Writing a novel is both a lifelong ambition and an unfathomably daunting task for many Stylist readers. If your manuscript is still a long way off completion, why not wax lyrical in just 100 words or under? That's the maximum you need to pen to be in with a chance of winning our microfiction competition. As well as being published on stylist.co.uk, you'll win a creative writing course at the London School of Journalism to set you on the path to the bestseller charts

Microfiction - or flash fiction, sudden fiction or the short, short story as it's also known by the literati - is the art of telling a story, complete with gripping plot and jump-off-the-page characters in as few words as possible.

We've set the limit at 100 words per story for our series of daily microfiction competitions, the first of which will run from 10am - 5pm on Wednesday 3 November.

We'll be looking for creative flair, surprising twists, razor sharp observations and a fresh voice. If you're up for the challenge, visit this page daily for latest news and links to our daily submission pages. Please spend a few minutes looking over the rules and guidelines below. Good luck!

The theme

To avoid the dreaded writer's block, we'll be providing daily inspiration for your entry in the form of a beautiful image. Your story must be based - however loosely - on this photograph. Whether or not entries meet his criteria will be at the discretion of the Stylist.co.uk editorial team. We've published all the pictures in advance so you can get your thinking caps on in advance of the competitions opening.

How to enter

Click on each of the days below to go straight to that day's competition page. If the 'comments' box is visible at the bottom of the page it means the competition is open and you can submit your story. If the comments box is not visible either the competition has not yet opened or the deadline has passed.

Wednesday 3 November

Thursday 4 November

Friday 5 November

Monday 8 November

Tuesday 9 November

The deadlines

Competitions will run at the following times:

10am - 5pm on Wednesday 3 November (now closed)

10am - 5pm on Thursday 4 November (currently open)

10am - 5pm on Friday 5 November

10am - 5pm on Monday 8 November

10am - 5pm on Tuesday 9 November

Any entries received after 5pm will not be considered.

The winners

We cannot guarantee to publish every story we receive, but we will consider every entry for the daily winner category and the overall prize. Each day's winner will be chosen by the Stylist.co.uk editorial team and announced on the site the following day. At the end of the final competition, the five daily winners will be read by Sue Moorcroft, short story writer, novelist and long standing creative writing tutor at the London School of Journalism. The overall winner will be announced on Wednesday 10 November and will win a creative writing course of their choice at the LSJ.

About the judge

Over 130 of Sue Moorcroft's short stories have appeared in magazines and anthologies worldwide. Her recent novels Want to Know a Secret? and Starting Over are complemented by her ‘how to’ book, Love Writing – How to Make Money From Writing Romantic or Erotic Fiction (Accent Press). She’s the editor of Loves Me, Loves Me Not, a short story anthology celebrating 50 years of the Romantic Novelists’ Association, writes serials, articles and runs courses, is the head judge for Writers’ Forum and for the H E Bates Award 2010, and has won the Katie Fforde Bursary Award. Read more about Sue at suemoorcroft.com

The prize

The London School of Journalism has been teaching journalism and creative writing for nearly 90 years. They provide journalism courses, freelance classes and creative writing courses by distance learning, and as evening classes, short day-time courses and postgraduate diploma courses. Find out more at lsj.org

Terms & Conditions

1. There is no fee to enter but entrants must leave their full names and email addresses, which will only be used to contact them if they are a winner.
2. Stylist does not guarantee to publish every story but by entering, entrants agree that Stylist can publish their stories on stylist.co.uk, in Stylist magazine and any promotional material for Shortlist Media Ltd.
3. Microfiction must not have been published elsewhere or submitted for any other writing competition.
4. Neither Stylist.co.uk nor the London School of Journalism will offer any feedback to individual entrants.
5. Readers can submit an unlimited number of entries.
6. The prize will be supplied by the London School of Journalism. There is no cash alternative.
7. Title is not included in the 100 word limit.
8. The Judge's decision is final.