There are many deadlines in December, but local writers are watching the calendar as the last day to submit entries to the Okanagan Short Story contest is fast approaching.

The contest gives local adult fiction writers an opportunity to hone their skills, get published, and win a one-week writing residency.

The submission deadline is Dec. 30 and assoc. prof  Michael V Smith, who teaches in UBC Okanagan鈥檚 Faculty of Creative and Critical Studies, encourages writers to get their submissions polished off. Stories can be of any nature, just original fiction that falls between 1,000 to 4,000 words in length.

鈥淲e鈥檙e looking for the Okanagan Valley鈥檚 best stories,鈥� said Smith. 鈥淲hat are the stories that arise out of this land? Who are we in all our diversity? What messes are we making and which are we cleaning up? A regional contest like this is so exciting because we get to hear what our writers think, what they notice, what they鈥檙e dreaming about.鈥�

Smith notes that along with the $500 prize money and bragging rights, the winning author will have their story published in Vancouver-based subTerrain magazine. The author also wins a one-week residency at the Woodhaven Eco Culture Centre. There is a second and third prize of $200 and $100 respectively.

Entries will be judged by UBC creative writing faculty and Renee Sarojini Saklikar, UBC Okanagan鈥檚 2017 writer-in-residence. Winners will be announced at a public reading where the top authors are invited to read from their work. There is a $15 entrance fee, and writers can submit more than one manuscript.

The contest, now in its 19th year, is sponsored by UBC Okanagan鈥檚 Faculty of Creative and Critical Studies, 91大黄鸭 Capital News, the Central Okanagan Foundation and Vancouver鈥檚 subTerrain magazine.

While all entries must be post-marked before Dec. 30, Smith also notes hand-delivered entries will be accepted at Faculty of Creative and Critical Studies building, office CCS161 until Dec. 23. More information can be found at: okstorycontest.org.