Around the World in 3,000 Words

Contest Over

April 1, 2022

There’s something inherently exciting about setting sail on worldwide adventures. Throw in lost treasure, a trusty sidekick and an old fashioned and undependable form of transportation, and you have yourself a solid quest. We’re looking for your very best action and adventure stories centering on treasure hunts and exploration. Call us nostalgic but we miss Indiana Jones and can only rewatch Goonies so many times before it gets weird. We can’t wait to read your swashbuckling short stories of up to 3,000 words. Bonus points for Nicholas Cage as your protagonist (we’re kidding…kind of).

Contest Winners

Story Game: Thirteen Book Cover Image

Thirteen
by: pratyaksha

Thirteen
by: pratyaksha

Testing, a practice set by town leaders, makes sure each 13-year-old is eligible to become an adult

Kiss of Gold
by: C.J. Canady

Kiss of Gold
by: C.J. Canady

A young explorer must help her ex-boyfriend exorcise the spirit of a Goddess from his new girlfriend

Food Heist
by: Alex Blanc

Food Heist
by: Alex Blanc

Inspired by The Italian Job and the TTRPG Crash Pandas, Food Heist is the story of a crew of raccoon

Featured Entries

Renegade

by: Kristin Chase

A greedy pirate captain, a first mate who isn’t as she seems, and a lost treasure that is not meant to be found. Some legends never die.

The Blood of Saints

by: E.W Markov

Follow Kim Coppola and Kickin’ Crowe on their fanstastical journey around the globe, where they’ll encounter, among other things, machine guns, sewers and gold.

The Masters of Awl

by: Darrus Myles

Upon receiving a time-sensitive request for aid from an unnamed Aldori, Simon and Angela, answer the call to meet on the client’s home world of Aldoria: a forgotten planet hidden o

The Sambas Hoard

by: Curt McCarter

After pilfering a centuries-old religious relic from an archaeological find on the Indonesian coast, an American antiquities smuggler attempts to escape with his prize—and his li

Renegade’s Folly

by: Jarod Ricketson

Captain Marcus O’Hara braves the wrath of an Imperial warship as he seeks after an object that will lead him and his crew to fortune and glory! Aided by his closest companion, the

The Mayfield Treasure

by: J.P. Choquette

Their marriage on the brink, Laura and Adam discover a cryptic coded poem at Mayfield House. Will it lead them to treasure? Or be the final straw in their strained relationship? Th

The Other Side

by: Q. Chauvot

Siblings Malik and Abigail struggle to live their lives with a drunk mother and absent father. Until, one intimidating visit to the basement throws their entire family for a loop,

The Pinnacle

by: Anthony Galindo

As he reflects on his past, a young man embarks on one final journey before making the biggest decision of his life: to end it.

Shingle

by: Jordan Abronson

No one sees more of the world than the man chasing death, except maybe the one working for him.

Unlikely Treasure

by: Ken

A young woman risks her life to find the lost Imperial Seal of China, only to discover that there may be more to life than money and fame.

Yvaine of Khaisan

by: Yuna Motoyoshi

Yvaine knew she was being foolish. It wasn’t her place to be acting like a hero and all, when she had her duties to fulfill as the crown princess of Khaisan. But she couldn’t let

Dream Job

by: Paramita Kalita

A girl who succumbed her loved ones to live her dream job.

Castañas for a Coat

by: Beba Díaz-Vázquez

Bickering traveling companions take a small holiday to Barcelona. But an attempt to keep cold with the city’s famous roasted “castañas” takes a turn for the worse. And a chase beg

The Protégé

by: EM

A young explorer hurtles through the woods. She’s searching for adventure in the tangled Florida wilderness, and is wandering deeper and deeper into the trees. Little does she know

The Conman’s Voyage

by: Kyle Sorrell

A meager conman with a rather long career history signs up for a suspicious expedition to Pluto to retrieve something important.

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Contest Judges

K. Weikel

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Contest: Around the World in 3,000 Words