Competition Instructions

The Australian Wildlife Society’s Wildlife Fiction Short Story Competition is a national competition that seeks original short stories that entertain, convey a message, capture a moment, or evoke a certain mood about Australian wildlife (flora or fauna) while shedding light on the challenges they face in a modern world.  

Winners receive a cash prize, a certificate, and their short story published in the Australian Wildlife magazine.  Use your creative talents to raise awareness and let your words make an impact!

A Junior Prize of $250 and a Senior Prize of $750 will be Awarded

Rules of Entry:

  1. The entry must be about a native Australian species – flora or fauna.
  2. The entry must be the work of the entrant.
  3. A junior is regarded between the ages of 8 to 17 years old.
  4. A senior is regarded as 18 years and older.
  5. The short story must be between 500 and 1,000 words.  Short stories that do not adhere to this rule will be automatically disqualified.
  6. By submitting an entry, entrants grant the Australian Wildlife Society rights to the short story.  Entrants retain the copyright to their entry but accord the Australian Wildlife Society the right to use the short story in any of its marketing or promotional material arising therefrom.
  7. There shall be no charge for entry, and entrants may only submit one entry.
  8. The entry will be submitted in a Word document: single-spaced, Times New Roman, and font size 12.  Start with a heading in font size 16, Bold, Title Case, followed by the author’s first and surname, followed by the story.  A short story Word template can be found here: bit.ly/SSTemp
  9. The prize category (either ‘Junior’ or ‘Senior’), the author’s first and surname, and the story’s title must be in the ‘file name’ and ‘email subject line’ of the entry submitted, e.g., Junior_John Smith_The Magical Mushroom.  The entry will be submitted to info@aws.org.au    
  10. Directors of the Australian Wildlife Society or their families are ineligible to submit an entry.
  11. The final result is at the discretion of the judges.

THE CLOSING DATE FOR ENTRIES IS 31 AUGUST 2024

THE WINNER WILL BE ANNOUNCED TOWARDS THE END OF SEPTEMBER