The Moment of Freedom
Write about freedom. Do good for Ukraine.
Prizes
- Donation:
- In lieu of prize money, Vocal will donate $10,000 to United Help Ukraine.
Additionally, we will recognize the 50 most powerful and inspiring stories in a special Vocal collection.
Status
CompletedTimeline
Submissions opened
Mar 08, 2022
Submissions closed
Apr 06, 2022 4:59 AM CUT
Results
Apr 19, 2022
Prizes
- Donation:
- In lieu of prize money, Vocal will donate $10,000 to United Help Ukraine.
Additionally, we will recognize the 50 most powerful and inspiring stories in a special Vocal collection.
Status
CompletedTimeline
Submissions opened
Mar 08, 2022
Submissions closed
Apr 06, 2022 4:59 AM CUT
Results
Apr 19, 2022
About this challenge
*Note from the Vocal Team: As indicated, there are no prize results to be announced for this Challenge, only a $10,000 donation to United Help Ukraine which was sent on March 22, 2022. To view a special curated collection of stories from this Challenge, click here.
There are moments when art and creativity can seem small in the grand scheme of current events. And yet, creating during hard times helps us process and understand not only ourselves but each other.
Support and stand with Ukraine by joining the Moment of Freedom Challenge. Write a short story, essay, poem or personal account about freedom—the fight for it, the belief in it, the joy of it. Write about your personal experiences with freedom, how it impacts you, your community, anyone (or anything) you hold dear. Large or small, trivial or vital to your sense of self, we want to hear what freedom means to you.
Rather than awarding cash prizes, we’re going to donate $10,000 to United Help Ukraine. Once the Challenge is over, the Vocal Team will publish a collection of the 50 most powerful and inspiring stories. We encourage everyone to spread the word so we can support Ukraine through our art, together.
How to enter
For your story to be eligible, it should be between 600 and 5,000 words and adhere to our Community Guidelines. Stories published on Vocal and entered into the contest up until April 5, 2022, at 11:59 PM EST will be entered for consideration. Official Rules for the Challenge can be found here.
To be eligible to enter the Challenge, you must be over the age of 13.
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Challenge resources
Already Here Challenge Winners
Useful tools can change your life before you think to question them. That’s really what made these Already Here entries interesting. Writers looked past the initial “how is this possible?” and paid attention to how quickly something remarkable becomes part of the routine. The strongest pieces didn’t ask us to choose between being impressed and being uneasy. They understood why people welcome these changes, then noticed what else shifts once we get used to them.
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Last Call Challenge Winners
There were plenty of ringing phones and closing bars in Last Call , but the prompt took us to some unexpected places too. A fading birdsong, a goodbye that doesn't quite get finished, and people who don't suddenly become better versions of themselves just because time is running out. Some held on, some let go, and some missed their chance entirely. That's what made these stories stick.
By Vocal Curation Team11 days ago in Resources
Twenty-Four Hours Challenge Winners
The best Twenty-Four Hours entries weren’t really about fitting as much as possible into a day. They were about showing us a version of a place that felt personal, shaped by favorite stops, old memories, local quirks, and the little things you only notice only after knowing somewhere for a long time.
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