Preliminary round: Participants should submit their story online during the allotted time period. The story is suggested to be between 750 and 1000 words. However, there will be no penalty for entries under or over the suggested word limit. The top 5 writers from the preliminary round will then be invited to the MEOW event for the final round. Topics for the preliminary round will be given to participants near to the time of the event.

Final round:Finalistsmust attend the MEOW event and will have a maximum of 6 hours to write a storybetween 750 and 1000 words. Thetopic will be presented on the day. There will be no penalty for stories under or over the suggested word limit. The winners will be announced in the closing ceremony.

Each story will be discussed and judged by a panel of judges. The judges’ decision is final.  

The criteria for the creative writing are as follows:

Content – (25 points)

• Originality/creativity
• Style
• Impact

Cohesion and organization – (25) points

• Flow of information
• Development of ideas
• Suitable and sufficient use of paragraphs

Vocabulary range and accuracy – (25) points

• Range of vocabulary
• Accuracy of vocabulary

Grammatical range and accuracy – (25) points

• Range of grammar
• Accuracy of grammar