Submissions are invited for Imagine 2200: Climate Fiction Short Story Contest by Grist. The last date of submission is June 24, 2024.
About Grist
Grist is a nonprofit, independent media organization dedicated to highlighting climate solutions and uncovering environmental injustices.
Contest Details
Grist is excited to open submissions for the fourth year of our Imagine 2200: Climate Fiction for Future Ancestors short story contest.
Imagine 2200 is an invitation to writers from all over the globe to imagine a future in which solutions to the climate crisis flourish and help bring about radical improvements to our world. We dare you to dream anew.
Imagine 2200 celebrates stories that envision the next decades to centuries of equitable climate progress, imagining futures of abundance, adaptation, reform, and hope. They are looking for stories that are rooted in creative climate solutions and community-centered resilience, showing what can happen as solutions take root, and stories that offer gripping plots with rich characters and settings, making that future come alive.
In 2,500 to 5,000 words, show us the world you dream of building. Your story should be set sometime between the near future and roughly the year 2200.
Your story can bring these principles into any genre — they love seeing climate themes show up in love stories, mysteries, adventure, comedy, and more.
Eligibility
Writers must be at least 18 years old to submit to Imagine 2200. The contest is open to folks anywhere in the world, except where participation is prohibited or restricted by applicable law. Stories do need to be written in English.
Entry Fee
There is no cost to enter.
Prizes
The winning writer will be awarded $3,000. The second- and third-place winners receive $2,000 and $1,000, respectively. An additional nine finalists will each receive $300. All winners and finalists will have their story published in an immersive collection on Grist’s website.
How to Submit?
Interested participants can submit online via this link.
Submission Deadline
The last date of submission is June 24, 2024.
Click here to view the official notification of Imagine 2200: Climate Fiction Short Story Contest by Grist.
What are the origins of the Imagine contest?
Imagine was originally born as part of a visioning exercise in the spring of 2020. The contest aims to counter dystopian narratives and ensure that climate stories and characters represent diverse voices, authentic cultures, and the intersectional reality of the climate crisis.
Can I submit a story longer than 5,000 words?
They’re excited that you’re excited, but the submission guidelines are not flexible. Stories need to be between 2,500 and 5,000 words.
Does my story need to be set in the year 2200?
Nope! They’d be just as happy to see your visions of amazing, just, and decolonized worlds in 2136 or 2098. They just want to encourage writers to think well beyond our present moment and with a sense of expansive possibility.
Can my story include supernatural or fantastical elements?
Sure! Of course, like everything in your story, it should serve a purpose towards the aim of inspiring readers to envision the world we could create.
