THE 2025 GOLDEN QUILL WRITING CONTEST

Get your words ready! The theme for the 2025 SLO NightWriters Golden Quill Writing Contest is: RISK.

The Golden Quill Writing Contest is a tri-genre contest that awards a total of $1,650 in prizes and publication in the 2025 issue of The NightWriter Review to the first, second, and third place short story, creative nonfiction piece (essays and memoir), and poem engaging with this year’s theme: risk.

This year’s final entries will be judged by Juliet McDaniel, the author of Mr. and Mrs. American Pie, the novel upon which the hit Apple TV+ series Palm Royale is based (fiction); Deanne Stillman, the author of American Confidential, Twentynine Palms, Mustang, and Desert Reckoning (creative nonfiction); and San Luis Obispo County poet laureate Caleb Nichols (poetry).

CONTEST RULES & GUIDELINES

• The 2025 theme is “risk”. All submissions must engage with the theme in some way.
• All submissions must be previously unpublished.
• The contest is open to writers 18 years old and over residing in the United States and Canada.
• Fiction and creative nonfiction (essays and memoir): up to 5,000 words.
• Poetry: up to 60 lines of poetry per poem; up to 3 poems per submission.
• Please use industry standard formatting as applicable to your form: Times New Roman, 12 pt., double-spaced, one-inch margins.
• First-place winners in each category will receive a $350 cash prize and publication in the 2025 issue of The NightWriter Review.
• Second-place winners in each category will receive a $150 cash prize and publication in the 2025 issue of The NightWriter Review.
• Third-place winners in each category will receive a $50 cash prize and publication in the 2025 issue of The NightWriter Review.
• All entries will be considered for publication in the 2025 issue of The NightWriter Review.
• All submissions will be online through our Duosuma submission portal.
• Multiple submissions are welcome, but you must pay a separate fee for each entry.
• Simultaneous submissions are welcome, but please withdraw the piece immediately if accepted elsewhere.
• Entry fees are nonrefundable.
• Current SLO NightWriters Board Members are ineligible.
• Entry fee: $20 for SLO NightWriters members and $25 for nonmembers.

CONTEST DIRECTOR: Harvey Ardman. Please direct any questions to: harveyardman.ha@gmail.com.

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