What you need to know
 

• ​Submission is open to writers of all ages who live, work or study in Buckinghamshire (including Milton Keynes), Bedfordshire or Northamptonshire

• ​If you are under 18, you will need a parent or carer to submit on your behalf.

• All entries must be your own original work and created without the use of AI. Where pieces have been previously published, we can accept them only where you retain copyright: please contact us with details of where it has been previously published before submitting if this is the case

• Pieces must have a connection, however tangential, to a specific location in Milton Keynes for which you can provide the location details (for example, a building, street, green space, a particular tree, etc.)

• Flash fiction and creative non-fiction must be no more than 500 words. There is no minimum word limit. Any genre of flash fiction is acceptable, e.g. mystery, romance, science fiction, history 

• Poems must be no more than 40 lines. All types of poem are welcome: free verse, rhyming, haiku, sonnet, etc.

• You may submit in all three categories if you wish

• You may submit as many pieces as you wish

• Entries should be submitted in Microsoft Word or PDF format: If submitting more than one entry, please submit each one  as a separate document

• All work should include a word count (fiction pieces) or line count (poems]

• Writers must not include their name on any part of the attached piece as entries will be judged anonymousl

• Where pieces are selected for the project, successful writers will be notified within four weeks of submission: we will endeavour to respond to all submissions within this timeframe, but may not always be able to do so at peak times. Where pieces are selected, we reserve the right to suggest and offer minor editorial changes before final acceptance of a piece.

• Selected pieces will be incorporated into the Raising Voices StoryMap website; if your piece is selected, you will be invited to provide an optional audio recording to accompany the piece. You can also provide an optional photograph or drawing.

• Selected pieces may also appear in SoundWalks, collecting together a collection of pieces that share closely grouped locations

• Some pieces may also be collected for publication in anthologies that will be available in paperback and/or e-reader formats. Their writers may also be invited to read at online or in-person Lit Fest events.

• Please do not submit material that would not receive a cinematic rating of 15 or less (i.e. no 18 / R-rated submissions)

• MK Lit Fest cannot correspond with submitting writers or give feedback on submissions.