Breton short story competition

For the second year running, the Goéland Masqué (Masked Gull), Penmarc'h's international festival of crime novels and thrillers, is launching its competition for crime stories written in Breton and set in Brittany, from 5 January to 3 April 2026. New for 2026, the competition has been extended to include crime comics and manga.

Competition rules
Entries must be written in Breton and correspond to the short story genre: short, simple, with a limited number of characters, a plot and a surprising ending. In the same spirit, comics written in Breton must be based on a scenario, with a title, beginning and end.

Short stories and comics can be written individually, in groups or by classes in the following three categories: end of primary school, middle school, high school and adults.

Short stories must not exceed :
- 3,000 characters, or around 1 and a half pages, for primary school pupils,
- 8,000 characters, approximately 3 pages, for secondary school students
- 15,000 characters, about 8 pages, for secondary school students and adults.
Manga comics must not exceed :
- one A3 panel (2 pages) for individuals,
- two A3 panels (4 pages) for group entries.

Full rules and entry forms for the competition will be available from 5 January 2026 on the website: goelandmasque.fr

Prizes
The prizes for the three best short stories and the three best comics will be awarded at the Masked Gull Festival to be held from 23 to 25 May 2026. The authors of the best stories will be published on the festival website and in partner Breton magazines.