Valentine's Day Competition Rules
# NAWG's Valentine 250 Competition 2026
This competition is run by the National Association of Writers and Groups [www.nawg.co.uk] and administered by Susan Cartwright-Smith [#Y29tcC1mbGFzaEBuYXdnLmNvLnVr#].
Please email Susan if you have a query about any aspect of the competition.
* **Only** online entries are accepted.
* Up to 250 words (excluding title if used).
* Fee for **each** entry is £2.50 per story.
* There is one prize of £25 for the winning entry.
* Prose fiction on the theme of LOVE.
* Open to all writers in the UK and internationally.
* You do not have to be a member of NAWG to enter.
* Open from Wednesday 14th January 9:00 am to Tuesday 10th February at 11:59pm GMT.
## General Information
* You may submit as many entries as you wish.
* Entries must be up to 250 words in prose form and written in English. Title is not included in the word count (please see * footnote on word counts).
* Please do not put your name or any other identifying marks within the entry itself.
* Entries must not have been previously published online or in print nor should they have won a prize in another competition. If your story is accepted for publication or wins a prize elsewhere during this competition you must inform us and we will withdraw it.
* In all circumstances, the judge's decision is final.
* All proceeds go to The National Association of Writers and Groups (NAWG) which has charitable status.
## How to Enter
* Submit your entry in the body of an email to [#Y29tcC1mbGFzaEBuYXdnLmNvLnVr#]. Only the entry section is copied to the judge.
* Please add your name (& writer name, if applicable) in the rest of the email and any other message for the competition administrator.
* If submitting more than one entry, please send them together in the one email. We will acknowledge receipt of your entry and entry fee payment by email. Usually this will be done within two days.
* The winner will usually be notified by email within two weeks of the competition closing, unless there are unforeseen circumstances necessitating an extension. Prize payment will be as prompt as possible on receipt of the winner's details.
* The winner’s name will be announced via the website - [www.nawg.co.uk/blog].
## How to Pay
* Payment can only be made by PayPal or credit card via the button on the NAWG250 competition page of the website.
* When submitting two or more entries use the £2.50 button again to add the required payments to your basket.
* Use the **PayPal** button on the checkout page (below the purple checkout box).
* There is no need to register with NAWG on our website.
* If you do not have a Paypal account, simply choose the 'Paypal guest' option on the payment page and you will be given the option to pay by credit card.
## Publication
* The winning entry is published on our website [www.nawg.co.uk/blog] with the writer's permission. The winner will also be given the option of publication in NAWG's annual anthology for their winning entry.
* We will always ask the winner for their consent prior to any publication.
* Copyright remains with the author.
## Future Contact
* By entering this competition, you are permitting NAWG to contact you by email with details of this and future competitions. If you do not wish to receive any such emails, please contact [#Y29tcC1mbGFzaEBuYXdnLmNvLnVr#].
Susan Cartwright-Smith -- NAWG250 Competition Administrator -- Jan 2026
\* **Footnote on word counts**
Please note the following regarding word counts:
* For the competition, hyphenated words count as single words.
* The following examples all count as one word each:
well-known, get-up-and-go, twenty-six.
* For the competition, a 'word' consisting only of punctuation does not count. For example: hyphens, ellipses, asterisks.
The following example text has a word count of 19:
"I wanted to go to the cinema – I like their popcorn – but ... it was raining, so I stayed indoors."
Your word processor may not follow these rules so please don't rely on software alone for word counts. In any dispute about a story's word count the judge's decision is final.