Terms and Conditions (the Rules)
General
- The Manchester Writing Competition: The Manchester Fiction Prize (the "Competition") is organised by the Manchester Metropolitan University ("MMU")..
- The Competition is open to anyone aged 16 or over, who is not excluded by these Rules.
There is no upper age limit for entry.
- Members of MMU staff are excluded from being eligible to enter.
- The deadline for entries is 5pm (UK time) on Friday 7th August 2009.
Stories must be no longer than 5,000 words (not including the title or page numbers).
Entries received after this deadline will not be considered.
- Entrants must submit a complete short story of no more than 5,000 words in length (not including the title or page numbers).
Online entries must be Word or RTF format files and may not be larger than 80KB.Entries which breach these limitations will be disqualified without refund of the entry fee.
- Entrants may submit as many stories as they wish, but each story must be submitted as a separate entry with a separate entry form and a separate entry fee.
- All work submitted for consideration must be the entrant's own original writing, and should not have appeared in print or on a website or have been broadcast, or be submitted for publication or consideration elsewhere, for the duration of the Manchester Fiction Prize (which is deemed to begin on the date of entry and end on Friday 23rd October 2009).
Work found to be published in print or on a website or have been broadcast will be disqualified without refund of the entry fee.
- All work should be typed or word processed, clearly legible and written in English.
Each story should have a title.
- Entries will be accepted by post or online via the competition website.
- Postal entries will only be valid if accompanied by a completed entry form and payment.
Postal entrants should enclose a stamped, self-addressed envelope if they would like acknowledgement of entry.
- Online entries must be made via the Manchester Writing Competition website.
Online entrants will be required to pay online and will receive an email acknowledging receipt of payment (at time of payment) and an email acknowledging receipt of entry (when the entry has been processed and checked).
- All entries will be assigned a number and made anonymous upon receipt.
Judges will not be privy to entrants' names during the reading and judging processes.
Names will be reattributed to entries only after the short list and winners have been decided.
- Stories submitted for consideration may be withdrawn from the Competition by entrants by notification in writing to be received by James Draper, Project Manager for the Writing School at MMU, no later than 5pm on Friday 4th September 2009. Where work is withdrawn, entry fees will not be refunded.
- Entries will not be returned under any circumstances
- Alterations cannot be made to stories after they have been submitted.
- MMU reserves the right to disqualify any entry if it has reasonable grounds to believe that the entrant has breached any of these Rules.
- MMU cannot accept any responsibility for any damage, loss, injury or disappointment suffered by any entrant entering the Competition.
- MMU will act in accordance with current UK data protection legislation in relation to your personal data.
- The Competition and Rules will be governed by English Law and any dispute will be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales.
- MMU reserves the right to amend these Rules where it is deemed necessary to do so or where circumstances are beyond MMU’s control. Any changes to the Rules will be posted on the Manchester Writing Competition website.
- Submission of an entry will be deemed to imply unqualified acceptance of the Competition’s Rules. In the event of any dispute regarding these Rules or any other matter relating to the Competition, the decision of MMU shall be final and no correspondence or discussion shall be entered into.
Judging and selection
- A judging panel of practising writers will decide the winners. The judges’ decisions are final, and no correspondence about their decisions may be entered into. MMU reserves the right to change the panel of judges without notice. The judges reserve the right not to award the prizes if, in their opinion, such action is justified.
- Short-listed entrants will be invited to attend a prize-giving ceremony on the evening of Friday 23rd October 2009, to be held at the Town Hall in Manchester. The winners will be announced at this event. Short-listed entrants will be notified by telephone by 1st October 2009, and asked to confirm attendance at the ceremony by 9th October 2009. In cases where winners are unable to attend, they will be notified by telephone that they have won the Competition, and will be invited to send a message to be read out at the ceremony, or send a representative to accept the award on their behalf. If requested, winners must provide to MMU a biography and a photograph. Winners may also be asked to participate in promotional activity for MMU.
Fees
- The cost of entry is £15.00 (sterling) per story.
- Payment may be made by cheque or postal order or debit/credit card only. Cheques (which must be drawn from UK banks) and postal orders should be made payable to "Manchester Metropolitan University". If the cheque or debit/credit card payment does not clear, the entrant will be contacted by MMU and asked to provide an alternative method of payment, or to withdraw from the Competition. In cases where payments have not cleared by 4th September 2009, entrants will be automatically disqualified from the Competition .
Copyright
- The copyright in each story remains with the author. Entrants are deemed to grant to MMU a non-exclusive, worldwide licence over each entry submitted for the duration of the Competition (which is deemed to end on Thursday 23rd October 2009), and for publicity purposes thereafter. Selected pieces may be printed in publications and journals hosted by MMU and may appear in electronic format on the MMU website, or in other electronic forms.
Prizes
- "The Manchester Writing Competition: The Manchester Fiction Prize" will award two prizes:
- The Manchester Fiction Prize for the best submission; and
- The Manchester Young Writer of the Year Award for the best submission by a writer aged 18 to 25
- Entrants for The Manchester Young Writer of the Year Award must be no younger than 18 years of age, and no older than 25 years of age, on 7th August 2009.
Eligible entrants will be asked to indicate upon submission if they would like to be considered for The Manchester Young Writer of the Year Award, in addition to the main prize.
- The Manchester Fiction Prize will award a cash sum of £10,000.00 to the winner(s).
The judges may decide to award The Manchester Fiction Prize jointly and divide the cash sum accordingly.
The maximum number of winners will be 2.
- The winner(s) of The Manchester Young Writer of the Year Award will be awarded either:
- a fees-only bursary for study in the Department of English at Manchester Metropolitan University, dependent upon the winner securing a place via the usual means of application, on one of the Department of English's degree programmes at undergraduate or postgraduate level (these include BA (Hons) in English and Creative Writing, and the MA Creative Writing programmes in Poetry, Fiction and Writing for Children); or
- a cash prize of £1,000.00.
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The judges may decide to award The Manchester Young Writer of the Year Award fees-only bursary and/or cash prize jointly.
The judges reserve the right to divide the prize as they see fit.
The maximum number of winners will be 2.
The judges will consider the wishes of the winner(s) in awarding the bursary/cash.
Contact
- Postal entries should be sent to:
Manchester Fiction Prize 2009
Alan Black
Finance Office, HLSS
Geoffrey Manton Building
Manchester Metropolitan University
Rosamond Street West
Manchester, M15 6LL
United Kingdom
- Queries should be sent to :
James Draper
Project Manager: Writing School
Department of English
Manchester Metropolitan University
Phone +44 (0) 161 247 1787
E-mail j.draper@mmu.ac.uk
