I'd like to enter my short story The Proposal, for the November competition. How do I go about it?

When Lorian Hemingway judged Hemingway Days’ first short story competition in 1981, she and her fellow judges sat in a Lower Keys cottage reading and evaluating the few dozen entries with care. They couldn’t possibly imagine that the competition would grow into one of America’s most prestigious literary contests. Now, more than a quarter-century later, the contest draws between 800 and 1,200 entries each year from around the U.S. and other countries as far-flung as India and Romania and Lorian and her small judging panel still give every one of them their complete attention and respect.

Since its beginnings, the competition has been dedicated to recognizing and supporting the work of emerging writers whose fiction has not yet achieved success. For some, this recognition is the first validation of their worth as writers. Coordinating the competition is a pleasure and a passion for Lorian, author of three critically acclaimed books, Walking Into The River, Walk On Water and A World Turned Over.

“Reading a story of talent and craft, and knowing that perhaps you can help further the career of a gifted writer, is truly one of the greatest joys,” says Lorian. To date, the Lorian Hemingway Short Story Competition has awarded more than $70,000 to emerging writers of merit. The longtime judging panel includes writer Cristen Hemingway Jaynes as well as editor and award-winning short story writer Jeff Baker.