St Francis Today is excited to announce the first Reader Writing Contest of the year, for May. We hope this will be the first of many such competitions. We desire to unearth some new talent in the area or get some of the more experienced creatives in the neighbourhood back in their happy, imaginative places and writing down some fantastic stories for our readers to enjoy.  

Concept.

We are looking for strictly local stories for the first competition, and we only want positive vibes and good news. So, anything you might have experienced, witnessed, or enjoyed in the greater St Francis neighbourhood. Maybe it was a fantastic meal at a local restaurant you want to tell us about or a hilarious experience you wish to relay. It might be a positive sporting event you entered into or a meeting with a local with a great result. We want to hear your positive stories about St Francis Bay.

Length and format. 

These days most people struggle to concentrate after 600 words, so we will look at stories between 300 and 600 words. You can write as many words as you like, but the more succinct pieces seem to get the most attention these days. Please put your work into a Word document and mail it to news@stfrancistoday.com with your name and contact details clearly marked.

Judging

Some locals will judge the stories; the most crucial criterion is entertainment value. We will also look at specific metrics, like how many views the story gets and how many comments and engagements. Finally, writers are encouraged to post the story links on social media hubs for more attention.

Prizes.

For May, we will offer an R1,000 prize for the best story. We hope to up this over the next few months to something exceptional. Your story will so be published in the next issue of the Wildside TIMES local print magazine.

Disclaimer. Not all entries will be published. Certain stories might be deemed unsuitable and these might not be published, as an editorial decision.

*Sponsorship. 

Should any St Francis – based company or anyone further afield for that matter – want to get involved and sponsor the St Francis Today Reader’s Writing contest, please get hold of us at news@stfrancistoday.com – this property will be a great platform to advertise your company or product as a presenting sponsor of such a competition.