Okanagan Short Story Contest

The Okanagan Short Story Contest awards the best new short stories by writers in the Southern Interior of British Columbia: east of Hope, west of the Alberta border, north of the US border and south of Williams Lake. Past winners have gone on to publish with Penguin Random House, Arsenal Pulp Press, and NeWest Press, as well as numerous magazines and journals nationally and internationally.

FCCS is offering cash prizes to the top three stories—$1,000, $400 and $200. The top short story by a high-school student in the region receives $200 prize.  Co-sponsors are FCCS and the Central Okanagan Foundation.

Submissions for the 27th Annual Short Story Contest will be judged by creative writing emeritus professor, Nancy Holmes, who also initiated the contest in 1997. Winners will be announced at a public event in early spring 2025.

Contest Rules

We are looking for works of adult fiction that fall between 1,000 and 4,000 words in length (about 4-20 pages, typed, double-spaced). We are unable to provide written responses to manuscripts.

• This contest is open to all residents of the southern interior of British Columbia: east of Hope, west of the Alberta border, north of the US border and south of Williams Lake. (residents of Hope and Williams Lake are eligible).
• Entries must be original, unpublished works of fiction. No generative AI tools have created parts of or the whole story.
• Short stories should range from 1,000 to 4,000 words. We encourage writers to abide by these limits. The judges reserve the right to disqualify stories that do not meet these guidelines.
• Stories (not authors) that have placed in the top three spots in previous years are disqualified from entry.
• We are looking for literary short fiction. Please do not submit chapters from novels, work for children, non-fiction articles or memoirs, screenplays, etc.

Entry Fee

Adults: Entries must be accompanied by a $20 entry fee, payable online.

High School Students: Entries are free, BUT…students MUST include the name of their current high school on their cover page

All proceeds from the entry fee go towards administrative costs, the Creative Writing scholarships at UBC, and to support scholarships for Indigenous students through Indspire as a way to support our Faculty’s goals for Truth and Reconciliation.

How to Submit

• Please submit a cover page that includes the author’s name, mailing address, email address, phone number and story title, and please ensure that the title is on the first page of the story.
  • No name, address, phone number or any identifying mark should appear on any pages of the short story.
  • Authors whose stories make it to the shortlist stage should be prepared to submit biographical information upon request.
• DEADLINE: Entries must be received by 11:59 pm on February 7, 2025.
• Entries must be submitted online along with payment for adult entries.
  • Once you submit your payment, you will receive a confirmation number. This is needed as part of your submission form.
• There are no limits on the number of entries a writer can submit but each entry requires the entry fee.
• Entries will be judged solely on artistic merit. Decisions of the judges are final.