BY ENTERING THIS CONTEST, YOU AGREE TO THE FOLLOWING TERMS AND CONDITIONS.
Theme
The 2nd edition of the Under The Raintree women’s cultural festival is themed on the idea ‘Women Empowering Women.’ Under this, following are the two topics for the creative writing contest:
'Gender @ Work: Valuing Minds Over Bodies'
'My Body, My Rules: Navigating Hookups and Relationships'
Rules of Participation
Entries should be on either one of the above 2 topics.
Entries to be either in the form of poetry or prose. Maximum number of submissions per contestant is 2, i.e. each contestant can submit one each of poem and prose, irrespective of language.
Language: Entries can be in English, Kannada or Hindi.
Word limit: The poems are to be 350 words or less, and prose is to be 1,000 words or less.
All entries to be emailed as a Word Doc attachment to undertheraintreefestival@gmail.com with the subject line: 'Creative Writing Contest 2019'.
Please use Calibri font, Size 14, double spaced lines in the submission document.
Titles should be in the following format: A Room of One’s Own, The Feminine Mystique (i.e. capital letter with each word).
In your email, please send in the following details: Full Name, Address, Contact Number, Email Address, Title of Entry, Category (prose or poetry), Language & a 1-line Bio.
Social Media: Wherever applicable for each individual, Contestant to follow/like Festival social media pages.
Eligibility
The contest is open to Women and Transpersons, ages 16 & above.
All submissions must be original work and must not have been published anywhere else - in print or online (blogs, journals etc.).
In case of simultaneous submissions, contestants are required to inform the organisers if the same entry is accepted for publication elsewhere prior to the announcement of winners, or the entry will be considered disqualified.
Contestants may choose the name they would like to be associated with their work when it’s published on the contest website.
Contestants must provide their full name and contact information to be informed if they win.
Submissions will be checked to ensure the basic requirements of relevance and word length before being published online.
Timelines
The writing contest opens at 9am (IST) on September 9, 2019 and closes at 10pm (IST) on October 10, 2019. The winners will be announced by 4pm (IST) on October 25, 2019.
Voting & Prize
Accepted submissions will be published on the festival website for reading, public votes and comments while being considered for the Jurors’ Choice Award.
Voting by readers starts as soon as a story is uploaded on the website. Readers can vote for as many works as they like.
Entries receiving the highest number of votes from readers on the website will be counted, though the stories might be cross-posted on various social media.
One prize will be awarded in each category and in each language. Additionally, there will be one entry overall that will be given the Jurors’ Choice Award.
A jury consisting of Poile Sengupta, eminent writer, Dr. R Poornima, co-editor, Hitaishini women’s web magazine, Sandhya Mendonca, author and Founder of Raintree Media, will choose an overall winner for the Jurors’ Choice Award.
Award Ceremony
Prizes will be awarded at the Under The Raintree women’s cultural festival on Nov 2 & 3, 2019 in Bengaluru. Winners will be given a slot to read their winning entries during the festival. If winners are from outside Bengaluru, they would have to travel at their own expense. However, they would be hosted for 1 night at the Festival’s designated accommodation. If winners are unable to attend the event, their prizes will be shipped to the address mentioned at the time of entry.
Restrictions
Bots and/or robotic submissions are not allowed. Nor are incentives for readers to vote.
Compliance
There is no entry fee or purchase required for entries.
Entries will be rejected if they fail to meet the contest theme and rules.
Entries should not violate or infringe the rights of any other person or company.
Entries should not defame, libel, or slander any person or entity.
Entries should not have derogatory or sexist language.
Rights to Data and Entries
Raintree Media and its subsidiaries do not claim copyright of the submitted entries. Subject to the acceptance of the entry, the contestant author grants the right to the Under The Raintree Festival editorial team to modify, edit, correct, translate, adapt, reproduce, distribute, and publish the submitted writing on the Festival website/blog and in any other online media including the internet, mobile apps, or any other electronic form.
The author agrees that no royalties or any other payment or remuneration is due in connection with publication with the Under The Raintree Festival or its subsidiaries/ designees either online or in print.
Submission of the registration details and any prize notification documents constitutes the contestant’s consent to obtain, use, and transfer their name, address and other details for the purpose of administering the contest.
Winners consent to allow Sponsors of the prizes/ Festival to use of their name, biographical and geographical information, for promotional purposes by Sponsors, and its subsidiaries/ designees, without additional compensation. All copyright, trademark or other intellectual property rights in such promotions shall be owned by the Sponsors or their licensors and winners hereby disclaim and waive any claim of right to such Promotions.
Force Majeure
If the organisers are unable to conclude the contest or conduct the Festival due to unforeseen circumstances, neither they, the judges nor the sponsors will be liable to give prizes or pay any costs or damages to the Contestant.
Remember, deadline for submission is October 10, 2019, 10 PM IST.