1. The competition closes Sunday 14 May 2023 at 11:59 pm. Entries submitted after the deadline will not be eligible.
2. This year’s theme is ‘X.’ The theme is a creative prompt, not a requirement. We are seeking the highest quality writing foremost.
3. You can submit ONE piece of writing in one category only (poetry, fiction or creative non-fiction), up to and not exceeding (not including title, line/stanza breaks or epigraph):
   • Poetry: maximum 50 lines
   • Fiction: maximum 2000 words
     
   • Creative non-fiction: maximum 2000 words
   • Excerpts from longer works of fiction/non-fiction (i.e. novels, memoirs) are accepted but must read as self-contained/stand alone pieces.
4. The competition is ONLY open to:
   • People who are underrepresented--those who find it difficult to access the writing world either because of mental health issues, disability, health, or social circumstance. These categories are defined here.
   • UK residents. Please do not enter if you live permanently outside the UK, due to the nature of the prizes and opportunities on offer.
   • People over 18 years old.
5. The competition is ONLY open to writers who have not previously published a book/stand-alone publication via an established press/publisher (excluding self-published works or as part of an anthology, but including poetry pamphlets) in creative non-fiction, fiction/YA or poetry. This includes if you intend to enter in a different genre than you've been published in, but does not include academic, technical, cookbooks or children's books.
6. Please DO NOT put your name on your work. Judging is anonymous.
7. Submissions cannot be altered after entry. You can withdraw your entry and make a new one if needed.
8. We cannot offer feedback on your work or enter into correspondence about your entry. We are a very small team of part-time staff.
9. We prefer typed entries, but accept handwritten entries—do keep copies as entries will not be returned.
10. Winners will be notified by 30 September 2023 and no earlier. Judges’ decisions are final.
11. Winning pieces will be published in our anthology and therefore must not have been published previously in magazines, anthologies, or online where there is an external selection process (e.g. except on your own blog, website, or social media).
12. If you have entered your work into another competition and won, or the piece is accepted for publication elsewhere, please notify us immediately to withdraw your submission.
13. Copyright remains with the author, though by submitting you agree to allow us to publish winning work in the anthology and e-book, on our and our partners’ websites.
14. Employees of Creative Future or our project partners, and past winners, are ineligible to enter.
15. Your personal data will be covered by current UK data protection legislation.
16. We reserve the right to amend the Rules as deemed necessary or where circumstances are beyond our control. Any changes will be posted on the Creative Future website.

If you have any questions, please get in touch on 01273 234780 or [email protected].