09/12/2025
In 2026, the United States will celebrate 250 years of independence and YOU can be part of this historic milestone! The U.S. Embassy Harare, in collaboration with Business of Books, is excited to announce a Creative Writing Competition for Zimbabwean writers aged 18–35.
🌟 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐦𝐞: The Pursuit of Happiness/Mufaro/Injabulo
Reimagine America’s founding ideals of “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” through a uniquely Zimbabwean perspective.
See the whole Declaration of Independence here: https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs/declaration-transcript
🏆 𝐏𝐫𝐢𝐳𝐞𝐬: Selected stories will be published in a Business of Books anthology. Winners will receive mentorship from a U.S. literary scout!
📜 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐆𝐮𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬:
• Open to Zimbabwean nationals only.
• Entries must be in English.
• Entries must be original, unpublished short stories (no poetry).
• Word count: 2,500–3,000 words.
• Submissions must reflect personal creativity—AI-generated text is not permitted. Repeat: No AI!
📅 𝐓𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐞:
• 𝐎𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐞: December 1, 2025
• 𝐂𝐥𝐨𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐞: January 30, 2026
📧 𝐒𝐮𝐛𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐈𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬:
• Email your entry to [email protected] with the subject line: The Pursuit of Happiness/Mufaro/Injabulo.
• Include a cover page with your full name, email, date of birth, gender, phone number, and social media handles.
• Entries must be in Times New Roman, size 12, double-spaced, with justified margins.