Nostalgic Essay (personal): 1,500 words maximum
Children's Fiction (for readers 8-12 years of age): 1,000 words maximum
Adult Flash Fiction: 500 words maximum
Novel: first pages with a synopsis to a maximum of 15 pages
CONTEST RULES:
1. In order to enter, you must be a member of the Norman Galaxy of Writers and have paid dues ($25) for
the current year. Dues may be paid in person to the treasurer by check or money order made payable to
the Norman Galaxy of Writers at P. O. Box 5581, Norman, OK 73070. Please include your name,
address, email, and phone number with your payment.
2. Manuscripts must be entered by electronic submission.
a. Send your digital entry as an attachment to the Contest Chair (roy.hampton.mccool@gmail.com)
on or before the deadline, October 9, 2021.
b. Electronic entries must be sent in the form of doc (any version), PDF, or RTF.
c. Send a separate email for each entry.
d. The subject line should include the word "contest" and the name of the category. Example:
Contest/Nostalgic Essay.
e. A cover sheet, downloaded from http://www.normangalaxyofwriters.com, must accompany every entry.
Send it as a second attachment with your entry to the Contest Chair.
3.
Each entry requires a $2.00 nonrefundable processing fee. For example, if a member enters five
categories, s/he would send a check for $10.00 and a copy of each cover sheet for the five entries to
the Norman Galaxy of Writers at P. O. Box 5581, Norman, OK 73070. It must be received by the
contest deadline, so don't wait until the last minute.
Cover sheets are available to be downloaded from
the Galaxy website at http://www.normangalaxyofwriters.
4. All entries must be unpublished or unaccepted for publication at the time of submission. Any
manuscript entered must be your own original work.
Contest Rules Continued on Next Page
AUGUST 2021
5. You may enter each category once. No manuscript may be entered in more than one category.
Manuscripts that have previously won a monetary award (1st, 2nd, 3rd, or Creme de la Creme) may
not be entered again in any Galaxy contest.
6. Formatting.
a. All entries must be double spaced, except for poetry and the novel synopses.
b. Fonts must follow the industry standard, which is 12-point and either Times New Roman or
Courier.
c. Margins should be one inch on all sides.
d. In the top right corner of each page, enter the category, title, word count, and page number.
Example: Flash Fiction / Laughter / 498 words / p. 1.
e.
On the first page of the manuscript, the title should be centered 1/3 to 1/2 of the way down the
page. If the entry is a poem, the title and poem should be centered on the page.
7. The author's name MUST NOT appear on any page of the manuscript, or in the subject line of the
digital entry.
8. Romance is okay, but entries may not include sexual content or graphic violence. In the event the
Contest Chair receives a questionable entry, he will make a determination in concert with the club's
president as to whether the guideline has been broken.
NOTICE:
• Judges will be selected by the Contest Chair based on each judge's experience in the genre and their
willingness to write critiques. Judges' decisions are final. There must be a minimum of three entries in
a category before it will be judged and prizes awarded. If not, in that specific case, the entry fee will be
returned for lack of a category.
• Awards will be presented at the annual December awards luncheon, December 11, 2021.
• Certificates and cash prizes will be awarded in each category: first place, $15; second place, $10; third
place, $5. Certificates will be given to honorable mentions.
The Bonnie Speer Crème de la Crème
Award ($30) will be awarded to the best of the first place winners.
Judges' comments will be returned
to the entrants digitally following the announcement of awards.
DESCRIPTION OF GALAXY CONTEST CATEGORIES
1. Nonfiction Feature Article: This is a factual manuscript on any topic of general interest that might
appear in a newsstand magazine, not a fictional or opinion piece. 1,500 words maximum.
2. Short Story (fiction for adults): The story revolves around a protagonist with a goal or a problem to
solve. The five key elements are character, setting, conflict, plot, and resolution. It is similar to a
novel, only shorter. 2,000 words maximum.
3. Rhymed Poetry: Poems use figurative language, sound, and rhythm to tell a story, or to evoke
imagination or an emotion. A single line is called a verse. Verses grouped together make a stanza. Any
length.
4. Unrhymed Poetry: Unrhymed poems use the effects of rhythm and sound to create a story, mood, or
emotion. Contains one or more stanzas. Any length.
5. Nostalgic Essay (personal): This is a first-person narrative that focuses on one of the author's real life
experiences. 1,500 words maximum.
6. Children's Fiction (for readers 8-12 years of age): This is a short story focusing on a child protagonist
having a goal or a problem that s/he works to solve with or without a sidekick. It has character, setting,
conflict, plot, and resolution. 1,000 words maximum.
7. Flash Fiction (for adults): This is a short, short story that includes characters, setting, conflict, plot, and
resolution. 500 words maximum.
8. Novel: Novels are long-form works of fiction. An interesting point-of-view character with a strong
plot, conflict, and a satisfying conclusion are expected. Manuscripts from a wide variety of genres
(including, but not limited to, sci-fi, romance, historical, mystery, horror, mainstream, etc.) will be
accepted. Submit the first consecutive pages with a separate synopsis, for a total not to exceed fifteen pages.
The synopsis can be single spaced, but the manuscript pages must be double spaced.
