DSP Awards 2023

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DSP is one of the leading Western publishing companies, and after much debate we have decided to inaugurate a brand new award for western authors of all varieties.  We are offering a cash prize to the winner of our award, and all you need to do is submit a Western story for our team to judge. 

We will be accepting award submissions beginning February 1 2023 to May 1 2023 and the winner will be announced via our social media on June 1 2023.

The winning entries will be chosen by our award panel of experienced Western authors. The award panel of judges consists of:

Harvey Wood

Harvey is a bestselling Western author with years of experience. He will be leading our panel of judges. 

Charles Ray

One of the most popular Western authors and an expert on the Western genre. With over one hundred novels written, and many bestsellers under his belt, Charles knows a great story when he sees one.

Larry Copeland

Larry Copeland, DSP's chief editor, grew up reading such Western giants as Louis L'Amour and Zane Grey.  He's been a writer and editor for over four decades.

To Enter:

All you need to do is submit a manuscript to lauren@dspublishingnetwork.com following the rules below. Please title your email as “DSP Award Entry”.

Rules

1. No entry fee is required, and all rights in the story remain the property of the author. All types of Western themes are welcome.
2. By submitting to the Contest, the entrant agrees to abide by all Contest rules.
3. All entries must be original works by the entrant, in English. Plagiarism, which includes the use of third-party poetry, song lyrics, characters, or another person’s universe, without written permission, will result in disqualification. Short stories or novelettes generated or created by computer software and/or artificial intelligence will be disqualified. Excessive violence or sex and the use of profane, vulgar, racist or offensive words, as determined by the judges, will result in the story being rejected. Entries may not have been previously published in professional media.
4. To be eligible, entries must be works of prose, up to 10,000 words in length. We regret we cannot consider poetry, or works intended for children.
5. Entries must be submitted electronically, must be double-spaced and must include the title and page number on each page, but not the author’s name. Electronic submissions will separately include the author’s legal name, pen name if applicable, address, telephone number, e-mail address, and approximate word count. Please send submissions via a Microsoft Word document or PDF. 
6. There shall be three cash prizes in each quarter: a First Prize of $500, a Second Prize of $250, and a Third Prize of $100, in US dollars and payable via PayPal. All three award winners will win a FREE cover design for their story from our cover designer, Gilda Keyvani.
7. Each entrant may submit only one manuscript per quarter. Winners are ineligible to make further entries in the Contest.
8. All entries are final. No revisions are accepted.
9. Entries will be judged by professional authors. The decisions of the judges are entirely their own, and are final and binding.
10. Winners in each quarter will be individually notified of the results by phone, mail, or e-mail.
11. This Contest is void where prohibited by law.