Sci560 | In Your Words
Ends on
About:
What does a city remember—and what do we remember of a city?
A street turned unfamiliar. A building lost to time. A fragrance carried on the wind.
As part of Sci560, we invite you to respond to a set of writing prompts that dwell in the textures of urban life—real or imagined, remembered or reimagined.
We are inviting writers aged 18 to 30, based in Bengaluru, to respond to a series of writing prompts drawn from contemporary literature that explores the many ways we live in cities. These excerpts—from writers like Anjum Hassan, Michelle Mendonca Bambawale, Karan Mujoo, Unmana, Aishwarya Jha, and Tiffany Tsao—span places like Goa, Jammu, Singapore, and Bengaluru. They reflect on migration, memory, routine, dislocation, and small rituals of belonging.
You are encouraged to submit a short piece— essays or poetry—that engages with your own experience of a city. It could be the one you grew up in, the one you live in now, or one entirely imagined. What matters is how the city becomes a part of your story.
Shortlisted writers will be mentored by Jayapriya Vasudevan, literary agent and founder of Jacaranda Literary Agency, in a series of closed workshops. Under her guidance, you will refine your piece for a public reading in July 2025.
Timeline:
Call goes live: 23 May 2025
Call Closes: 15 June 2025
Writing workshop and Mentorship session: 13 July 2025
Public reading and Showcase: 20 July 2025
Participation Guidelines:
- The deadline for submissions is 11:30pm IST on 15 June 2025
- You must be between 18 and 30 years of age to participate.
- You must be a resident of Bengaluru or be present in Bengaluru for the writing workshop and as well as the public reading.
- You can submit a maximum of three responses per person.
- Your submission must be in English.
- Please include the title of your work in your submission.
- Your submission can either be an Essay or in the form of Poetry.
- For Essay Submissions, Word count: 800 to 4,000 words. Choose a length that suits your story—short personal reflections or longer explorations are both welcome.
- For Poetry Submissions, Length: 10 to 60 lines. This can be one longer poem or up to three shorter poems (total not exceeding 60 lines). Style: All forms are welcome—free verse, spoken word, narrative poetry, haiku, or experimental forms.
- Entries must be submitted in .doc or .pdf file formats. The file should be named as follows: YourName_Title_IYW2025
- Text within the submission should be formatted in Calibri, size 12.
- You retain all the rights to your work. By submitting your work, you will give Science Gallery Bengaluru the permission to use your submission during Sci560, and your submission will be archived on the Science Gallery Bengaluru website.
- Your submission should not have won or placed in other competitions, or have been published in an official capacity in other magazines, exhibitions, etc.