High School Writing Contests Announced By Bucks County Community College

NEWTOWN, PA — Bucks County Community College is inviting high school students to participate in its annual short fiction and poetry contests. The contests are open to students in grades 9 through 12 who attend high school in Bucks County or reside in the county. Home-schooled high school students in Bucks County are also eligible to enter. There is no entry fee for either contest.

The ninth annual short fiction contest is accepting submissions until noon on Wednesday, March 11. Students may submit one original short story, 5 to 10 double-spaced pages in length. Stories must be unpublished and completely original, with no fan fiction permitted. Entries must be submitted online.

The first-place winner will receive a $200 honorarium, second place will receive $100, and third place will receive $50. Winners will be invited to read their work at a campus celebration in April. Faculty members will serve as judges for the contest.For more information, contact contest director Professor Elizabeth Luciano at elizabeth.luciano@bucks.edu.

The 39th Annual High School Poet of the Year contest is accepting entries through Friday, March 13. Students can submit up to three original poems. The winner of the poetry contest will receive $300 and a proclamation from the Bucks County Commissioners. The winner will also have the opportunity to read their work at a public reception. Runners-up and finalists will also be invited to read at this public event.

The contest will be judged by 2025 Bucks County Poet Laureate Madeline Marriott and 2024 laureate Lake Angela. An online entry form can be found by clicking here. To learn more, contact Dr. Ethel Rackin, director of the Bucks County Poet Laureate program which runs the high school poetry contest, at ethel.rackin@bucks.edu.