Prompt:

It is the season of festivities and celebrations. It is also a reminder for us to defeat the devil, whether it is an evident one or in disguise.

For this event we are seeking stories that bring out the “Devil in Disguise”. Do you have that story?

Contest Rules-

1. The contest is open to children in the age group 8 years to 16 years.
2. All stories will be published on our website https://www.penmancy.com
3. The story has to be written in English.
4. The required length of the story must be 1000-1500 words. Any spill over will be disqualified.
5. Drawings, photos, or any other graphics are not allowed.
6. Only one entry is accepted per person.
7. Proof of age is required (scan or take a photo of your birth certificate/ identity card/ certificate from school/ health record/ school record).
8. Any entry that is not accompanied by proof of age will be automatically disqualified.
9. Send your story and the proof of age as attachments to penmagica@gmail.com
10. Mention the following information below your story:

a. Full name

b. Date of birth

c. Title of your story

d. City/ Country

11.  All participations will receive a certificate of participation

12.  Three winners will receive a winner’s certificate and a book

13. The story should be the original, unpublished contribution of the participant. Each entry will be subjected to a complete plagiarism check.

14. Send in your story as a word document (.doc/ .docx) attachment ONLY (pdf or txt versions will be disqualified).

15. Submitted  stories may not be published elsewhere without permission from Penmancy

16.  The winner will be chosen on the basis of votes from the readers and the judges’ scores (out of 10), in the ratio 30:70
a.  Judges’ decision will be final and to be based on-

• plot/ story/ creativity (15 points)
• language/ grammar (10 points)
• narrative voice & content (9 points)
• emotional impact, (8 points)
• use of prompt/ theme (8 points)

b. The voting process for the readers:

• The option for rating would be given below each story on the website.
• Readers to rate the story on the basis of 5 (rate it based on the content, language, creativity, prompt and emotional impact).
• Readers can vote once for each story. Multiple votes do not get recorded
• Once the rating is given, your vote is recorded and cannot be altered.
• Writers are free to share the link of their stories on their social media connects to garner more votes.

If you would like to gain a refresher on flash fiction, please read Tips on Writing Flash Fiction

Contest Timeline-

1. Event commences: November 7, 2020 6:00 pm IST
2. Submissions deadline: November 14, 2020 6:00 pm IST
3. Ongoing readers’ rating concludes: November 15, 2020 10:00 am IST
4. Results declaration: November 15, 2020 8:00 pm IST

For queries, write to us at penmagica@gmail.com