This year marks the 32nd annual Stanley Shalit Short Story Competition, held by the Largo Library for grades 6-12. The theme for the contest this year is “Faces in the Mirror.” According to the City of Largo website, the stories should “revolve around an experience, setting, problem, challenge, tragedy, triumph, or any circumstance that will intrigue readers and bring characters to life.” The submission guidelines for the contest include:
• The story must be fiction, original and 4 to 8 pages in length.
• All work must be typed; pages must be numbered, double spaced and margins justified.
• The story must have a title page that includes the title of the story and the writer’s name.
• Each work must have a cover letter that includes the participant’s name, age, home address, phone number, email address, school name, teacher’s name, and grade level.
• Complete work must be submitted in print/hard copy form. No email submissions will be accepted.
• The completed work must be postmarked by, or submitted to the Largo Public Library, no later than 8:00 P.M. on Wednesday, March 16, 2016.
• Failure to follow these rules will disqualify the entry.
• Submitted work will not be returned. Please be sure to keep a copy of your work.
There are prizes that are included for the eight finalists in each grade. The first place winner will receive 150 dollars, the second place winner will receive 100 dollars, third place will receive 75 dollars and the runners up will receive 50 dollars.
Last year, more than 300 students participated in the competition, and only sixteen students over all were selected to win, eight for middle school and eight for high school. Seven of the students who won were Osceola Warriors.
“Last year the theme was ‘The Vacation that Changed my life,’ said creative writing teacher, Mr. Stewart.