The Vancouver Writers Fest is launching a new writing contest open to young writers across B.C.
Winners of the contest will be awarded a cash prize and have their work published in a magazine that showcases aspiring young writers.
For the last 15 years, the Writers Fest has run a successful poetry and short-story contest for writers of all ages.
Last year, more than 340 entries were received from around the world.
The new contest is restricted to only those writers enrolled in grades 8 to 12 in B.C., which will give young aspiring writers a better chance of winning.
Just like the established poetry and short-story contest, the Spreading the Word Youth Writing Contest will accept entries of poetry, with a 500-word limit, and creative short fiction, with a 1,500-word limit.
The work must be previously unpublished in each category.
First prize in each category is $300, with a second-prize award of $200.
Prize winners, selected by a panel of publishing and writing professionals, will be published in The Claremont Review and on the Vancouver Writers Fest website at writersfest.bc.ca.
Closing date for entries is 5 p.m. on the final day of the Vancouver Writers Fest, Sunday, Oct. 27.
Students can enter online at writersfest.bc.ca/youthwritingcontest.
Spreading the Word, the Vancouver Writers Fest’s schools program, offers K-12 students and teachers the rare opportunity to engage with internationally renowned writers at the Festival and in the classroom.
Other Spreading the Word programs include 34 events for K-12 at the festival, classroom visits for inner-city schools and a week-long writer residency program.