Short Fiction and Poetry Awards
Entries for the City of Rockingham Short Fiction and Poetry Awards 2020 closed on Friday 23 October.
The theme for the this year's awards was ‘Connection’.
The awards were open to all Western Australian residents, and writers in the following categories:
- New Writer
- Over 50s Writer
- Word. (Youth category)
All entries were considered for the Serenity Press Open Award and local residents who entered were automatically included for the Local Resident Award.
As part of the Short Fiction and Poetry Awards, young writers aged 12–18 were invited to enter the City’s Youth Writing Category, Word. Word. was open to young writers who could pursue a wider range of writing styles including short fiction, poetry, lyrics, opinion pieces or other forms of written expression. They still needed to explore the theme of ‘connection’ in their writing, and were still eligible for the Serenity Press Open Award and Local Resident Award, if applicable.
Awards and winners
Congratulations to all our award winners and those who received a high commendation. Congratulations also to everyone who entered.
| Award | Winners | Prize |
|---|
| Serenity Press Open Award | Bees by Joy Kilian-Essert | A one-on-one session with the Serenity Press publishing team to guide an author on their publishing journey, as well as a lifetime membership to the Everything Publishing Academy. Prize provided by Serenity Press. A $500 cash component from the City of Rockingham and story or poem to be published in the City’s anthology. |
| Emerging Writer Award | Remnants by Perri Polson and Leaving by Avril Mulligan | A one-on-one mentorship with an Underground Writer Senior Editor as well as the opportunity to publish a short story or poem in a relevant issue of Underground, Underground Writers online magazine. Prize provided by Underground Writers. A $200 cash component from the City of Rockingham and story or poem to be published in the City’s anthology. |
| Local Resident Award | The Last Day by Jackson Payne | A one-on-one session with the Principal Publisher of Hague Publishing as well as a $100 cash component provided by Hague Publishing. A $200 cash component from the City of Rockingham and story or poem to be published in the City’s anthology. |
| Over 50s Award | Apricots by Jan Napier | An annual membership to the Everything Publishing Academy. A $200 cash component from the City of Rockingham and story or poem to be published in the City’s anthology. |
| Word. Youth Competition | The Lamington Incident by Eva Mustapic | A logo design package and a social media consult with the team from Ignite Perth. A $200 cash component from the City of Rockingham and written work to be published in the City’s anthology. |
Highly commended
| Award category | Author |
|---|
| Serenity Press Open Award | A Stitch in Time by Shannon Meyerkort |
| Serenity Press Open Award | Love and a Small Town by Franchesca Walker |
| Word. Youth Competition | Thread of Connection by Kylie Woon |
| Over 50s Award | The Mushroom Hunter by Michael Rynne |
| Over 50s Award | Bad Bet by Chris Raich |
| Emerging Writer Award | The Left Hand of Eleanor Dutton by David Harris |
| Emerging Writer Award | The Shore by Karen Campbell |
| Local Resident Award | Remnants by Perri Polson |
| Local Resident Award | Connection by Davina Edwards |
Anthology
The City of Rockingham will publish an anthology of short stories and poems to showcase the local writing talent. Included in the anthology will be:
- Winners of each category of the Short Fiction and Poetry Awards, including the Word. Youth Competition;
- Highly commended entries from the Short Fiction and Poetry Awards; and
- A selection of stand-out pieces of work from the Writers Mentorship Program.
Sponsors
Proudly supported by Serenity Press, Hague Publishing and Underground Writers
Thank you to Serenity Press for being the major sponsor of the Short Fiction and Poetry Awards 2020. Serenity Press is a heart-centred publisher of beautiful books by authors including Sarah, Duchess of York, Kate Forsyth, Juliet Marillier, Sophie Masson, Teena Raffa-Mulligan, Monique Mulligan, Karen Weaver and many more.
Priding themselves in sharing books that will be around for many years; they are forever growing and passionate about the power of story. Their Folklore and Children's book list are where their future growth will be.
Serenity Press was founded in 2014 by Karen McDermott and has consistently grown since.