The Blizzard Creative Writing Contest is back, and this year it's open to participants from across the globe

The Blizzard Creative Writing Contest is back this summer, offering one lucky (and talented) fan the chance to visit Blizzard's headquarters in Irvine, CA and spend an afternoon with the company's own writing team. As if hobnobbing with Blizzard's lore masters isn't reward enough, the grand prize winner will also receive his or her choice between a Diablo III "OVERTHROWN" barbarian diorama or a Frostmourne sword. Seven runners-up will each receive prize packages from the Diablo Archive, the Warcraft Archive, the StarCraft Archive, and the Warcraft: War of the Ancients Archive, "all signed by Chris Metzen, the cover artists, and Blizzard's writing staff," according to the official contest page.

This year fans from anywhere in the world can enter the contest (with the exception of a few states and provinces), unlike the 2009 event. Blizzard is calling for creative fiction based in the Warcraft, StarCraft, or Diablo universe, written in English and composed of 2,500 to 7,500 words. Entrants are instructed to submit their work at the official contest page, using this entry form. Rules and eligibility information can be found here, or visit the main contest page for all the links and info. The deadline for entries is August 23, 2010. To help you get an idea of what kind of writing the judges enjoyed in the past, visit the 2009 Blizzard Creative Writing Contest page to read last year's winning entry and excerpts from some of the finalists' stories.