Rules & Regulations
FLASH FICTION: rules and regulations (UPDATED 14/03/2026)
1. Competition Timing
The May competition will run from 23:00 hrs UK time on a Friday night to 23:00 hrs UK Time on a Sunday night.
From August 2026 the competition will run from 23:00 hrs UK time on a Sunday night for 7 days, and to 23:00 hrs UK Time the following Sunday night.
2. Entry Close & Fee
The entry fee is £10 (GBP) and is non-refundable. Entries close 22:00 hrs UK Time on Friday of contest.
From August 2026 the entry fee remains £10 (GBP) and is non-refundable. Entries close 22:00 hrs UK Time on the Sunday of contest start.
3. Charity Donation
£1 (GBP) of all entries will go to Galapagos Conservation Trust’s 'Adopt a Blue-footed Booby' scheme.
4. Prompts
All entrants will receive an email at the competition start time. There will be a selection of 3 prompts to choose from in three categories;
1) Genre 2) Location 3) Character
(i.e Romance, Church, Astronaut)
One selection must be made from each category. We will be very lenient with how far you push the prompts to their limits but any that do not include them will be disqualified.
5. Word Count
The story should be a maximum of 500 words. We will be using this free online tool to verify all entries, so we advise you to check your story's word count on there before submitting.
6. Entry & Entry Form
All entries must be written in English and attached (as a word doc or pdf) with no contact details visible via the competition entry form. The entry form asks which prompts you have chosen and to detail any trigger warnings.
Any early (before 23:00 UK Time on competition start date) or late entries (after 23:00 UK Time on competition closing date) sent via this form will be deleted without reading. If you need to contact us please do so via this form.
Only one story per entrant is permitted.
7. AI
Any stories found to be using AI will be disqualified.
8. Results - Shortlist
An initial shortlist of (maximum) 5 stories will be selected and announced via email and on the site within 6 weeks of closing entry time. A further (max of 10) selection of stories will receive honourable mentions. For the full judging process click HERE
9. Results - Winner(s)
The winner(s) will be announced within 14 days of the shortlist being announced
10. Blue-footed Booby BONUS
It's not compulsory, but if you include a Blue-Footed Booby in your story, you will automatically be displayed in the Booby Hall of Fame once the competition has finished. You will be asked on story submit if you wish your bio and story to be published too.
You will also go into a draw to win a Booby soft toy (from the adoption pack on the charity website)
11. Age requirements
Minimum age to enter is 18
12. Entry Criteria
An Entry (Story) can be disqualified at The Booby Prize's discretion any time after submission for any reason, including the following reasons:
a. Stories that glorify racism or sexism, or celebrate the discrimination against LGBTQ+ individuals or other marginalized groups.
b. Stories containing overly graphic sexual content or extreme/excessive gore.
c. Stories that would be deemed illegal, including but not limited to the sexualization of minors (bearing in mind this is an international competition - the legal age in US and Canada is taken as the limit), incitement to violence or terrorism, and extreme obscenities.
d. Stories written with little to no effort or that were clearly generated using AI, as determined by our admin team.
e. Stories containing intellectual property (IP) that the author does not own (e.g., 'fan fiction'). However, authors may use IP from creative works if they are in the public domain. For example, writing a spin on The Three Little Pigs would be perfectly acceptable.
f. The Entry goes over the maximum word count or under the minimum word count (if applicable).
g. There was no effort to adhere to the prompts or any one of the three prompts are missing from the story.
13. Rights and copyrights
The Booby Prize does not own the rights to the Entrant’s submitted story in any form. If the Entrant’s story is one of the winning entries, then the Entrant gives The Booby Prize the rights to post the winning story publicly, along with either the Entrant’s name or Alias.
If the Entrant wishes a Booby Hall of Fame story to be published then the Entrant gives The Booby Prize the rights to post the story publicly, along with either the Entrant’s name or Alias.
The Booby Prize shall use the name or Alias of the Entrant indicated in the Entrant’s online entry form.
If the entrant wishes to change any of the information (Name or Alias) then it is the responsibility of the Entrant to contact us before the Final Results.
Poetry: rules and regulations (UPDATED 14/03/2026)
1. Competition Timing
The competition will run from 23:00 hrs UK time on a Sunday night for 7 days, to 23:00 hrs UK Time the following Sunday night.
2. Entry Close & Fee
The entry fee is £10 (GBP) and is non-refundable. Entries close 22:00 hrs UK Time on the Sunday of contest start.
3. Charity Donation
£1 (GBP) of all entries will go to Galapagos Conservation Trust’s 'Adopt a Blue-footed Booby' scheme.
4. Prompts
All entrants will receive an email at the competition start time. There will be a selection of 3 prompts to choose from in three categories;
1) Genre 2) Location 3) Character
(i.e Romance, Church, Astronaut)
One selection must be made from each category. We will be very lenient with how far you push the prompts to their limits but any that do not include them will be disqualified.
5. Word Count & Poem Length
The poem can be any length or style up to a maximum of 40 lines.
6. Entry & Entry Form
All entries must be written in English and attached (as a word doc or pdf) with no contact details visible via the competition entry form. The entry form asks which prompts you have chosen and to detail any trigger warnings.
Any early (before 23:00 UK Time on competition start date) or late entries (after 23:00 UK Time on competition closing date) sent via this form will be deleted without reading. If you need to contact us please do so via this form.
Only one poem per entrant is permitted.
7. AI
Any poems found to be using AI will be disqualified.
8. Results - Shortlist
An initial shortlist of (maximum) 5 poems will be selected and announced via email and on the site within 6 weeks of closing entry time. A further (max of 10) selection of poems will receive honourable mentions. For the full judging process click HERE
9. Results - Winner(s)
The winner(s) will be announced within 14 days of the shortlist being announced
10. Blue-footed Booby BONUS
It's not compulsory, but if you include a Blue-Footed Booby in your poem, you will automatically be displayed in the Booby Hall of Fame once the competition has finished. You will be asked on story submit if you wish your bio and story to be published too.
You will also go into a draw to win a Booby soft toy (from the adoption pack on the charity website)
11. Age requirements
Minimum age to enter is 18
12. Entry Criteria
An Entry (Poem) can be disqualified at The Booby Prize's discretion any time after submission for any reason, including the following reasons:
a. Poems that glorify racism or sexism, or celebrate the discrimination against LGBTQ+ individuals or other marginalized groups.
b. Poems containing overly graphic sexual content or extreme/excessive gore.
c. Poems that would be deemed illegal, including but not limited to the sexualization of minors (bearing in mind this is an international competition - the legal age in US and Canada is taken as the limit), incitement to violence or terrorism, and extreme obscenities.
d. Poems written with little to no effort or that were clearly generated using AI, as determined by our admin team.
e. Poems containing intellectual property (IP) that the author does not own (e.g., 'fan fiction'). However, authors may use IP from creative works if they are in the public domain. For example, writing a spin on The Three Little Pigs would be perfectly acceptable.
f. The Entry goes over the maximum line count or under the minimum line count (if applicable).
g. There was no effort to adhere to the prompts or any one of the three prompts are missing from the poem.
13. Rights and copyrights
The Booby Prize does not own the rights to the Entrant’s submitted poem in any form. If the Entrant’s story is one of the winning entries, then the Entrant gives The Booby Prize the rights to post the winning poem publicly, along with either the Entrant’s name or Alias.
If the Entrant wishes a Booby Hall of Fame poem to be published then the Entrant gives The Booby Prize the rights to post the poem publicly, along with either the Entrant’s name or Alias.
The Booby Prize shall use the name or Alias of the Entrant indicated in the Entrant’s online entry form.
If the entrant wishes to change any of the information (Name or Alias) then it is the responsibility of the Entrant to contact us before the Final Results.
ILLUSTRATION: rules and regulations (UPDATED 14/03/2026)
1. Competition Timing
From August 2026 the competition will run from 23:00 hrs UK time on a Sunday night for 7 days, and to 23:00 hrs UK Time the following Sunday night.
2. Entry Close & Fee
The entry fee is £10 (GBP) and is non-refundable. Entries close 22:00 hrs UK Time on the Sunday of contest start.
3. Charity Donation
£1 (GBP) of all entries will go to Galapagos Conservation Trust’s 'Adopt a Blue-footed Booby' scheme.
4. Prompts
All entrants will receive an email at the competition start time. There will be a selection of 3 prompts to choose from in three categories;
1) Genre 2) Location 3) Character
(i.e Romance, Church, Astronaut)
One selection must be made from each category. We will be very lenient with how far you push the prompts to their limits but any that do not include them will be disqualified.
5. Illustration Types Accepted
All types of illustration are accepted. Digital, Pencil, Sketch, Watercolour or any other drawing or illustrative medium.
6. Entry & Entry Form
All entries must be attached (as a jpg or pdf) with no contact details visible via the competition entry form. The entry form asks which prompts you have chosen and to detail any trigger warnings.
Any early (before 23:00 UK Time on competition start date) or late entries (after 23:00 UK Time on competition closing date) sent via this form will be deleted without reading. If you need to contact us please do so via this form.
Only one illustration per entrant is permitted.
7. AI
Any entries found to be using AI will be disqualified.
8. Results - Shortlist
An initial shortlist of (maximum) 5 illustrations will be selected and announced via email and on the site within 6 weeks of closing entry time. A further (max of 10) selection of illustrations will receive honourable mentions. For the full judging process click HERE
9. Results - Winner(s)
The winner(s) will be announced within 14 days of the shortlist being announced
10. Blue-footed Booby BONUS
It's not compulsory, but if you include a Blue-Footed Booby in your work, you will automatically be displayed in the Booby Hall of Fame once the competition has finished. You will be asked on entry submit if you wish your bio and illustration to be published too.
You will also go into a draw to win a Booby soft toy (from the adoption pack on the charity website)
11. Age requirements
Minimum age to enter is 18
12. Entry Criteria
An Entry (Illustration) can be disqualified at The Booby Prize's discretion any time after submission for any reason, including the following reasons:
a. Illustrations that glorify racism or sexism, or celebrate the discrimination against LGBTQ+ individuals or other marginalized groups.
b. Illustrations containing overly graphic sexual content or extreme/excessive gore.
c. Illustrations that would be deemed illegal, including but not limited to the sexualization of minors (bearing in mind this is an international competition - the legal age in US and Canada is taken as the limit), incitement to violence or terrorism, and extreme obscenities.
d. Illustrations with little to no effort or that were clearly generated using AI, as determined by our admin team.
e. Illustrations containing intellectual property (IP) that the entrant does not own.
f. There was no effort to adhere to the prompts or any one of the three prompts are missing from the illustration.
13. Rights and copyrights
The Booby Prize does not own the rights to the Entrant’s submitted illustration in any form. If the Entrant’s illustration is one of the winning entries, then the Entrant gives The Booby Prize the rights to post the winning illustration publicly, along with either the Entrant’s name or Alias.
If the Entrant wishes a Booby Hall of Fame illustration to be published then the Entrant gives The Booby Prize the rights to post the illustration publicly, along with either the Entrant’s name or Alias.
The Booby Prize shall use the name or Alias of the Entrant indicated in the Entrant’s online entry form.
If the entrant wishes to change any of the information (Name or Alias) then it is the responsibility of the Entrant to contact us before the Final Results.
Copyright © 2025 The Booby Prize - All Rights Reserved.
All illustrations have been produced by Spartac Cebanu exclusively for The Booby Prize
STRICTLY No IMAGE REPRODUCTION without PRIOR permission.