Looking for a writing contest that values your unconventional ideas? Want a chance to experiment with your writing AND get praise for it? The Tertangala Prose and Poetry Contest is looking for your best contemporary work.
You’ll be judged against four criteria: experimentation, originality, engagement and skill. Each winner from two categories – prose and poetry – will win $200! The three runner-ups from both categories will win $50 each.
There is no entry fee. People outside the UOW community are encouraged to submit.
What are the submission guidelines?
- Two pages maximum. No word limit
- Times New Roman, minimum size 12 font
- Recommended 1.15 line spacing. A creative choice to use different spacing will be taken into consideration by the judges
- 2.54cm margins on each side.
- You may only submit ONE piece to each heat. Additional submissions will be returned unread
- You must be at least 12-years old to submit
- You must be a University of Wollongong student (includes UOW College) or member of the Illawarra community to submit
Submissions open 27 June and close 17 August, 11:59pm. You can send any questions to Malachi at malachi.sigmund@gmail.com.
How do I submit?
You can use the Google form linked here or send to our email- thetert@gmail.com. Submit as a PDF file titled with your first and last name, the name of your piece and writing form (see example bellow).
Do NOT include your name within the document itself.
If you would like to submit by email, make sure to put WRITING CONTEST + (WRITING FORM) in the subject.
When will the runner-ups be announced?
5 September. We’re looking to have an in-person event later to announce our winners, so stay tuned to our socials for when details comes to hand.
Who are our wonderful judges?
Christine Howe
Christine is a creative writing lecturer at UOW. She launched her first novel, Song in the Dark, in 2013 with Penguin and has worked across forms including poetry, microfiction and essays. She is a member of the South Coast Writers Center and the Australasian Association of Writing Programs.
Joshua Lobb
Joshua is an author and Senior Lecturer in creative writing at UOW. His novel debut came in 2019 with The flight of Bird, told in 12 stories. He holds a PhD on novel form from UNSW and has published on narrative theory.
Hayely Scrivenor
Hayley is a former director of the Wollongong Writers Festival and has a PhD in creative writing from UOW. Her debut novel, Dirt Town, released earlier this year. It won the Kill Your Darlings Unpublished Manuscript Award and was shortlisted for the Penguin Literary Prize.
Clayton Zane Comber
Clayton is a writer from the South Coast. He published his first novel, Shooting Stars, with Odyssey Books in 2011 before graduating with a Master’s in Creative Writing at Oxford University. Clayton released his most recent novel, 100 Remarkable Feats of Xander Maze, in 2021.
*This article was updated on 3 July 2022 to correct the open date for submissions from July to June.