The Excellence-in-Feature-Writing awards honor the craft of feature writing and the people who do it for a living for daily newspapers and wire services.

The American Association of Sunday and Feature Editors also presents a Best Feature Section competition, which honors regularly scheduled feature sections that present lifestyle and arts and entertainment coverage with authority, utility, energy and wit.

AASFE will accept entries now with an entry deadline of March 4. Winners will be announced in mid-summer and will be honored at AASFE's national convention in Portland, Ore., in September 2009.

WHAT ARE THE PRIZES?

First-place winners in each category in all three circulation divisions will receive $500 as well as plaques. Second- and third-place winners and honorable mentions will receive certificates. Click here for an entry form.

KEY DATES

Entries must have appeared in daily newspapers or their affiliated Web sites between Jan. 1, 2008, and Dec. 31, 2008. The postmark deadline is Wednesday, March 4, 2009, for entries.

WHO IS ELIGIBLE?

For the story categories, any freelancer or writer whose work appears in a daily newspaper, its affiliated Web site or for a wire service in the United States or Canada may enter. Stories written by more than one writer are not eligible.

CIRCULATION DIVISIONS

There are three circulation divisions: 
(1) up to 90,000
(2) 90,001 to 199,999 
(3) more than 200,000
Use official daily average Audit Bureau of Circulation figures as of Sept. 30, 2008, to determine your division. Check with your circulation department or search the Audit Bureau of Circulations. Wire service entries must be submitted in Division 3.

FEES

Fees are $25 per entry, with three exceptions. The fee for the general feature category and the narrative feature category are $35. Send a check payable to the American Association of Sunday and Feature Editors with your material and entry form. AASFE's TIN is 94-294-1661.

CONTEST CATEGORIES

1. Multimedia Innovation: This category honors creative use of emerging techniques to cover an event or tell a single story, with an emphasis on the appropriate use of technology, such as interactive databases, online polls or alternative platforms (such as texting to cell phones). Entrants should submit the URL address for a single Web page and a brief description of the project for their entry.
2. Best Reader Interactive: An online feature that elicited lively reader comments and/or action in the community. Entrants should submit the URL address for a single Web page and a brief description of the project for their entry.
3. General feature: Feature treatment of any lifestyle or news topic. Entries can be trend stories, profiles, interviews, news features, general features or narrative stories of 1,000 words or more. One sidebar may be included. Series or packages are not eligible.
4. Narrative feature: Narrative treatment of any lifestyle, arts or news topic. Entries would employ techniques of narrative non-fiction storytelling, which include vivid scenes and characters, artful structure and dramatic writing. Entries may be a single story or a series of any length. Please include any box or sidebar that explains how the story was reported.
5. Short feature: Tight, bright writing of fewer than 1,000 words. No series packages or sidebars. A word count is required with each entry in this category (see entry form). Each word is included in the 1,000-word count, and entries with more than 1,000 words will be disqualified.
6. Feature specialty reporting: Three examples from one specialty topic such as religion, health, technology, fashion, travel, food, etc. Examples can include trend stories, profiles, interviews, news features, general features or narratives from the same specialty topic. Excluded are columns, commentary or arts and entertainment coverage.
7. General commentary: A collection of columns or essays on any human interest or specialty topic from any section of the paper, excluding editorials. One entry in this category consists of three examples of the writer's work, showing a range of personal and reported styles.
8. Headline writing: Entries consist of three examples of an individual's headlines and any accompanying decks. Examples should be submitted attached to the story (though the entire story is not required) and can be accompanied by related visuals. Judges will choose the best entry -- not the best, single headline -- based on clarity, accuracy and creativity.
9. Arts/entertainment commentary: A collection of reviews and columns on movies, music, dance, art, architecture, television, books, theater, opera, etc. One entry in this category consists of three examples of the reviewer's work and can include reviews, essays, columns and commentary.
10. Arts/entertainment feature: Feature treatment on any arts and entertainment topic (on movies, music, dance, art, architecture, television, books, theater, opera, etc.). Entries can be trend stories, profiles, interviews, feature stories or narratives of 1,000 words or more. One sidebar may be included. Series or packages are not eligible.

HOW DO I ENTER?

• Entries must have appeared in daily newspapers or their Web sites between Jan. 1, 2008, and Dec. 31, 2008. Story and headline writing entries are accepted in three forms: original published copies, photocopies of originals or computer printouts of stories from the newspaper's archives.
• Each entry should be taped or glued to an 8½-by-11-inch paper and placed in a plain manila folder. Computer printouts from the archive may be stapled together and placed in a plain manila folder.
• For the Multimedia Innovation and Best Reader Interactive categories, entrants should submit the URL address for a single Web page and a brief description of the project.
• TWO COPIES of the story are required for every writing competition entry.  Also, one entry form should be stapled or glued to the front of each entry's manila folder, while a second entry form should be placed as the first page in the folder.
• Do not send cover letters. DO NOT include photos, illustrations, photo illustrations, charts, maps, graphics, etc. except in the headline category noted above. Entries submitted with art and/or graphics will be disqualified. Cut out or black out these art elements before submitting your entry. Headlines, sigs and bylines may be included with story entries.
• Writers may submit UP TO THREE entries per category (in the feature specialty reporting, general commentary, headline and arts/entertainment commentary categories, one entry consists of three samples). There is no limit to the number of entries each newspaper may submit.
• A single story may be entered in no more than two categories. For example, a general interest narrative could be entered in both general feature and narrative categories. Another example: A narrative of less than 1,000 words could be entered in both narrative and short feature. But two separate entries – each with two entry forms, two copies of the text and entry fees – must be submitted.
• Fees are $25 per entry, with two exceptions. The fee for the general feature category and the narrative feature category are $35. Send a check payable to the American Association of Sunday and Feature Editors with your material and entry form. AASFE's TIN is 94-294-1661.
• Writing contest entries must be postmarked by March 4, 2009. Be sure to include TWO COPIES of each entry. Indicate circulation division (1, 2, or 3) in the return address of the envelope. Mail your entries to the address on the entry form.

DOWNLOAD AN APPLICATION

Download a PDF application to submit by mail. 

MAIL ENTRIES TO:

AASFE
College of Journalism
1117 Journalism Building
University of Maryland
College Park, MD 20742-7111

QUESTIONS?

AASFE Writing Contest Chair
Nancy Malone
Deputy City Editor, Online
Spokesman-Review
509-459-5424
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AASFE Writing Contest Co-chair
Debra Leithauser
The Washington Post
(202) 334-6354
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AASFE Writing Contest Co-chair
Jody Mitori
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
(314) 340-8240
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AASFE Executive Director
Kalyani Chandha
301-314-2631
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