CONTESTS
Get recognized for your talents during the Create a Scene Conference by participating in one of the following contests.
2025 Midsouth Fiction Contest (FREE with purchase of paid manuscript critique)
Please read carefully!
For 2025, we will be running our contest in conjunction with our critiques. Each of our critiquing agents and editors will have the option of choosing the “Most Publishable” manuscript from among all of the pieces they review. Winners will receive a certificate of distinction at the Create a Scene Bash on Saturday night. If you purchase a face-to-face critique, your submission is automatically entered in the manuscript contest. Winners will be promoted in the Midsouth monthly newsletter and on our social media accounts on Facebook, Instagram and Bluesky.
Portfolio Showcase ($30)
4:30–6:00 p.m. Saturday, September 13
SCBWI Midsouth will host a juried portfolio showcase on Saturday, September 13th. To participate, select this option when registering for the conference. Then bring your portfolio to the registration table between 11:45 a.m.-12:00 p.m. on Saturday. Portfolios will have a private viewing with faculty before the Cocktail and Autograph Party. Faculty members will be encouraged to mark their favorite pieces from all portfolios submitted, and an overall winner will be selected and announced at the Create a Scene Bash. No digital portfolios. One promotional piece sized no larger than 5.5 x 8.5 may be displayed with your portfolio. Please collect your portfolio after the Cocktail and Autograph Party at 6:00 p.m. SCBWI cannot be held responsible for damaged or torn materials and/or portfolios not picked up at that time. See the portfolio size and formatting guidelines and download the Illustrator Portfolio Release Form in the Illustrators’ Lounge. Grand Prize winner will be promoted on the Midsouth SCBWI regional webpage, in the Midsouth monthly newsletter and on our social media accounts on Facebook, Instagram and Bluesky, with prominent posts under the hashtag #kidlitart. Bring your portfolio and Illustrator Portfolio Release Form to the conference. Portfolios are not submitted in advance.
NOTE: You must sign the Illustrator Portfolio Release Form to participate in the showcase.
CREATE A SCENE BASH CENTERPIECE CONTEST (FREE to Bash attendees)
Are you crafty? Help us make our Create a Scene Bash memorable by signing up to decorate one of our dinner tables in a bookish or kidlit aesthetic! The designer of the winning centerpiece will receive early access to register for our next conference and receive a FREE MANUSCRIPT OR PORTFOLIO CRITIQUE at our next regional conference!
Because there are a limited number of tables available to decorate at the Bash, sign-ups to participate in the contest will be first-come, first-served until we run out of tables. If you’d like to participate, check the Centerpiece Contest box during the registration process. If selected, you will be notified via email no later than August 1.
- Participants must purchase a ticket to attend the Bash.
- Be creative! The theme of this year’s conference is “Create a Scene” and the theme of the Bash is inspired by Broadway shows. Centerpieces do not need to adhere to the themes, however we ask that it be inspired by kidlit, books, art or something in keeping with SCBWI’s mission.
Have questions about the Create A Scene Bash Centerpiece contest? Download and review the full contest guidelines below and, if you still have questions, email Erica Rodgers at [email protected].