Deadline: September 13, 2024
Entry fee: £8
About the competition
The RSL V.S. Pritchett Short Story Prize seeks to find the best unpublished short story of the year. This Prize was founded by the Royal Society of Literature at the beginning of the new millennium to commemorate the centenary of an author widely regarded as the finest English short-story writer of the 20th century, and to preserve a tradition encompassing Pritchett’s warmth of feeling and mastery of narrative.
The author of the winning entry will be awarded a prize of £1,000 and have their story published in Prospect magazine online and in the RSL Review.
Entrants must be resident in the UK, Republic of Ireland or Commonwealth (see list of countries here). Stories entered for the competition must not have been published anywhere previously (including online) or broadcast in any other medium. If the story will be published elsewhere prior to the winner announcement in February 2025, you must withdraw your entry. Entrants must be over 18 at the time of submission.
The RSL is committed to increasing accessibility and supporting writers of all incomes. As such, we are offering 50 free entries to low-income writers based in the UK.
This year’s judges are Tash Aw, Tania Hershman and Fiona Mozley. The judges will be responsible for selecting the winning entry, which will be announced in February 2025.
Competition guideline
- Entries must be submitted via the online form by 5pm on Friday 13 September 2024.
- The Royal Society of Literature cannot undertake to make corrections or additions to entries.
- Submission of an entry implies acceptance of these conditions. Any entries that do not meet the requirements outlined above will not be taken forward and the fee will not be refunded. No correspondence will be entered into regarding incorrect submissions.
- Please fill out the form here to enter, ensuring that you read and comply with the instructions given for each field. We are unable to accept entries via post or email without prior agreement.
- Read the whole guideline before submitting your entry here.
