Aspiring authors urged to enter short story contest

The Portsmouth short story competition is open for entries from August 1.

Anyone aged 16 and over, living, working or with a strong connection to Portsmouth, can take part in it.

The winner will have their story published online and will take home £500 for their efforts.

Stuart Parker, last year’s victor, is urging people to join the fun. He said: ‘Winning has given me the confidence to believe in what I write and allowed my family to believe in my writing. Winning has also given me the confidence to finish writing my novel.’

The contest is backed by Portsmouth City Council.

This year writers can choose from three images on which to base their story.

To enter, collect a form from a city library or print it out at portsmouth.spydus.co.uk The contest is open until October 20 and costs £5 to enter. Winners will be announced in February 2018 at the Portsmouth BookFest.