MARQUETTE — The Dandelion Cottage Short Story Contest, organized by the Upper Peninsula Publishers and Authors Association, is now open for teachers to submit short stories by students in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.

Now in its ninth iteration, the contest has no limit to the number of students that a given educator can sponsor for the contest. In earlier years, there was a limit of two short stories per grade segment. Contest co-chairs Larry Buege of Marquette and Nikki Mitchell of Ishpeming oversee all aspects of administration. Interested media, teachers, and students can reach out to them by writing to dandelion@uppaa.org.

The upcoming contest deadline is Jan. 31, 2026. Per the rules, submissions are accepted in two categories: 5th-8th grade and 9th-12th grades. As revised last year, stories entered are now limited to no more than 4,000 words in length. The top prize is $250 cash for first-place senior division winner and $150 cash for the junior division winner. As always, there are no entry fees for student writers. Complete information on how to submit can be found on https://www.dandelioncottage.org/.

Four of last year’s Dandelion Cottage Award Winners: Addison Hoffstrom, Grace Dee, Kya Gleason and Gwen Skoog.

The Dandelion Cottage Story Contest allows young authors to participate in a literary event specifically organized for nourishing their creative writing talent. The top three prize winning entries from high school writers and 5th through 8th grade groups will appear in the historic volume #10 of the U.P. Reader, an anthology of short stories and poetry from members of the UPPAA. Their stories will also be recorded in audiobook form by Brandy Thomas of Marquette.

Additionally, when released in April 2026, copies of U.P. Reader will be donated to any interested rural libraries across the Superiorland library district. Winners and their families are invited to a special award ceremony to be held at the UPPAA Spring Conference on May 16, 2026.