Next Chapter Writers’ Summit 2026 Writing Contest

About This Project

LA County Library’s Next Chapter Writer’s Summit and Book Fair returns November 14, 2026 at West Hollywood Library and West Hollywood Park. To help celebrate the art of the story we are holding our second annual Next Chapter Writing Contest. We are accepting flash-fiction short stories of 750 words or less. The contest is open to teens and adults, age 13 and up.

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Submission Guidelines

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Additional Information

  • Can submit one entry only. Additional submissions will not be considered.
  • Cannot be longer than 750 words
  • Must have a LA County Library Card
  • Must be an LA County resident 
  • If selected, Library would like to publish your work either digitally or in print, if you choose to opt-in. For Teen winners permission would be required from your parent or legal guardian for publishing opportunities.
  • Contact information will ONLY be utilized to reach out if your work is selected as a winner.

             I hereby grant the LA County Library a perpetual, non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free license to use, display, transmit, distribute, copy, and edit the Content, in whole or in part, in any form or media, for non-commercial purposes, and to grant rights to third parties to do any of the foregoing (e.g., via Creative Commons License). I acknowledge that I retain copyright to the Content.

             I represent that, to the best of my knowledge, I am the originator and sole owner of the Content and/or have been otherwise authorized by the owner of the Content to grant the rights required by this license, and that no part of the Content violates or infringes upon the copyright of any other party. If the Content contains material for which I do not own the copyright, I have obtained and provided along with this form the permission of the copyright holder to grant the terms of this license.

Submission Deadline

August 17, 2026

File Types Accepted

Max file size: 2 GB

PDF

Age Requirements

13+