arranged after the Festival.

  • Submissions should include one document including 500 to 1,000 of your story, double-spaced in a size 12 font (Arial or Times) followed by a 1/2 page synopsis which should be single-spaced in a size 12 font.

  • Submissions should be made by email to submissions@goldfinch-books.com with a single attachment (synopsis at the end) and we accept Word docs, docx and pdf

  • As entries are read blind, your name should NOT appear anywhere in the document. The submission email will be used to link the attached submission with the entry in a process not visible to the judges.

  • Only one entry is allowed per person.

  • There is no entry fee.

  • The winner agrees to an interview which may be published on our site and in any media for publicity purposes, including that of the Alton Arts Festival.

  • Entrants retain full copyright, however, by entering, all shortlisted entrants give permission for us to post the story on our site and that of the Alton Arts Festival.

  • Entries which do not comply with the competition rules may be disqualified.

  • The judges’ decision is final, and no correspondence will be entered into concerning this decision.

  • By submitting, you are agreeing to all contest rules.

  • Contest rules may be subject to change.