Moniack Mhor and Guillemot Press are teaming up to create an anthology of new writing surrounding the theme of the UNKNOWN, due to be published in 2027. We are searching for flash fiction, short stories, poetry and creative non-fiction from people aged 14-24 living in or coming from the Highlands and Islands.
Mysterious creatures that lurk in the shadows, the hidden truths of growing up in the Highlands and Islands, sharp-toothed secrets, isolation and escapism… We want to hear your own unique take on the theme of the UNKNOWN.
Here is some inspiration for the theme:
Guidelines:
- Word count: Prose (Fiction and Creative Non-Fiction) up to 3,000 words; Poetry up to 50 lines. You can submit as many pieces of writing up to the maximum word count mentioned.
- We’re especially encouraging people who have experienced marginalisation and/or isolation to submit to this anthology. If you’d like to have a more detailed description of those terms, please click here.
- Free to enter.
- Writers retain all rights. Successful pieces will be licensed only for the anthology and for relevant marketing materials (you may opt out of this)
- Simultaneous submissions are ok, just let us know if your piece gets picked up elsewhere.
- We do not accept the use of AI in submissions.
- We don’t accept previously published writing, all writing must be new and original (this includes works published online).
How to Submit:
Please send us an email to youngwriters@moniackmhor.org.uk with your submission using the subject line ‘Anthology Submission’:
- Attach one file (format: Doc, Docx, PDF) using the file name format. Two prose submissions should not add to more than 3000 words FIRSTNAME_SURNAME_PROSE or FIRSTNAME_SURNAME_POETRY.
In the email itself please add:
- Your age
- Where you are based
Deadline for submissions: October 30th 2026
We aim to share the decisions January 2027 at the latest
Publication of the anthology: Spring 2027
FAQs
Yes, you can submit more than one piece of writing, but please keep your total word count below the maximum mentioned above (Eg. Two prose submissions should not add to more than 3000 words). Please keep all submissions in one document.
If your text doesn’t get selected for the anthology we unfortunately won’t be able to offer individual feedback.
Not at all! We encourage submissions from everyone! No need for prior publishing.
Yes, there might be a collaborative editorial process. This means that if your text gets selected we would have ongoing and open communication with you about any slight changes that need to be done. We aim to restrict our changes to grammar and punctuation
We will ask you to write a very short bio to add to your text, but we will give you an example!
Yes! That’s absolutely fine, just let us know when you submit your text(s).
Yes, that’s not a problem at all if you prefer to remain anonymous.
Contributors will not be financially compensated for their work, but what we can offer is the opportunity to be published in an anthology by an independent publisher. And you will receive a copy of the anthology.
Moniack Mhor is Scotland’s National Writing Centre. Based in the beautiful Scottish Highlands, we run courses in a range of genres tutored by some of the finest authors in the UK and beyond, and we also work on a variety of different projects, this anthology is part of our Highland Young Writers programme.
Guillemot Press is a small independent publisher with a preference for the simple, thoughtful and beautiful. We specialise in short forms, including pamphlets and booklings, and publish poetry, non-fiction and occasionally short fiction too.