City of Largo, Florida

Short Story Competition Rules

29th Annual
Stanley Shalit Short Story Competition
Grades 6-8 & Grades 9-12

Information regarding the 30th Annual Competition will be available
February 2014.

Theme:

To make a long story short...

What things does every story need?

1) Characters
In the story line, develop your character so readers can visualize them. Let your readers know what your character looks like, how he/she/it communicates, the way they act, feel and think. Use and include supporting characters to help develop your main character. Use you character and supporting characters to describe the place and time in which the story takes place.

2) Plot
The story should revolve around an experience, a setting, a problem, a challenge, a tragedy, a triumph or any circumstance that will intrigue your readers and bring your characters to life.

About the Theme
The theme is not intended to be the title of the story. It is meant to help provide a creative focus to deliver a story that touches the meanings or thoughts that come to your mind when thinking about the theme.

Submission Guidelines

The story must be fiction, original and 4 to 8 pages in length.
All work must be typed; pages must be numbered, double spaced and margins justified.
The story must have a title page that includes story's title and writer's name.
Each work must have a cover letter that includes participant's name, age, home address, phone number, email, school's name, teacher's name, and grade.

The completed work must be submitted to the Youth Services Department of the Largo Public Library by 6:00 P.M. on or postmarked by Friday, March 15th, 2013. Failure to follow these rules will disqualify the entry.
Works submitted will not be returned, please make sure to keep a copy of your work.

Winners and Prizes
The competition will be divided into two levels and made available to students in 6th-8th grades and 9th-12th grades. First, second, and third place winners along with five honorable mentions will be awarded to students from each grade segment. The sixteen finalists will be notified prior to the awards ceremony, which will take place Wednesday evening, April 17th, 2013 at 6:00 P.M. At the ceremony, the final standings will be revealed and prizes will be awarded.

Library Resources
Largo Public Library teen room computers have writing software installed that can help you check your story structure and character development. We have word processors and other software to input and format your work.