Now accepting entries for 2010 Thoroughbred Times Fiction Writing Contest
Click here for contest rules.
THOROUGHBRED TIMES will be conducting its Ninth Biennial Fiction Contest in 2009, with the winners being announced in the spring of 2010. Open to both professional and amateur writers, the fiction contest awards the winner $600 and their work will be published in a weekly edition of THOROUGHBRED TIMES in the spring of 2010.
The contest is designed to encourage fiction writing about Thoroughbred racing and to recognize outstanding work. The authors of the second- and third-place selections will receive $300 and $200, respectively, and their works will be published in the weekly magazine.
The work of fiction can pertain to any aspect of the Thoroughbred industry and must be 5,000 words or less. Entries must be submitted by December 31, 2009, and sent to THOROUGHBRED TIMES, Fiction Contest, P.O. Box 8237, Lexington, KY 40533 or via e-mail to fiction@thoroughbredtimes.com.
Thoroughbred Times published Thoroughbred Tales, an Anthology of Fiction from THOROUGHBRED TIMES, in 2008. The book is a collection of the best fiction from the first seven editions of the contest and contains 18 short stories.
“The Song,” a story about a group of friends who come together to grieve a fallen racehorse through music, was awarded first place in the Eighth Biennial Contest. The story was written by Peggy Davis, a resident of Bloomington, Minnesota, who received an honorable mention in the 2000 contest for her story “Voyage of Discovery.” Davis works as clerk of the course, placing judge, and live program coordinate at Canterbury Park from early May through early September.
“The Song” appeared in the March 15, 2008, issue of THOROUGHBRED TIMES, a weekly newsmagazine based in Lexington, Kentucky, that covers Thoroughbred racing.
The 2008 contest drew a total of 103 entries from writers in 26 states, two Canadian provinces, and Australia.
The runner-up in 2008 was a very familiar name to the Fiction Contest in Alan P. Henry, the winner the same year Davis earned her honorable mention, for his work “The Painting.” A resident of Deerfield, Illinois, Henry added the 2008 second-place finish to previous runner-ups in ‘06, 1996, and ’93, along with a third-place effort in ’98. His story titled “The Old Soft Shoe” appeared in the March 29, 2008 issue of THOROUGHBRED TIMES.
The third-place finisher in the 2008 contest was Janell Oliver, a recent graduate of Bellarmine University in Louisville who has been around the Thoroughbred industry her whole life. Oliver wrote “The Hope Center,” which was published in the April 12, 2008 issue of THOROUGHBRED TIMES.
The first THOROUGHBRED TIMES Fiction Contest winner, The Hanging in the Foaling Barn, by Susan Starr Richards, won an O. Henry Award in 1994. The O. Henry Awards is an annual collection of the year’s best short stories published in American and Canadian magazines and written by American or Canadian authors.
The Fiction Contest was created by THOROUGHBRED TIMES Editor Mark Simon and his wife, Mary, an Eclipse Award-winning contributing editor to the magazine, to encourage and recognize outstanding fiction written about the Thoroughbred industry. The first contest was held in 1993, and the competition also honored winners in 1996, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2006, and 2008.
You can read each of the previous winning stories by clicking on the link below:
2008 Winner: The Song, by Peggy Davis
2006 Winner: Root Doctor, by Scott T. Hutchison
2004 Winner: Arlen Gone, by Kevin Harrington
2002 Winner: It Can Happen Here, by Catherine Dupree
2000 Winner: The Painting, by Alan P. Henry
1998 Winner: Teaser, by Scott T. Hutchison
1996 Winner: The Passing of the Torch, by Avalyn Hunter
1993 Winner: The Hanging in the Foaling Barn, by Susan Starr Richards
Contest rules
Deadline to enter: December 31, 2009
1) Entry must be fiction and pertain to an aspect of the Thoroughbred industry.
2) Entry must be original material. Previously published work is not eligible.
Entry submitted to a previous Thoroughbred Times Fiction Contest is not eligible.
3) Entry must be a maximum of 5,000 words, typed or computer-printed, and double-spaced on 8 1/2” x 11” white paper. Entry that exceeds word count is not eligible.
4) Each author may submit only one entry.
5) Author acknowledges that he or she solely owns the work and that the work does not violate or infringe on any copyright agreements and does not contain any libelous material.
6) Each entry must be accompanied by a cover sheet that lists title of entry, author’s name, mailing address, e-mail address (if available), and daytime telephone number. Do not include author’s name and contact information on individual pages of entry.
7) Entries must be postmarked by December 31, 2009.
8) Send your entry to Thoroughbred Times Fiction Contest, P.O. Box 8237, Lexington, KY 40533-8237. For overnight packages and those that require a return receipt acknowledgment, send your entry to: Thoroughbred Times Fiction Contest, 2008 Mercer Road, Lexington, KY 40511.
9) E-mailed entries will be accepted and should be sent to fiction@thoroughbredtimes.com. Entry should be in a Microsoft Word document and sent as an attachment to the e-mail.
10) No fax entries will be accepted.
11) Thoroughbred Times will acknowledge receipt of entries via e-mail or mail.
12) Entries will be judged by an editorial panel selected by the editors of Thoroughbred Times. Decision of the judges is final.
13) By submitting an entry to the Fiction Contest, the author acknowledges that Thoroughbred Times is hereby awarded the first North American publication rights, and compensation to the author will be as outlined below. Thoroughbred Times reserves the right to publish any and all Fiction Contest entries in Thoroughbred Times.
14) First-place winner will receive $600 and the work will be published in Thoroughbred Times. Second-place winner will receive $300 and the work will be published in Thoroughbred Times. Third-place winner will receive $200 and the work will be published in Thoroughbred Times. Any Honorable Mention winners that are published will receive a cash prize.
15) Entries will not be returned.
16) Employees of and/or regular contributors to Thoroughbred Times are not eligible.
17) To obtain the results of the contest, send a self-addressed, stamped envelope to: Thoroughbred Times Fiction Contest Results, P.O. Box 8237, Lexington, KY 40533. For more information, contact Tom Law at (859) 260-9800 ext.125 or fiction@thoroughbredtimes.com.