All Tennessee high school students are eligible to enter the Tennessee Mountain Writers student contest. There is no entry fee, but entries must be submitted by Dec. 1. There are two categories Student Prose and Student Poetry. Students may enter only one piece in each contest; however, they may enter in both the prose and poetry categories.
The entry must be titled. Do not put your name or any other identifying information on the piece itself; entries will be judged blindly. Entry must be your original, unpublished work; it cannot have appeared previously in print, online or in social media. Email entries to contests@tmwi.org.
You may enter one piece of prose. It should be typed in Times New Roman 12-point font and double-spaced with one-inch margins at the top, bottom, left and right. It may be a short story, novel excerpt, a character sketch or an essay and may be no longer than 10 pages. As the first page, include a cover sheet that includes the title of the piece, your name, your high school, your grade (9-12), your writing teacher’s name, Student Prose, your email address, your telephone number and your mailing address with zip code. Do not put your name on any of the pages of the entry itself, only the cover sheet.
You may submit one poem of any form, formal or free verse. Your poem may be no longer than 40 lines. It should be typed in Times New Roman 12-point font. As the first page of your entry, include a cover sheet that includes the following information: the title of the piece, your name, your high school, your grade (9-12), your writing teacher’s name, Student Poetry, your email address, your telephone number and your mailing address with zip code. Do not put your name on the poem itself, only the cover sheet.
Winners are awarded at the annual TMW conference banquet at the DoubleTree Hotel in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, April 1, 2023. Awards in each category are: first place receives $50 and a plaque and banquet tickets for winner and guest; second place receives $30 and a certificate and banquet tickets for winner and guest; third place receives $20 and a certificate and banquet tickets for winner and guest.
