Stories, poems, or comics of any genre were accepted at TEC 2026. From 2027, only short stories are accepted.
The stories must be written in English by a single student and follow the theme of TEC. They must be between 250 and 1000 words long and must not violate copyright.
Stories must be submitted three months before TEC if a pre-selection takes place, or two months before TEC if there is no pre-selection. No stories will be accepted after the deadline. All stories must be sent by e-mail in a PDF format. No other format will be accepted. All submitted materials should be anonymised; nowhere should there be any mention of the names of students/participants and/or their school. To avoid any technical problems, please send the stories before the deadline, as we will otherwise not be able to advise you on how to resolve them.
If a pre-selection is necessary due to the large number of submissions, the judges will decide which stories will be invited to TEC. All invited students will receive their invitations two months before TEC. However, even students whose stories are not selected for TEC will receive detailed written feedback from the judges!
All stories invited to TEC will be published on this website so that the audience can vote and select the winner according to the audience vote. Online voting will take place one month before TEC.
The judges will read all the stories before TEC. On the day of TEC, they will talk to the student-authors about their creative process, and the student-authors will be able to read excerpts from their stories and ask the judges questions if they wish. The judges will provide feedback on all student works and finally select the winner of the Story Challenge based on the following criteria:
- relevance to the theme of TEC
- writing and composition: plot structure and coherence, characterization, originality of ideas, proficient language use
- creativity and expression: inventive ideas, world-building, or narrative approach; voice and tone; emotional impact
- presentation (when reading excerpts): clarity and expressiveness, engagement with the audience.
