Enter the ‘Halloween Returns’ Contest for Some Cash, a Promotional Spotlight and More!

I’ve spent a lot of time outlining this new writing contest. I wanted to do something different. I didn’t want the theme to be broad or basic. I didn’t want to toss out simple story ideas with simple points of focus like werewolves, or vampires. That all felt too… easy.

This one won’t be so easy. However, it is going to be a blast, especially if you’re a fan of horror cinema. In fact, you kind of need to be a fan of horror cinema if you want to leap into this particular pool.

Here’s your assignment:

Write a story, no more than 4,000 words in length about Michael Myers, of John Carpenter’s Halloween franchise. To be even more specific, you’re going to be writing a piece designed to fit within or even make out the entire plot of the upcoming Halloween film, Halloween Returns.

It’s up to you how you do this. Maybe you cover a small story arc that could be well executed on screen. Maybe you feel really daring and want to attempt a far grander story, telling the whole narrative you’d like to see from Halloween Returns.

It has to be written as a sequel within the franchise. Again, where you start precisely (you could choose to pick up the reigns directly after John Carpenter’s original first film, or even Rick Rosenthal’s 1981 sequel. If you wanted to get real crazy, you could even pick up where Rob Zombie left off) is entirely up to you.

A few rules:

The story must include/involve Michael Myers

The story must take place on Halloween night, in Haddonfield, Illinois.

As long as the story fits in the Halloween cinematic universe, and features Myers in Haddonfield, your possibilities are only as limited as your imagination. We don’t care what direction you take, as long as you keep things Halloween.

Again, no more than 4,000 words

No screenplay format writing (we want short stories, plain and simple, not brief screenplays)

Judging Criteria:

Creativity – If you can deliver a big story within 4,000 words, and you’re willing to step out on a limb and avoid playing it entirely safe, you’ve got an edge in the competition… especially if you come up with some crazy refreshing ideas.

Fear Factor – The scarier the story, the better.

Fluid writing – Let your story flow like water. Whether mind boggling prose or just a smooth, speedy story, make it feel fluid and natural.

Prizes:

$50 (must have paypal)

A banner on the main page to promote anything you’d like to promote (within decency, of course), which will run for 30 days.

Your winning story featured on the site.

To wrap it up:

Now, as you should be completely gathering right now, you’re basically crafting a piece of fan fiction here. Fan fiction cannot be sold, but it can be given away. If I see 15-20 amazing stories come in, we’ll put together an anthology and toss it to the masses as a free download with some nifty artwork to load up on the handheld devices. And trust me, people will flock to it. I’ve been in this field long enough to know what grabs the fans’ attention, and anything Michael Myers during Halloween time is going to blow the doors off the joint. Especially if it’s a consistently strong piece of work, which is the only thing we’re going to release.

If we don’t release an official fan fiction anthology, we’ll feature the three best runner-up entries on the site as well.

The Deadline is already closer than I’d like. But that’s the way the cookie (and scheduling) crumbles. Guys, you’ve only got 30 days to get this done.  Come October 15th no new submissions will be accepted. We’ll announce the winner on October 20th. If we’re good to run with a fan fiction anthology, we’ll have that available to you on the 22nd of October.

Keep in mind you won’t really keep much of anything in the way of rights, as you don’t own the Halloween rights.

Send your submissions to hnrcontests@live.com

Good luck. If you have questions feel free to ask them right here.