Menu
Historical Picture Prompt Writing Contest 2023
Get your story writing skills ready! The Montana History Portal is hosting the 3rd Annual Historical Picture Prompt contest. Using any photo in the Portal collection as a story prompt participants will write a fictional short story (650 words or less) and submit it to the form. Winners will be chosen from grades 3-6, grades 7-12 and adult. The deadline to enter is March 17, 2023.
Where to begin? Browse the photo collection to find an interesting photo. Once you've found an image save the link to that image - you'll need it when submitting your story.
If the entire collection is too overwhelming, try one of these smaller collections:
Related to Mining Photos with animals Photos of people
How to Enter:
Write a fictional short story based on the photo (650 words or less). We are using an online form this year for contest entries. We recommend using a Microsoft Word Doc or a Google Doc to draft your story. Use a basic font and single spacing. Complete the following form and copy and paste your story into the form where asked: https://forms.office.com/g/vw7n7ZvBL8
Remember, the entry deadline is March 17, 2023. Photos and stories will be highlighted on Portal social media accounts.
Prizes
The Portal is proud to partner with Distinctly Montana and the Museum of the Rockies for this contest.
First Prize:
Grades 3-6: $50.00 Gift Certificate to Distinctly Montana Store
Grades 7-12: $50.00 Gift Certificate to Distinctly Montana Store
Adult: $100.00 Gift Certificate to Distinctly Montana Store
All age group first place winners will receive a one-year subscription to the Distinctly Montana Magazine
All age group first place winners will be published in the Distinctly Montana newsletter, web page and other social media channels
Second Prize:
Grades 3-6 and Grades 7-12 second place finishers will receive 3 passes to the Museum of the Rockies;
Adult second place finishers will receive 2 passes to the Museum of the Rockies.
All age group second place finishers will receive a one-year subscription to the Distinctly Montana Magazine
All age group second place finishers will be published in the Distinctly Montana newsletter, web page and other social media channels
TERMS AND CONDITIONS:
There is no fee to participate in the Montana History Portal Photo Prompt Contest.
There is no restriction on the number of entries a participant can submit.
The Montana History Portal does not endorse the content of any stories created for this Contest.
We have the right to reject submissions for violations of, but not limited to, inappropriate content, defamation, or copyright issues.
The Montana History Portal reserves the right to disqualify any Entrant or Entry at its sole discretion. No correspondence shall be entered into.
The Montana History Portal reserves the right not to select finalists if, at its sole discretion, no suitable entries are received.
Entering the Contest grants the Montana History Portal permission to make public and otherwise use an entrant’s name and story for publicity purposes.
Participation constitutes the entrant’s full and unconditional agreement to and acceptance of these Official Rules. By participating in the Contest, the entrant is representing and warranting that he/she has read and understood, and agrees to be bound by, these rules. Including the guides and rules referred to herein, these Official Rules constitute the entire agreement between the entrant and the Montana History Portal in relation to the Contest. They govern the entrant’s participation and supersede any prior or other agreements between the entrant and the Montana History Portal relating to the Contest.
Montana Meme-ory Contest 2023
The Montana State Library is hosting a contest to create memes (learn what a meme is here) using historical photo collections in the Montana History Portal.
Please keep a few things in mind when creating your entries:
No swearing, crude language, or mean-spirited entries will be accepted (we are a community, after all).
Do not personally attack the people in the historical images in Montana History Portal. They could be someone’s grandparents!
Be thoughtful about the entries you create—we want to share them with the world and think you can come up with some funny, smart entries.
FIND YOUR IMAGE:
Browse the images in the Portal. Once you have identified the image you will use, save the link to that image as you will need that link when submitting your entry. Then click the “download” button in the column to the left of the image. and save the image.
CREATE YOUR MEME:
Go to your preferred meme generator to upload your image from the Portal. We recommend https://memebetter.com/generator or https://imgflip.com/memegenerator. Add your text to the image and save it to your device.
SUBMIT YOUR ENTRY:
Submit your entry by emailing it to the link based on your age group:
10-18 - Submit here if you are between 10 and 18 years old.
19-40 - Submit here if you are between 19 and 40 years old.
41-120 - Submit here if you are between 41 and 120 years old.
If you have trouble with the above links, you can send your submission to mmp@mt.gov with the subject line: Historical Photo Meme Contest. For your entry to be considered you must include the following information:
Your name
Your meme as an attachment
A link to the original image in the Portal
Your age group:
10-18 or 19-40 or 41-120
HOW TO WIN!
DEADLINE: Submit your entry by Wednesday, May 17, 2023.
FINALISTS SELECTION: Library staff members will review entries and publish the finalists.
On Wednesday May 18, 2023, finalists will be notified via email that their entry has been selected for the final round. The finalists’ entries will be posted to a collection on the Portal site and opened for voting.
VOTING: The voting period will run from Thursday, May 18 – Wednesday, May 24, 2023, at 5:00 p.m. (MST). The winning memes will be the top two entries in each age group with the most “likes” at the time the voting period ends. Voting is open to all.
WHAT WILL I WIN?
The top meme creators will win gifts from our generous sponsors!
TERMS AND CONDITIONS:
There is no fee to participate in the Montana State Library’s Historical Photograph Meme Contest (“Contest”).
There is no restriction on the number of entries a participant can submit.
Montana State Library does not endorse the content of any memes created for this Contest other than finalists’ entries.
We have the right to reject submissions for violations of, but not limited to, inappropriate content, defamation, or copyright issues.
The Montana State Library reserves the right to disqualify any Entrant or Entry at its sole discretion. No correspondence shall be entered into.
The Montana State Library reserves the right not to select finalists if, at its sole discretion, no suitable entries are received.
Entering the Contest grants the Montana State Library permission to make public and otherwise use an entrant’s name and meme for publicity purposes.
Participation constitutes the entrant’s full and unconditional agreement to and acceptance of these Official Rules. By participating in the Contest, the entrant is representing and warranting that he/she has read and understood, and agrees to be bound by, these rules. Including the guides and rules referred to herein, these Official Rules constitute the entire agreement between the entrant and the Montana State Library in relation to the Contest. They govern the entrant’s participation and supersede any prior or other agreements between the entrant and the Montana State Library relating to the Contest.
