Neolomicro

The Prompt

A neologism is a newly coined word. We challenge you to invent a new word that encapsulates a specific yet previously undefined sensation, emotion, action, or phenomenon – akin to how the word 'petrichor' describes the scent of earth after rain. Once you've crafted your word and defined its meaning, pen a microfiction piece that captures its essence. Through your story, readers should gain an implicit understanding of the word without it being overtly defined. Your new word should be included the title of your piece, and the definition of it should be in the subtitle. You do not need to include the neologism within the body of your story.

In order for your submission to qualify:

The Prizes

Judging

The Neolomicro Challenge will be judged on:

1. The quality and engagement of the microfiction story.
2. The originality of the neologism itself.

Below are some helpful questions to ask yourself as you write.

Neologism

• Is the word truly unique?
• Does the word represent a concept or sensation that can be universally or easily understood?
• Does the word bring a new dimension to the English language?

Microfiction

• Engagement: Does the story captivate the reader from beginning to end?
• Contextual Use: Is the essence of the neologism captured within the story, allowing readers to infer its meaning?
• Creativity: How original and imaginative is the story? Does it offer a fresh perspective or narrative?
• Clarity: Is the story well-structured and easy to understand?

We look forward to learning the words we always wished existed, and if we're lucky, we'll see your word in the dictionary someday 🤞

For your story to be eligible, it should be between 200 and 250 words, submitted to the Fiction community, have a newly invented word in the title and its definition in the subtitle, and adhere to our Community Guidelines. Stories published on Vocal and entered into the contest up until 11:59 PM ET on November 7, 2023 will be entered for consideration. Official Rules for the Challenge can be found here.

The Neolomicro Challenge is exclusive to Vocal+ members. To learn more and upgrade to Vocal+, visit https://vocal.media/vocal-plus.

To be eligible to win the grand prize, second place, or runners-up prizes, you must be over the age of 13 and residing in a country where Stripe is available at the time of entry. A complete list of countries where Stripe is available can be found here—winners will need to have a Stripe account created and connected in order to receive the prizes. For this reason, entrants located outside of any of these countries will not be eligible to win.