Short Fiction Competition

The KSP Writers' Centre is proud to present this annual short fiction competition for Australian writers, which is FREE for youth to enter thanks to sponsorship from the Shire of Mundaring. Judges will be looking for good quality original, unpublished writing with engaging characters and a compelling narrative. All fiction styles and themes are acceptable.

Results will be announced at an awards ceremony in December and published on social media and the KSP website thereafter. Shortlisted entrants will be contacted prior to the awards ceremony with an invitation to attend and read an extract of their entry. 

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You will need a Submittable account to enter this competition. Don't worry! It is free and easy to set up.

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Deadline

5.00pm AWST, 25 September 2020

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Costs

YOUTH (up to 17 years): Free 

ADULT (18 plus): 1 story $10; 2 stories $15; 3 stories $20

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What to Write About

Anything! This is an open theme fiction competition.

Limits

YOUTH: Max 1,000 words per entry, up to three entries

ADULT: Max 2,500 per entry, up to three entries

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Prizes

*subject to discretion of judge*

First place $300 prize for open plus weekend residency at the KSP Writers' Centre (non-transferable, $300 value) and $100 first place prize for youth

Second place certificates with $150 prize for open and $50 for youth

Up to five commended certificates for both open and youth

Mundaring National Young Writers encouragement award for under 14s with $25 prize

Select entrants invited to read their story at KSP’s End of Year Awards Ceremony

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Can I change my entry after submitting?

You can request to edit your submission up to one week prior to the deadline; just send KSP a message via your Submittable account. NOTE: You can NOT add any additional entries to your original submission, so please ensure that your entry is complete before you submit.

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Competition Judge:

Holden Sheppard

Holden Sheppard is an award-winning West Australian author. His debut novel Invisible Boys (Fremantle Press, 2019) won several accolades including the 2018 City of Fremantle Hungerford Award. In 2020, Invisible Boys was shortlisted for the Victorian Premier's Literary Awards and named as a Notable Book by the Children's Book Council of Australia. Holden's writing has been published in Griffith Review, Westerly, page seventeen, Indigo Journal and the Bright Lights, No City anthology. He has written articles for 10 Daily, the Huffington Post, the ABC, DNA Magazine and FasterLouder. He is Deputy Chair of WritingWA.  

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How to Submit

Set up a Submittable account

Click below on the 'Submit' button, and select the relevant KSP competition you wish to enter

Prepare your entry/ies according to the Terms of Use and Formatting Rules (refer to Submittable entry form - (you will need to have an account first)

Complete Submittable entry form and submit before the deadline.