Entrants must:

• Be an intergenerational pair separated in age by at least 15 years
• At least one of the pair must reside in Indian River County, Florida
• Attest at the time of submission that the entry is original (only the two named co-authors have contributed to the writing & editing), not created or assisted by artificial intelligence, and has not been previously published elsewhere

Entries must be:

• Original writing produced in collaboration by both members of the pair
• Writing in any of the following  genres: poetry, short story, dialogue, creative nonfiction, comics/scene from a graphic novel, song lyrics
• Limited to 500 words per entry

We accept entries on a rolling basis from December 1, 2025 – March 15, 2026. Some entries may be published online immediately; others will be selected for publication online in June 2026. A limited selection of entries will be published in a printed book to be made available to the public in Fall 2026. 

There is NO CHARGE to participate or enter. Authors whose work is published in the printed book will receive one copy each at no cost; additional copies will be available for purchase.

The Laura (Riding) Jackson Teen Fellow is a prestigious award that recognizes students who demonstrate dedication and commitment to the development of their literary skills and talents. To become an LRJF Teen Fellow, you must:

• Attend 3 Teen Writers Workshops sponsored by the Laura (Riding) Jackson Foundation. One of the 3 may be an online workshop. 
• Submit a final piece of writing inspired by your overall participation in the Teen Writers Workshops.

When submitting the final writing sample for an LRJF Teen Fellowship Award:

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Please read the following criteria carefully:

• The writing sample must be original and creative
• Poems, short stories, personal narratives or essays, graphic novels, plays, song lyrics, and creative non-fiction pieces are all acceptable
• Prose samples should be 500-1,000 words; poetry submission should be either one long poem or three shorter poems totaling 500-1,000 words
• Research papers or other school assignments will not be accepted
• Include an introductory paragraph explaining the inspiration for the piece as well as some brief commentary on the writing process involved
• Must be a polished final draft
• Must be submitted ONLY AFTER all 3 workshops have been attended 

The Laura (Riding) Jackson Foundation will review your submission. Teen Writing Fellows will be formally recognized with certificates at an award ceremony at which they will have the opportunity to read their work to the audience and the option to publish their work on our website.  

If you have any questions, feel free to email us at admin@lrjf.org.