Have you always dreamed of being a travel writer? Do you have a good story to share about a recent trip you've taken in Ireland or abroad?

For the second year, The Irish Times, in association with Travel Department, is inviting aspiring writers to write a travel feature for consideration for publication in The Irish Times Magazine. The author of the best entry, as selected by our judges, will have their article published in print in The Irish Times Magazine, along with a travel-writing assignment abroad, also for publication in the Magazine.

Last year's winning entry was written by Ruth Petherick from Dublin, who wrote an emotional story from Cambodia and Vietnam. Ruth's prize was an 11-night trip to India with Travel Department. You can read her winning entry here.

To enter this year’s competition, your article could focus on a particular encounter with a person or place, or a big adventure or journey to somewhere wild or exotic. It could be a trip in Ireland or thousands of kilometres away, alone or with friends or family; the destination doesn’t matter, but the more unusual your angle, the better your chances of winning. What we are looking for are engaging, entertaining, original and well-written stories.

Articles should be 500 words or less and submitted using this online form from Saturday, September 17th. A selection of the best contributions, along with the shortlist of 10 finalists will be published on irishtimes.com.

The competition closes on October 8th, 2016, with the winning article published in The Irish Times Magazine later that month. Full terms and conditions here.