Last year, we selected twelve of the best stories from our back catalogue to feature in the daily slot. At the end of the Festival, we brought the stories together in a wee anthology called The McFestival Dozen, which is still available from Amazon in Kindle and paperback formats.
This year, we’re doing things differently. We’re running a McCompetition. And here’s how it works. We’re inviting our contributors, past and yet to be, to submit a short story on the theme of Being Scots, which we explain more about below. Ideally, the story should be no longer than 3,000 words. It should be submitted through our usual Submission Form, adding the words ‘Festival Competition’ immediately after the story’s title.
By the time the Festival opens, the debate over the Scottish Independence Referendum will have reached fever pitch. The theme we’ve chosen is timely, therefore. Your story may or may not be supportive of Scottish independence; it may not even mention the subject. And it may be serious or irreverent or downright rude. We don’t care, just so long as the writing is good and the story is concerned with Being Scots.
So that’s the McCompetition. Submissions can be made any time from now right up to the end of June. The stories will be published on the McStorytellers site in the usual way in the first place. Then the best of them will feature at the Festival. After which another wee anthology is planned.
Just before we go, here’s a taster of a story to help you think and write about Being Scots. It’s called Home-Koming Night. It comes from the pen of master of irreverence and comedy, Glaswegian author Allan Watson. And it’s already a prime candidate for the Festival Short Story slot.
And please remember that between now and the end of June, normal non-McCompetition submissions will continue to be very welcome.