
Chapters
Write a chapter from the middle of your memoir.
Prizes
- Grand Prize:
- $500
- Second Place:
- $250
- 10 Runners-Up:
- $25
Status
CompletedTimeline
Submissions opened
Aug 10, 2023
Submissions closed
Sep 22, 2023 3:59 AM CUT
Results
Oct 19, 2023
Prizes
- Grand Prize:
- $500
- Second Place:
- $250
- 10 Runners-Up:
- $25
Status
CompletedTimeline
Submissions opened
Aug 10, 2023
Submissions closed
Sep 22, 2023 3:59 AM CUT
Results
Oct 19, 2023
About this challenge
The Prompt
Write a chapter from the middle of your memoir.
Sink into the reservoirs of your memory in honor of the launch of the Chapters community. Instead of beginning at the start, focus on a core moment, turning point, or meaningful experience that would ideally sit at the center of your life's narrative. This chapter does not necessarily need to be the climax of your story (as it is continously unfolding!), but should capture the essence of your journey — resonating with emotion, insight, and authenticity.
In order for your submission to qualify, it must be:
- Between 600-5,000 words.
- Submitted to the Chapters community. Choosing a community is a final step in the submission process.
The Prizes
- Grand Prize: $500
- Second Place: $250
- 10 Runners-Up: $25
Reminder: There is a Bonus Boost for Vocal+ members, and entering this challenge can help you earn. If you publish in all four of our new communities—BookClub, Writers, Chapters, and Critique—before 11:59PM EST on 9/01/2023, you'll be eligible to receive a $10 Bonus.
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 11:59 PM ET on September 21, 2023 will be entered for consideration. Official Rules for the Challenge can be found here.
The Chapters Challenge is exclusive to Vocal+ members. To learn more and upgrade to Vocal+ visit https://todaysurvey.life/vocal-plus%3C/span%3E%3C/span%3E%3C/span%3E%3C/a%3E.%3C/p%3E%3Cp class="css-1923z11-Text">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.
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Challenge resources
Mismatch Challenge Winners
Blending genres isn’t about stacking elements side by side. It’s about what happens when two sets of expectations refuse to cooperate. The strongest entries in the Mismatch Challenge understood that tension and leaned into it. Rather than smoothing the edges, these stories let their chosen genres complicate one another, creating friction that carried through voice, structure, and consequence.
By Vocal Curation Teamabout 14 hours ago in Resources
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By Vocal Curation Team6 days ago in Resources








