Podcast Pickle is looking for podcasters to compete in its Pickle Tales: Battle of the Podcast Stars contest.

The contest challenges podcasters to write and produce 5-minute stories, skits or essays on an assigned theme. Listeners will be able to vote for their favorites in each round of the contest, and each round will narrow the field of competition until the finals.

The ultimate winner will receive $250 cash and other prizes.

The contest kicked off Sunday, October 15th, with the challenge theme “Tell me a story”. Details are available at the site.

The idea for the contest originated with Christiana Ellis, author of the podcast audiobook, Nina Kimberly the Merciless.

‚ÄúI was looking for a new project that could really demonstrate the power of the podcast medium,” notes Ellis.¬† “Podcasting is reviving the oral tradition of storytelling. With nothing but a computer and a microphone, anyone can create their own content and put it out there for the world to see. With Pickle Tales, I wanted to showcase some of the amazing talent that can be found in places you might not expect.‚Äù