Expatriate and Work Abroad Writing Contest

TransitionsAbroad.com invites you to enter its 2012 Expatriate Travel Writing Contest.

Professionals, freelancers and aspiring writers are invited to write articles which describe their experience living abroad. Often your experience abroad may be extended by working or studying in the host country, so living, working, and studying abroad are often inextricable, and we are interested in these aspects as well.

Making the move to live abroad is for many the ultimate transition — often the fulfillment of a lifelong dream, in other cases the result of chance and circumstance. We are seeking inspiring articles which also provide in-depth practical descriptions of your experience moving and living abroad, including discussions of immigration, personal and family life abroad, housing, work, social interactions with the natives, food, culture, study, language learning, and potential prejudices encountered.

Apart from practical considerations what were the most important physical, psychological, and social adjustments necessary to integrate into the local communities? Feel free to include anecdotes about locals who may have aided in your adjustment to the physical conditions and social mores of the host community, as well as the role of expats in providing information and support.

Given the nature of the global economy—which is booming in some areas but largely stagnant or in recession in others—more and more people are moving abroad to find various forms of work in addition to seeking spiritual fulfillment, so such stories are of great interest to our audience.

 While we welcome a good narrative, a listing, sidebar, and/or reference to the most important websites, publications, and other practical resources which have aided you in the cultural adjustment process or enhanced your life abroad is strongly encouraged to help others who may find themselves in similar situations or even similar locations. The inclusion of useful sidebars will likely help determine the winners of the contest.

In sum, we seek your own perspective in which the host country remains the primary focus, such that the color and taste of the people and land remain in the foreground.

Please see the Living Abroad section of our site for some examples of the types of articles we are seeking and see our writers' guidelines for a sense of our editorial preferences.

TransitionsAbroad.com will publish the winners' entries and will provide links to the authors' website or blog if so desired.

Notification of your participation in the contest via Twitter, Facebook, or other social networking sites would be much appreciated (see our links/buttons at the top and bottom of this page).

The first-place winner’s entry will receive $500, the second-place winning entry $150, and the third-place winner $100.

Any other articles selected as runners-up for publication on TransitionsAbroad.com will receive a $50 payment.

The Contest is open to professional, freelance and aspiring writers from any location around the globe.

• Submit an original and unpublished essay of between 1,000 and 3,000 words relating to your experience living, moving, or working abroad. Focus should be placed on a description of the experience abroad and not primarily on personal feelings, as the descriptions and perceptions of the author should imply the personal impact. Supporting photos as attachments in .jpg or .gif format are welcome to illustrate the experience and are considered part of the essay submission. Please read the writers’ guidelines for Transitions Abroad Magazine, previous winners entries, as well as sample articles on this site for a sense of our editorial focus.
• To enter the Contest, attach your essay in Word format or copy and paste it into an e-mail if you must (conversion to Word costs us time). Please include your full name, complete postal address, phone number, and the bio you wish to display in the body of the email and on the document. Please type "2012 Expatriate Writing Essay Entry" in the subject description of the e-mail and send the e-mail to expatriatewritingcontest@transitionsabroad.com.
• The Contest begins May 31, 2011, and all entries must be received by February 15, 2012. Transitions Abroad Publishing, Inc. will require first-time North American rights for all submissions which are accepted as contest winners and for publication. In addition, Transitions Abroad Publishing, Inc. will reserve the right to reprint the story in a future publication.
• Editors of TransitionsAbroad.com will judge entries based upon the following criteria:
• Sensitivity to the people and culture being described
• Ability to engage and inspire the reader
• Practical information which others can use
• Rich photographic/video illustrations
• Winners will be chosen on or about February 22, 2012 and notified by phone, mail, or e-mail on March 1, 2012 for publication in early to May, 2012 to allow time for contact, acceptance, and international payment to writers, some of whom live in remote regions of the world.

• There is no entry fee required for submissions.
• Decisions of the judges are final.
• Transitions Abroad Publishing, Inc. is not responsible for late, lost, misdirected, incomplete, or illegible e-mail or for any computer-related, online, or technical malfunctions that may occur in the submission process.
• Submissions are considered void if illegible, incomplete, damaged, irregular, altered, counterfeit, produced in error, or obtained through fraud or theft.
• Submissions will be considered made by an authorized account holder of the e-mail address submitted at time of entry.
• The 1st, 2nd and 3rd place winners—along with any other runners-up accepted for publication—will be paid by Transitions Abroad Publishing, Inc. either by check or Paypal as preferred by the author.
• All federal, state, and local taxes are the sole responsibility of the Contest winners.