Summer Contests
Next up . . . our 18th annual
2025 National Poetry Contest and
2025 National Short-Story Contest
(for Canadian citizens or residents of all ages)
Deadline:
July 31, 2025
No entry fee! Cash prizes to be won!
Each summer we hold two contests, which are open to Canadian residents and citizens of all ages. There is a separate division for young writers.
Over $3500 will be awarded in cash and other prizes.
There is no entry fee and no obligation to purchase anything.
As well as the opportunity to win cash prizes, there will be ten honourable mentions in each contest and the top group (approx. 33%) of all entries received will be published in a keepsake, soft-cover collection to be released in early December. All participants will receive a bookmark gift!
Entries must be sent by July 31, 2025.
SUBMIT ENTRY ONLINE or mail your entry along with a printed and completed entry form or reasonable facsimile.
Writers who are successful in the first round will receive a letter of congratulations and an offer of publication to their home address in late August/early September along with an author's release they need to sign (or have their parent/guardian sign if applicable) and return or they will not be published. They will then move forward to the final round of judging to possibly win one of the prizes listed below.
Prizes
| 16 & Over (poetry & short story): | |||
| First prize: | $500.00 | ||
| Second prize: | $250.00 | ||
| Third prize: | $100.00 | ||
And . . . ten honourable mentions for each contest! |
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Young writers division (15 & under - poetry & short story): |
|
| First prize: | $200.00 |
| Second prize: | $100.00 |
| Third prize: | $50.00 |
| And . . . ten honourable mentions for each contest! | |
All first-, second-, and third-prize winners will receive a free copy of the anthology featuring their entry (as well as those who receive honourable mentions).
This contest is funded solely through the sales of the books. Even though we would love to, it is NOT possible for us to provide payment or complimentary copies to all writers published in the collections.
Rules
- All work must be original and will be checked for plagiarism. Please visit our PLAGIARISM and FAQs page to ensure you properly understand what plagiarism is and how to properly cite anything you have borrowed.
- Entries should not have been previously published (online postings should be removed prior to submission).
- Please do not submit work already sent to other contests or publications for consideration (aka no simultaneous submissions).
- You may enter one poem and/or one short story only!
- We prefer each entry to be typed on an 8.5" x 11" sheet of white paper using 11-pt Arial or another plain font.
- Poems must be 48 lines or less.
- Short stories must be 750 words or less. Fanfiction and essays are not permitted. Characters must be of your own creation. Stories should be fiction or fictionalized (change the names of real characters)!
- At this time entries should be in English or accompanied by an English translation.
- SUBMIT ENTRY ONLINE or mail us your entry along with a printed, completed, and scanned entry form or reasonable facsimile.
- Please retain a copy of all work submitted as we are unable to return anything. Any topic or style will be considered.
Ways to Enter
| Send entries |
|
| by web form: | SUBMIT ENTRY ONLINE |
| or by mail: | Polar Expressions Publishing |
| PO Box 500 Stn Main | |
| Maple Ridge BC V2X 3P2 | |