u3a - Short Story Competition 2026/7

Calling all u3a storytellers

The 2026 u3a Short Story competition is now open for entries.

The competition is free to enter, and open to all u3a members, including members of Interest Groups Online.

Theme

Out of the ordinary

Word count

Up to 1,500 words

Deadline

Friday 22 January 2027

How to take part

Get creative - your story can be fiction or non-fiction, but must fit the theme of 'out of the ordinary.'
Read the competition rules below. Any submission that does not meet these rules will not be considered.
Submit your story using the online form below before 22 January.

Enter the competition

Thursday 26 November, 10am

Free workshop: The ultimate guide to editing your creative writing

Sara Grant will lead a practical online session on how to polish your story before you submit it. Sign up for free.

Judging and prizes

First place:

Five books

2nd and 3rd:

Two books each

Shortlisted runners up:

One book each

Every prize winner and shortlisted writer will also have their story published on the u3a website. All books are provided by Bloomsbury.

Judging process

The judges will consider:
- imagination and creativity
- the ability to engage interest
- interpretation of the theme
- sentence construction, spelling and grammar.
All the entries will be judged in randomised groups. The best entry in each group will be decided by a panel of judges and the shortlisted entrants will be notified.
Each of the shortlisted entrants will then be judged against each other to identify an overall winner.
The winner will be announced by May 2027.

The judges

Sara Grant: Bloomsbury-published author
Lynne: Creative Writing Subject Adviser
Janet: last year's winner

The judges’ decision is final in all matters. Judges and organisers will not enter into any discussion with any entrant about their entry.

Competition rules

Entries that don't follow the rules will not be considered.

Your story

Written in English, and entirely your own original work
Not previously published or entered in another competition
On the ‘Out of the ordinary’ theme, with a title
A maximum of 1,500 words, not counting the title (longer entries won’t be read)
Stories only: no poems, other formats, pictures or drawings

Submission

Type or paste your story into the entry form, and put the title in its designated field.
Your name, your u3a and any local identifiers must not appear in the story, as entries are judged anonymously.
Do not include your name, u3a, or any other identifiers anywhere in your story.
Submit your entry in good time and preferably not on the last day. The Third Age Trust can make no allowances for technical issues which prevent or delay submission.
Postal entries cannot be accepted.

Plagiarism and AI

Don’t copy or closely imitate existing work.
Don’t use apps or AI tools to produce any part of your text.
All shortlisted stories are checked for plagiarism and AI, and detected entries are disqualified.

Copyright and your data

You keep the worldwide copyright to your story. By entering, you give the Third Age Trust and Third Age Trust Trading Ltd. permission to hold, edit and publish it on their website, social media, u3a matters magazine and in an eBook, always crediting you by name. We’ll contact you only about your story and the competition, and won’t use your data for anything else.

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