Kyoto Short Mystery Fiction Award – Entry Guidelines

Welcome to the “Kyoto Short Mystery Fiction Award”!
We invite submissions of original short mystery stories (including flash fiction) set in Kyoto. Genres may include mystery, suspense, horror, science fiction, coming-of-age, and more, as long as the story incorporates an element of “Kyoto.”

  • Eligibility: No restriction on age or nationality (excluding professional novelists who have published a solo book with a commercial publisher)
  • Length: 4,000–52,000 characters
  • File format: Word (.doc/.docx) or PDF
  • Entries per person: One work only (co-authorship not allowed)
  • Special awards: Grand Prize, Film Adaptation Award (selected by Director Yuji Kanda), Student Award (Junior/Senior High School), International Award
  • Deadline: December 31, 2025 (must be received by this date)
  • Notes: Use of generative AI is prohibited; entries must be unpublished original works

For full details, please refer to the Japanese official site:
https://kyoto-mystery.com

    Full Name (Required)

    Pen Name (Optional)

    Age / Occupation

    Email Address (Required)

    Nationality (Required)

    Address (Required, start with State/Prefecture or Country)

    Title of Work (Required)

    Synopsis (within 200 characters)

    Upload Manuscript (Word or PDF)