Please read the Official Rules & Terms

located below before submitting.

Craft Your Castle Event Official Rules & Terms

Overview

One story will be chosen to be published in Lewis Henry Martin’s Diachronic Newsletter!

Write your story using the Six-Word Prompt, exactly as it appears.  You don’t have to start a sentence with the prompt, and capitalization doesn’t matter, but the words must stay in that order and use that punctuation.

Your story must be 1000 words or less.

All genres are permitted; so long as it tells a story.

Submission Guidelines

Submissions will be accepted for 21 calendar days; starting on the day submissions are opened, and as indicated by the timer above (EST). A notice for open submissions will be sent via LewisHenryMartin.com Newsletter .

Submissions must be entered before the end of 21 calendar days, or the end of remaining time on the timer above (EST).

Please, only submit one entry per event.

Submit text only.

Only submit unpublished work.

Do not submit work that is simultaneously submitted anywhere else.

Keep any personally identifying information out of your work. 

Pseudonyms are welcomed.

Be respectful; hate, prejudice, or insensitivity will not be tolerated.

Winners will be announced after all submissions have been reviewed.  Notice will be sent via newsletter email and in the following edition of the newsletter publication.

Practicing creativity is the intent, don’t undermine that using AI. AI-generated material is not permitted. Zero-tolerance policy.

There is no entry fee for Craft Your Castle.

There are no prizes, monetary compensation, or awards associated with Craft Your Castle.  Recognition is honorary only.

Eligibility

The event is open only to legal residents of the United States who are at least 18 years old at the time of entry. If you are under 18 years old, your work must be submitted by and thus credited to a legal guardian.  Any submission by a parent or legal guardian is an agreement to the [Craft Your Castle] Official Rules and Terms, and co-signs parental/legal guardian consent, warranting that they [the parent or legal guardian of participants from those under 18 years old] have legal authority to execute the release; to explicitly consent to participation, and to agree to be bound by those Rules and Terms.  Void where prohibited. 

Judging & Results

Submissions will be evaluated based on;

Plot structure: Does your story have a beginning, middle, and end, rising tension/action, climax, and resolution?

Characters: Does your protagonist and/or supporting characters feel real, motivated, do they grow/change throughout; are they memorable?

Emotional Impact: Does your story genuinely evoke emotion in your readers?

Writing quality: Proficiency using prose, rhythm, details, and literary devices; as well as spelling, grammar, and punctuation. 

Creative originality: Does your story feel like a fresh concept?

Chosen submission(s) will be announced and published in Lewis Henry Martin’s Diachronic Newsletter.

Intellectual Property & Rights

No prohibited elements; no copyrighted materials (like song lyrics, etc.). If someone else created it, do not use it. If you’re uncertain, err on the side of caution; or you can check with the U.S. Copyright Office.

Submitting your fictional work (including but not limited to short stories, poetry, excerpts or serials; hereinafter referred to as “your Work”) to Craft Your Castle; a Lewis Henry Martin’s Diachronic Newsletter (hereinafter referred to as “the Publisher”), Sandbox event, you agree to the following terms:

• You retain full ownership and copyright of your Work.  The Publisher claims no ownership over your intellectual property.
• You grant the Publisher a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free, perpetual license to publish, distribute, archive, and display your Work within Lewis Henry Martin’s Diachronic Newsletter (including email broadcasts, web-based archives of the newsletter, and social media promotions directly tied to the newsletter issue).
• This license is non-exclusive.  You retain the right to publish, sell, or license to your Work elsewhere at any time without restriction or obligation to the Publisher.
• Submitting your Work warrants that the work is your original creation; that it does not infringe upon the intellectual property or rights of any third party; that it has not been previously or simultaneously published elsewhere; and that it is your sole work, not wholly or partially generated by artificial intelligence tools in violation of third-party copyrights or the spirit of this event’s agreement.  You agree to indemnify and hold harmless the Publisher against any legal claims arising from a breach of this warranty.
• You may request the removal of your Work from our web-based archives at any time by providing written notice to newsletter@lewishenrymartin.com.

These rules & terms are subject to change and void where prohibited.

By submitting your Craft Your Castle prompt, you are acknowledging and agreeing to these rules & terms.