Be the Santa for under-eleven children.
Your letter should give them a reason to be kind and believe in love.
The dream that you pass to a child reflects YOUR hopes for the future of the earth!
Tell them about
Education, Art, Sports and Ambitions, Attitude and Behaviour, Crimes/Frawd they should be able to identify, the under-privileged, women's issues and sex education, the virtual world and the gadgets, self-help and self care, the concept of beauty, environment sensitivity, leadership and entrepreneurship, and issues that matter across various life stages - be it competition or jealousy or rejections or overcoming fear. Or choose your own cause to add to these.
If Santa talks, the children will hear.
Who can submit?
Open to all. Scroll down for the Submission Guidelines.
Last date for Submissions: 31 May 2023
The book will be released in November 2023
PROJECT LEAD: GENNIA NUH
PROJECT ADVISOR: HAIMANTI BAGCHI
SCROLL DOWN FOR THE PANEL DISCUSSIONS UNDER THE PROJECT.
Project Details & REWARDS:
1. Selected submissions will be published into an anthology (ebooks + paperback) and released in November 2023. A selection from the rest will be published under TMYS web collection.
2. Excerpts from selected submissions will be highlighted on social media, post release of the book.
3. All selections will be announced in October 2023 on Facebook, Linkedin, Twitter, Instagram.
4. Selected contributors will be invited to participate in digital live sessions, to discuss their submissions and their dreams for the future of the earth.
5. All submissions under the anthology will enter as nominations for THE BEST WOMAN CHARACTER AWARD under our annual Awards programme to honour FOUR submissions from the Story Projects of TMYS with a specially curated gift hamper from Pan Macmillan India.
6. All submissions under the anthology will enter as nominations for THE TMYS STORY AWARD under our annual Awards programme to honour THREE submissions from the Story Projects of TMYS with a cash prize of INR 1500/- (USD20) each. The selection will be made purely on the basis of the merits of the submission.
Submission Guidelines:
1. Submissions can be made in poetry or prose formats. Could be a memory or story or experience you wish to share. Must be written in English.
2. The submission should not have appeared elsewhere before, in any form, in a blogspace or print or Facebook post! ***Only original and previously unpublished work will be considered.***
3. Word count: 1000 and above. The word count does not matter. We do not want to specify any upper limits. What you tell a child and how you say is all that matters.
Be the Santa who excites them, makes them happy. Be the Santa who is funny, leaves behind a wonderful message and creates a beautiful little memory. Be the Santa who is a stranger, yet very dear!
4. Any submission that does not adhere to the theme will be shifted to the list of general submissions for the website.
5. While making a submission, the subject line should be: Letters from Santa : <the title of the story>
All submissions should be emailed to tmys.stories @gmail.com, attached as a word file, with subject as indicated above.
6. Each submission should include the contributor's introduction (150 words) pasted in the body of the email, social media handles (Facebook / Twitter / Linkedin / Instagram, as applicable) and an HD photograph (jpeg or png only) should be attached.
7. All submissions should use Calibri/Times New Roman, font size 12; font size 16 for headings.
8. A participation fee of INR 300/- (USD 5) will be charged per contribution. This is a non-refundable fee, but we will do our best to cooperate in case you have made an error that can be corrected to help you resubmit.
In each such case, the editor’s decision will be final.
Our bank details:
Tell Me Your Story OPC Pvt. Ltd.
A/c no : 059685800000177, Yes Bank. Branch - Shankardhan Plaza Junction,
MM Road, Mulund West, Mumbai 400080, IFS Code : YESB0000596.
Post making the payment, please send a mail at tmys.stories@gmail.com to register yourself.
For writers residing outside India, please email us for a Paypal link.
***Registration doesn't guarantee publication***
9. One story OR three poems can be submitted per registration. Multiple submissions can be made with separate registrations for each.
10. Last date of all submissions: 31 May 2023
For queries; send us an email at tmys.stories@gmail.com with the subject ‘Queries’.
Please Note:
Because of the volume of submissions we receive, it may not be possible for us to respond to individual queries when the details are specifically mentioned above. Also, please don't expect us to respond to individual mails querying when the winner announcements will happen. We have never defaulted on our schedule, neither do we ever intend to. The schedule is clearly indicated above.
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PANEL DISCUSSIONS
Children’s Stories from the North East - 5 Feb 2023, 7pm
Speakers: Dr. Lopamudra Maitra Bajpai Subi Taba Dr. Shyamolima Saikia
Cultural Leadership in Children - 8 Feb 2023, 7pm
Speakers: Dr. Sourav Banerjee, Sutapa Basu, Gayatri
Vernacular Prose and Poetry for Indian Children - 10 Feb 2023, 7pm
Speakers: Haimanti Bagchi, Akhila Mohan CG, Smeetha Bhowmik
Inducting Children into Gender Equality by making use of Poetry - 19 Feb 2023, 7pm
Speakers: Dr. Somrita Urni Ganguly, Deyasini Roy, Prof. Sukriti Paul Kumar
Books that Induct Children into Gender Equality - 12 Mar, 7pm
Speakers: Suyogya Awasthy Diksha Ishita Gupta
How should children perceive BEAUTY? - 28 May, 7pm
Speakers: Mona Verma, Medha Shri, Avantika Bahuguna
Why is studying Language and History important? - 25 Mar 2023, 7pm
Speakers: Aashisha Chakraborty, Chandna Singh Nirwan, Meghna Chandrahas Ail
Books for Empathy and Passion - 7 May 7pm
Speakers: Dr. Sarmila Paul, Dr. Shruti Das, Yashika Doshi
Importance of Art in the Growth of Children - 9 April 7pm
Speakers: Saranya Ganguly, Abir Abdullah, Bhadra Sinha
Books that Parents and Children Should Read Together - 16 April 7pm
Speakers: Sukaina Majeed, Mansi Singh, Sharbani Mukherjee
Real V/S Virtual: Children's Obsession with the Gadgets - 23 April 7pm
Speakers: Harshali Singh, Dr. Protim Sharma, Rianka Sarkar
The Magic of Maths and Science - 30 April 8pm
Speakers: Stuart Gibbs, Neil D'Silva, Ankit Raj Ojha
The Leadership Spirit in Children - 27 May 7pm
Speakers: Parvati Chandran, Richa S. Mukherjee, Nandini Sengupta
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Other projects:
The Writing Programme Season 8
L&D Program with Storytelling: Workshops for Corporate and Academic Audience
CULTURAL IDENTITY AND IDEOLOGY III: Society & Artistic Endeavours