Sentinels of Peace: One Time at the Academy

For most people, joining Starfleet is where they meet people from the greater Federation community for the very first time. Such encounters with species that are unfamiliar can be difficult to handle if you aren’t prepared for a peculiarity that exists in the culture you encounter but not your own. It can be a memorable encounter for both parties and leave a lasting impression on the participants of the interaction. These encounters can appear inconsequential at the time, but might later prove to be an example of how one handles diplomacy in the future.

This is a flash fiction competition, in which participants are asked to write a short fiction work of 500 words or less recounting a story about a memorable encounter with a race that your chosen character had never encountered prior to their arrival at Starfleet Academy. This encounter should be some manner of social misstep that caused temporary conflict before being resolved in a diplomatic fashion.

• Participants may use any character they wish, currently in use or newly created. The account may be a flashback or told as a story in some social setting. The more creative, the better.
• Entries will be judged on overall content and creativity in the handling of the diplomatic ‘crisis’. In the event of ties, spelling and grammar will be considered.

Criteria

• Submissions should be 500 words or less.
• Participants may use any character they wish, currently in use or newly created. The account may be a flashback or told as a story in some social setting. The more creative, the better.
• Entries will be judged on overall content and creativity in the handling of the diplomatic 'crisis'. In the event of ties, spelling and grammar will be considered.
• Entries may be submitted directly in the competition form or submitted as a Word document or PDF via link to a Google Document, Google Drive folder, or other such system. Make sure that the sharing settings are set to 'anyone with the link can view.' Submissions the judges cannot open will not be graded.