Fantastic Stories
FANTASTIC STORIES COMPETITION RETURNS TO HDCC
We are very happy and proud to announce yet another edition of the Heroes Dutch Comic Con Fantastic Stories Competition! Organized by the American Book Center in collaboration with Zilverspoor. It is time to show your writing skills. If you’ve been walking around with an idea for a madness story for a while, quickly get into the pen and join in! The winners will be crowned during the upcoming Winter Edition of HDCC on November 18 & 19.
The finalists of the Fantastic Stories Competition 2023
RULES
● All genres are allowed (sci-fi, fantasy, horror, YA, etc, etc) as long as it contains a fantastic element and fits the theme of Hope & Despair.
● Stories can be up to 5000 words long.
● No fan-fiction about characters or franchises that are copyrighted (i.e. no stories about Gandalf, Zelda, Batman or a Harry Potter Quidditch match, etc, etc.)
● Stories may be written in either English or Dutch.
● Stories must be uploaded as a Word document.
● By entering the competition, you agree that your story may be included in the Fantastic Stories 2022 bundle. The bundle is printed with Betty the Bookmachine of the American Book Center in Amsterdam, and after the award ceremony will be available for sale at the ABC. All further rights remain with the author.
HOW DOES IT WORK?
You can submit your story from June 26th until August 31th. You can upload your story via the button above.
In September the jury will select five finalists from all the submitted stories. On Tuesday the 10th October the five finalists will be announced. You can read their stories on this website from October 10th till the 25th of October. During that time the audience can vote on the best story. The winner will be announced at the Heroes Dutch Comic Con Winter edition in the Jaarbeurs Utrecht in November.
The five stories will be collected in the Fantastic Stories 2023 book.This book will be printed with Betty The Book Machine at the American Book Center in Amsterdam.
All five finalist will receive an weekendticket for the Heroes Dutch Comic Con 2023 winter edition and will also receive two copies of the Fantastic Stories 2023 book. The winner will receive gift certificates of the American Book Center worth €150!
Theme: Friends & Foes
“You will meet many foes, some open, and some disguised; and you may find friends upon your way when you least look for it.”
– J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Fellowship of the Ring
The theme for this edition of the of the Fantastic Stories competition is ‘Friends & Foes’.
Every hero needs a good villain…and friends who will help them along the way of their quest. The interaction between the protagonist and antagonist can create the most wonderful stories. Think of Sherlock Holmes and Moriarty, Batman and the Joker or Katniss Everdeen and President Snow.
However people are social animals en everyone needs friends. Think of Pippin and Merry in The Lord of the Rings or Doctor Watson and Sherlock Holmes.
We are looking for stories that examines the relationship between friends and foes. When is someone an enemy? What makes a friend a friend? And when does someone stop being a friend and becomes an enemy…or when does a foe become your friend?
A few points you can think about while writing a story about this theme. How does the interaction between friends and foes influences:
• Folklore and Myths
• Family and Strangers
• Technology and Innovation
• Wealth and poverty
• Cooperation and Conflict
• Ideas about Groups
• Ideas about Identity
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