Science-Fiction Writing Competition
Strategic Studies is proud to host its debut "Science-Fiction Writing Competition" and invites students of all levels and disciplines to participate. The competition will run through the end of the Winter semester, and the winner will be announced in early 2025. The winner will receive a cash prize of £200 and have their essay published on the University's blog and disseminated on social media feeds.
While we cannot precisely foresee future conflicts, fiction is a valuable tool for imagining them. By creating and exploring possible future scenarios, fiction helps us anticipate the outcomes of our decisions and gauge how current trends or emerging innovations might develop. It also serves a purpose akin to war gaming, offering a means to simulate and prepare for different possibilities.
This competition aims to investigate conflict and competition through creative storytelling. Writers are encouraged to imagine the future and develop plausible scenarios about potential conflicts and national security challenges. They can also explore the past, using historical fiction to explore alternative histories. We invite authors to create engaging narratives that reveal unexpected insights and add realistic depth to contemporary visions of future conflict.
Submission guidelines:
- 1,000-3,000 words, including sources/footnotes.
- Word doc; text should be double-spaced throughout, using standard 10 or 12 point.
- Include word count on the title page of the essay, but do not include author name(s) on the title page or within the text.
- The submission deadline is December 6th, 2024.
- The essay must be original and not previously published (online or in print) or being considered for publication elsewhere.
- Only one entry per contributor. Group submissions are permissible.
Submit to james.johnson@abdn.ac.uk email subject: "Strategic Studies Sci-Fi Writing Submission."