Introducing Our Thirteenth Playground Challenge:
A Fiction Short Story Competition
July 16 - July 26, 2026
Feedback has been sent out!
If you submitted a story and have not received feedback, email us right away at admin@writersplaygroundllc.com and we will get that sorted out…
Featured Story:
Crowly only needs three things to survive the apocalypse: cigarettes, a place to sleep in Narita Airport Mall, and nobody asking him for favors. Then a lottery ticket puts the fate of a frozen world in his hands... “Minna No Tame Ni” won 2nd Place, out of 597 entries, in our Thirteenth Playground Challenge... Eve Cran is a talented writer based in Oro Valley, Arizona, and her fiction ranges from literary to speculative, exploring connection, love, and loss in worlds both familiar and strange. She is particularly drawn to near-future worlds and the choices people make when familiar certainties fall away. Eve also won Honorable Mention for her story, “Male Diction” in our Twelfth Playground Challenge. She is currently working on her first novel, The Shift, and to read even more of Eve’s fiction, you can request a subscription to her substack, buildingbetterworlds.substack.com. You can also listen to this episode on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.
$4000 in Prizes
Choose Your Character
Choose Your Setting
You Have 10 Days to Write Your Story
10+ Winners
$34 Entry Fee
Every Entry Receives Feedback
“This was a great contest! I loved the time frame, it allowed for some real thought and work to be put into a new piece while also pushing me because deadlines just work. I loved the prompts, feedback and critiques. I’ll be signing up again!”
-Marissa Isch, Denver, CO, USA
“I was so happy to come in 4th in this fascinating competition. Great prompts and probably the most helpful and encouraging feedback I’ve ever had.”
Katja Sass, Wellington, Somerset, UK
“This was a ton of fun to do. Great setup with the prompt choices and quick time frame. Thanks for doing this and for the feedback as well. That’s a great motivator. Looking forward to the results and the next challenges!”
Dan Scamell, Salem, NY, USA
“I have participated in both of these rounds and have loved this challenge both times, along with the feedback. I am eager for the third round. This has been a great catalyst and spark to my dream of improving my writing. It is a major life goal to create stories that I would like to read!”
Molly Valentin, Forest Lake, MN, USA