Here are some tips for preparing analyses for this particular, open competition.

1. Having thought about the event in some detail, identify a question that your analysis will directly answer. Your write-up need not mention the question, but it should be clear to the reader precisely what the purpose of the short analysis is. Choose a title for the paper that signals its subject matter or that is intriguing.
2. As you have only 800-1500 words try to answer a single, important question rather than many questions. If an event raises a number of distinct questions, each of which can be answered without too much repetition, then you can always submit more than one paper.
3. Play to your strengths. It's best to write about subjects and events that you've learnt about at university, that apply methods you've learned, or that build upon independent reading that you have undertaken.
4. Once you have drafted your paper, ask if the introduction guides the reader sufficiently through the paper and the conclusion contains a sharp enough, interesting set of findings.
5. Think hard as to who might be the best audience for your paper and tailor the argument to that audience's interests. Often there is no harm in stating who might be most interested in a particular analysis, especially if the audience you want to reach is wider than others might infer from the title of your paper.

The best way to keep on top of recent developments is to read to a major international newspaper (Financial Times, International Herald Tribune, Wall Street Journal etc) and follow the major Thought Leadership sites (such as Project Sydicate, VoxEU, etc.). Events move fast--so fast that usual academic sources need time to catch up. Stay connected to Project Firefly’s social media to view recommended readings.

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