LegendFiction Epic Anthology Contest Guidelines
Across-the-board rules and info for posting your submissions and eagerly awaiting the results.
Anthology Contest Guidelines 📚 - Watch Video
Each anthology LegendFiction crafts is a unique work of art, and each contest is an independent adventure, always with something fresh and challenging—but like any artisan, we do have a trademark style that fits into every one of our works.
Here are the across-the-board rules and info for how to create and submit stories, and what we’ll be doing every time.
Who’s Invited
Our anthologies are always open to any faith-inspired, Catholic or Orthodox author anywhere! We’re a community for high school teens through to adults.
What You Can Expect from Us
Top stories (and possibly honorable mentions) get published in a fiction anthology, to be made available on Kindle, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and more—all to help you grow your publishing career!
Anthologies are reviewed and carefully designed by the LegendFiction team volunteers. All the income generated from sales of this anthology goes to two places:
To pay the LegendFiction team members for their time in designing the anthology
To pay for LegendFiction software and maintenance costs
This is how we give back to the community so that we can all continue creating together!
We read all submissions ‘anonymously,’ meaning name, membership status, and past expertise does not influence our decision on the merit of your entry.
All stories are subject to mentor review. We will select stories that best follow our content and contest guidelines.
All participants will be notified about the contest finalists through the LegendFiction community. Judges’ decisions are final.
How to Enter the Glorious Fray:
Read each contest’s details carefully! Each anthology is unique, and many details vary each time.
That said, across-the-board submission instructions are
Post your story on your blog, and share a link to your contest entry, inside the designated portal in LegendFiction. (Alternatively, if you don’t have a blog, leave a Google Doc link. Make sure you set permissions so we can view it.)
Ideally young adult fiction—not children’s stories, and no extremely mature content.
No fan fiction. Your creative world may be similar to your favorite series, but must have original content.
Contestants do not need to be paying members of LegendFiction, but you do need to create an account to enter this contest.
Only one submission per author per contest, please.
More Detailed Info:
Overview
Our community is for high school students through adults, and as such, general content – like anthologies and contests – should be free of swearing, smut, and gore.
Stories you share for private feedback should follow the guidelines in our terms and conditions, and on this page.
LegendFiction is a community that values entertaining and challenging stories, but never preachy ones. Here are some of our rules for posting in our community, contest submissions, and publication.
Contributors are expected to follow guidelines on copyrighted content, zero spam, no NSFW content, and few formatting errors. LegendFiction does not endorse or approve of all content contributed, and we have a zero-tolerance policy against trolls and toxic behavior.
The community welcomes religious themes, but not evangelistic fiction or shaming language. Graphic content, hate speech, and glorification of self-harm are not acceptable.
LegendFiction believes that stories exist to entertain, to charm and challenge. While stories and authors can be on a mission to share a serious message, it should never be preachy.
Posting in the community: Post stories the right space. For more adult content that’s 18+, use the Adult group.
Contest submissions: Your entry should remain relatively family friendly.
Writing Rules
No copyrighted content that isn’t yours (plagiarizing)
Content is in English
Zero spam
No formatting errors (get used to Grammarly and Hemingway Editor)
No NSFW content at all in public areas. Mature themes welcome, subject to review. Check our graphic content area below for details.
Publication & Copyright
Stories are reviewed before publication in an anthology by a mentor. This does not mean that we endorse or approve of all content contributed, or endorse activity by our contributors on other websites. All opinions from our contributors are their own, and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of LegendFiction, its mentors, or other contributors.
Contributors who display unkind or harmful activity in their interactions, or celebrated within their stories, will not be published. We have a zero-tolerance policy against trolls, and a 2-strike policy for members on flagged or toxic behavior.
Your work is automatically protected under Copyright Law as soon you put it into a fixed format, like writing it down.
If you believe your work has been copied improperly, you can submit a takedown request and we will immediately investigate to remove the infringing work.
Publication in the LegendFiction community or anthologies is no cost to you. You keep your copyright, but you’re allowing us to use your content too. By submitting your story to a contest, you are granting LegendFiction a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free license to use, reproduce, distribute, and display your submission in connection with the contest and its promotion, including but not limited to publication in print or digital format, on websites, social media platforms, and any other promotional materials. You retain all copyright and other intellectual property rights in your submission.
By submitting your story, you affirm that you have the legal right to grant the aforementioned license and that your submission does not infringe upon the intellectual property rights or any other rights of any third party. Furthermore, you agree that LegendFiction shall not be obligated to pay you any compensation, now or in the future, for the use of your submission as described.
How contest judging works
Judging happens in two rounds: When the deadline passes, the LegendFiction team of mentors will read through and identify all entries that:
Best fit the contest requirements spelled out on this page
Are well crafted according to our Short Story Checklist, and
Respond well to feedback for change requests
A LegendFiction mentor will identify the winners, and announce them in the community, along with any honorable mentions.
Naturally, LegendFiction mentors will not participate in the contest, but may be included in the anthology.
Contest feedback
We provide feedback and editing recommendations on every finalist entry. Poorly written jumbles of words, or inexperienced entries, are passed over in favor of entries with demonstrated skill. The LegendFiction team reserves the right to not award a winner if the submissions do not reach a publishable standard.
A contestant continues to earn their place by incorporating feedback and demonstrating improvement. All our editors have been trained to help guide the development of each piece to reach its fullest potential in keeping with the author’s vision. We value your effort.
Preference is given to stories with solid storytelling structure, well constructed and written, and is consistent with the LegendFiction vision, as determined by contest staff and administrators, in their sole but reasonable discretion.
Religious themes
Overtly religious stories are welcome – but we are not here to write evangelistic fiction. We do not believe that our views, ideas, and personal witness are perfect. We understand that many who are not Christian may live the truth more faithfully than we do – which is how we treat our characters.
Our faithful Catholic and Orthodox writers are deep believers in the Gospel message. But we don’t confuse the ‘call to holiness’ offered to all humanity with a self-referential, self-congratulating ego. Fictional characters in can of course be religious, and we welcome stories and conversations that discuss religious living and themes. We do not welcome content intended to shame or divide members, or groups within the world.
We are here to encourage writers of mature faith, who understand the need for nuance, and who wrestle with the realities of our modern world.
Graphic Content
Graphic depictions of violence, sexuality, or strong language are not appropriate for contest submissions, or for sharing in our general community. Mature themes are welcome, but within a relatively family-friendly context. We get that not every story should be for all ages.
Shaming language, glorification of self-harm, or hate speech of any kind will be rejected. Please ask if you have questions.
That’s all! Go dive into the deep waters of our current contest, and make something awesome. I can’t wait to read it.