£500 for 500 Flash Fiction Writing Competition

Welcome to Inkspot’s first Flash Fiction Short Story Competition! £500 for 500. We’re looking forward to receiving your flash fiction short stories, with a word count not exceeding 500 words. Short scripts are also welcome.

We will be looking for all the usual things, whether it’s quality writing, characterisation, deft world-building, sparkling dialogue, humour, heartbreak, intrigue … but with the discipline and restraint necessary to remain within the word count. We’re banking on receiving some excellent entries, as we’re planning to compile our favourites into an e-book, which will also be available in print, as POD.

1. Entry Types
2. Details
3. What can be submitted?
4. Who can submit?
5. Submission Rules & Guidelines
6. Submission Process
7. Reimbursements
8. Report Submission Issues
9. Enter Competition

Entry types

1. 500 word entry £10
2. 500 word entry + paragraph of feedback £20

Details

• Judge: Peter Buckman, Literary Agent, The Ampersand Agency
• Prize: £500
• Entry Fees: £10 for General Entry, £20 for Entry + a paragraph of feedback from a competition judge.
• Word Limit: 500 words excluding title.
• Deadline: Sunday May 17th 2026 11:59 PM GMT
• Short List Date: Sunday 21st June 2026
• Winners Announcement Date: Sunday 19th July 2026

What can be submitted?

Flash fiction with a word count not exceeding 500, excluding title. Short scripts, either plays or screenplays are also welcome. 

Who can Submit?

Writers from anywhere in the world can submit to this short story competition. We promote and encourage quality writing from amateurs and professionals alike, so the competition is open to anyone, as long as the work submitted is the author’s own original work and is written in English. There is no lower age limit, but young authors should note that we are not seeking to attract writing for children. 

Free Entries

Writers on low incomes may send a request to enter the short story competition for free by emailing hello@inkspotpublishing.com by Sunday 26th April 2026. Please wait until your request has been approved to send your story, do not attach your story in your initial request message. We reserve the right to turn away free entries if we receive too many. 

Submission Rules & Guidelines

We encourage applicants to make their submission as early as possible before the deadline. Entries may be submitted online or via the post.

First, read the Competition Rules & Guidelines and the rest of the page thoroughly. Submission of an entry is taken as acceptance of the Competition Rules.

Rules:

1. Original work: Writing must be original work belonging to the submitter
2. No Artificial Intelligence: We want the work of humans! Stories that demonstrate use of AI in the writing will be disqualified.
3. Formatting: Stories must follow our formatting guidelines. Identifying information, such as author name, cannot be in the submitted file.

Formatting requirements:

• In English: Your submission must be written in English or be your own work translated into English
• Title and Word count: Add the title and word count on the front page.
• Font size: Your submission can be in any font, black 12pt preferred. We will not accept handwritten entries.
• Paragraph spacing: 1.5 or double spaced preferred.
• Page numbers: Please number your pages
• Document type: Please attach your document as word docs or PDFs.  Maximum file size 2MB.
• Document name: Please name attachments with your exact story title.  If untitled, with the exact first line.
• Please ensure your submission does not include your name or any other identifying marks.

Guidelines:

1. Re-using stories: Writers cannot submit work that has already (1) won or been shortlisted by another writing competition, and (2) been published by a large-circulation platform or magazine.
   If a story wins another competition or is published AFTER the writer made the submission to Inkspot Publishing, the writer must contact our team and we will allow them to submit a new story in its place.
2. Ownership: Inkspot Publishing will not claim ownership to any stories submitted to the 500 for 500 Flash Fiction competition. Copyright belongs always to the author.
3. Publication: The winning titles will be published on our website, and all shortlisted titles will have the opportunity to be published on fictionjunkies.com. In the event that Inkspot Publishing compiles a collection of entries as an e-book and/or POD, stories will only be included with the explicit permission of the author.

Submission Process

• To enter, please select “Enter Competition”, it will take you to the submission form. You can choose your entry type on the form, enter in your submission details, and then pay.
• Please ensure your attachments do not include your name or any other identifying marks.
• Multiple entries are accepted, but please purchase your entries one at a time. The submission form that populates after purchase will only accept one file. 
• Once payment has been received you will receive email acknowledgements from both PayPal and Inkspot. 

Reimbursements

Reimbursements will be given to accidental duplicate purchases, incomplete purchases, or within 3 days of purchase. 

We will not grant reimbursements if you request to withdraw after your submission has been reviewed, or for any reason after May 19th.

Report Submission Issues

If you run into any problems during the submission process, please contact us.

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