Send Us Your Short Story or Essay!

As part of the Salem 400+ Celebration, and Reading Challenge Week (April 19-25, 2026), the Salem Public Library is collecting short stories by Salem residents. The stories will eventually be cataloged in a book that will be available to check out from the library!

This challenge has been extended in order to include more community stories! If you missed out in April, consider submitting your story or essay anytime between now and July 1st!

By submitting your work to Salem Public Library, you agree to the following:

1) You must be a resident of Massachusetts: This writing challenge is only open to Massachusetts Residents.
2) All submitted work must be the author’s original work, and must not violate the rights of another party or entity. Plagiarism or AI-generated material will not be accepted.
3) Submitted work must be for general audiences. We will not accept entries with explicit language, mature content, hate speech, or hateful discourse.
4) Reproduction & Reuse of Submissions: You grant the Salem Public Library the right to publish the story as part of the writing challenge collection in print format. If you are under 18, you have parental or guardian permission for the Salem Public Library to publish your work in print format.

Please enter your short story or essay using the following form. The story is limited to 2500 characters, which is roughly 400 words.