In addition to my ‘300 Words a Day’ Podcast, I will be running a bi-monthly flash fiction competition ~ from 1st April 2026 ~ with submissions of up to 300 words, with a different theme each month (see below).

I currently run a free 50-word (exactly) competition on my blog where I offer free editing, mentoring and/or online courses as prizes.

The 300-word competition though will have a fee ~ to raise money for the three Self-Pub Fest Charities ~ of £3 for a single entry or £5 for two entries, with a 50% prize pot, 50% to the charities (after relevant PayPal fees).

Prizes… The top three entrants will receive: 25% (winner), 15% (second), 10% (third) of the money raised in each month. As this is a new competition, the pot is likely to be small initially but hopefully grow over time.

Email me (morgen@morgenbailey.com) if you have any queries.

How to enter

1. Pay the fee: use the QR code on the right ~ which will take you to the donation page ~ or you can click directly HERE. Pay £3 for a single entry or £5 for two entries. PayPal should give you the option to pay their fee. If you’re happy to do that it does mean that the pot and charities would receive the full entry fee. It’s no problem if not. It’s lovely knowing that they will receive the majority.
2. Email your entry to me (Morgen) with the…
   Subject Line: Self-Pub Fest 300-word competition – Theme ‘(the relevant theme)’ ~ Story Title
   Then in the body of the email…
   Your name
   Story title
   The story (up to 300 words).
   Any other comment or message you’d like to share with me.
3. I will confirm receipt of your payment and entry/entries, usually within a few days. If you’ve not heard within a fortnight, please check that it’s been received.

What happens next

1. I will gather the entries and keep this page updated with the number of entries and prize pot (50% of the total nett received, i.e. after any PayPal fees have been accounted for).
2. Once the deadline has passed, I will announce the results by the middle of the following month, i.e. 15th June 2026 for the theme ‘the opening’.

Deadlines and themes… 

1. 1st April to 31st May 2026: the opening (_ entries received, £_ prize pot) ~ the link to the winning three stories will appear here by 15th June 2026.
2. 1st June 2026 to 31st July 2026: working nights
3. 1st August 2026 to 30th September 2026: the court
4. 1st October 2026 to 30th November 2026: magnets
5. 1st December 2026 to 31st January 2027: a pair of red shoes
6. 1st February 2027 to 31st March 2027: hooked on Sam
7. 1st April 2027 to 31st May 2027: here until seven

FAQ

• Why is there a 300-word limit? My favourite statistic is 300 words a day = 109,500 words in a (non-leap-year) year. In my ‘300 Words a Day’ Podcast, I provide a different writing prompt every day then break them down into who, what, where, when, why and how.
• Can I send more than two stories? Absolutely. If you send one, the fee is £3, two will be £5, three will be £8, four will be £10 and so on.
• Can I win more than one prize? Sadly not. Not within the same month anyway. The top three winning stories will be by different authors. As soon as I receive the entries, I will go through them and let the entrants know which of their stories I prefer so they can send the unsuccessful  ones elsewhere. Unless you submit late in the second month, you won’t have to wait until the results are announced to know which of your stories has gone through. I think that’s only fair.
• Can I send an entry early? Please wait until the opening time, i.e. you can submit your story for ‘the opening’ as soon as we get to 1st April, not before then please. There’s not long to wait!
• When does each round close? Each round closes at midnight UK time at the end of the relevant month, i.e. round 1 closes at midnight UK time on 31st May.
• Can  I send a piece of micro fiction, i.e. 100 words? Absolutely. The 300 words is a limit. There’s no minimum.
• Can I send a piece that’s exactly 300 words? You can but I recommend losing a few (ten or more) words in case my version of Word tips it over the 300 words. It would then be disqualified.
• Can I send poetry? Sorry, no. This is a flash fiction (short short story) competition. Any poems received will be disqualified. The fee will not be refunded.
• I’ve made amendments to the story. Can I submit a different version? Sorry no. The first version is the only one accepted. Subsequent version will be deleted. Please ensure you’re happy with your submission before you email it.
• Where do I send my stories? Email them ~ in separate emails if you have more than one ~ to morgen@morgenbailey.com. You should receive confirmation within a week. If two weeks have passed, feel free to email to check.
• Will my story be published? If you are in the top three, yes. They will be published in full on the home page of this website, with links to the post against the relevant theme above. If your story isn’t published, you’re free to submit your qualifying story elsewhere.
• Do I have to stick to the theme? Yes, do feature the theme in your story. Some of the most successful stories on my 50-word competition have heavily featured the theme. The stories that have favoured less well have sometimes felt as if an existing story has been tailored for that month’s theme.
• Why is there a fee? Because there has to be an income in order to create a prize pot. Plus I want to raise as much as possible for the three Self-Pub Fest Charities.

Email me (Morgen) if you have any other queries and I’ll add them here (and reply to you!).