I've received a couple of emails from folks who wanted to know when this year's contest would be announced. Shortly, folks. Meanwhile, get going with your story. If I may, I'd suggest mulling over the story idea, setting, characters, tone, etc obsessively and making notes before you actually begin to write the story. Try and get hold of Writing Fiction by Alan Wall and give it your undivided attention for a few days. The rules this year would be pretty much the same as before.
There will be an exciting new addition to what we'll do with this year's (and past year's stories) - besides publishing them online at TheScian.com. More later.