LTHS Seeking Entries for 2018 Short Story Contest

Winners and speakers at this year’s Imagine Little Tokyo reception. (J.K. YAMAMOTO/Rafu Shimpo)

The Little Tokyo Historical Society (LTHS) seeks fictional short stories for its fifth annual Imagine Little Tokyo short story contest in the categories of English language, Japanese language and youth (18 and younger).

The deadline is Jan. 31, 2018.

The purpose of the contest is to raise awareness of Little Tokyo through a creative story that takes place there. The story has to be fictional and set in a current, past or future Little Tokyo in Los Angeles. The short story committee will be specifically looking for stories that capture the spirit and sense of Little Tokyo.

Each category winner will be awarded $500 in cash with their short story being published in The Rafu Shimpo and posted on the Discover Nikkei website. A public award ceremony and dramatic readings of the winning stories are also being planned for next spring.

“The contest opened doors for me,” said Sarena Kuhn, the 2016 youth winner. “It introduced me to writers in the Japanese American community and gave me an opportunity to read at a book festival and become a judge for the following year.”

For more information and guidelines, refer to the LTHS website, www.littletokyohs.org. If you would like to financially contribute to the contest, email littletokyohs@gmail.com.