Do you plan to attend DEF CON?

There are at least 2 pre-DEF-CON contests which have had prizes which have included entry into DEF CON for winners in the past.

Both have deadlines *quickly* approaching

Due date: "The contest will open on May 25th at 12:00 (noon) LOCAL LAS VEGAS, NV, TIME ZONE and will close Wednesday, June 17th, 2026, 00:00 (midnight) LOCAL LAS VEGAS, NV, TIME ZONE."

The DEF CON Short Story Contest, AKA Creative Writing contest:
https://forum.defcon.org/node/255767

https://bsky.app/profile/DCShortstory.bsky.social

Usually, midnight is the *start* of a day, and if true for this contest, the deadline to submit your story would be before 1 second after 11:59:59PM PDT on July 16. I'm not claiming it is or is not, but to be safe, submitting early is best.

If true, this contest has a deadline of less than 48 hours.

Next:

Due Date: "Contest runs May 10th through June 21st at 11:59pm Las Vegas time."

The Phish Stories Contest:
https://forum.defcon.org/node/255739
https://forum.defcon.org/node/255740

https://phishstories.org/
@serum
https://bsky.app/profile/phishstories.bsky.social
https://www.reddit.com/user/phishstories

In this case, they avoid the ambiguity of midnight to settle on 11:59pm Las Vegas time, June 21, 2026. That is less than 1 week away!

I do not run either of these contests. Nothing I write about them is authoritative for them. I am not a judge for these or other contests. Contact details for each are available in their content for authoritative answers.

Please compete in these pre-DEF-CON contests. You get to exercise your skills at effective communication and writing. These skills are important in any technical job where you need to create compelling narratives that convince your audience that your idea is the best idea. Better skills make you better!

Compelling writing also encourages organizing your thoughts, which helps people beyond writing skills.

Even better? By competing in pre-DEF-CON contests, they are not competing with your time *at* DEF CON.

If you actually win, then you earn a prize as they describe, too.

Thanks for providing content for me (and others) to read.

Good luck!