Announcing Best Short Story adult division longlist and Under 18 division shortlist
The eagerly awaited return of the Whitsundays Writers Festival in September 2024 offers an exciting opportunity for writers, poets, and book cover designers across Australia.
In a bold initiative, the Festival launched earlier this year the Whitsundays Literary Heart Awards, offering substantial cash prizes to recognise and honour outstanding contributions to the literary and design landscape.
The Heart Awards’ mission is to spotlight the diverse talents within the Australian creative community while also paying homage to the captivating Heart Reef—a natural wonder found in the Whitsundays region.
Festival President Karen Jacobsen expressed enthusiasm for the awards program, “Beyond assembling some of Australia’s celebrated authors in Airlie Beach, our Festival will also celebrate and champion homegrown writing and design talent. The Heart Awards epitomise our commitment to nurturing creativity.”
The Heart Award for Best Short Story has two divisions: adult and under 18. In both divisions, first prize will receive $1,000 and $500 for the runner up. The awards sought submissions from around Australia of up to 3,000 words of unpublished creative fiction stories.
Shortlist for Best Short Story Award under 18 division
Today, we are thrilled to announce the shortlisted submissions competing for the 2024 Best Short Story Under 18 division:
- Framed, Myka Kelly (Qld)
- The Dirty Dealer, Riley Cousen (Qld)
- My Mother’s Betrayal, Mila Kronk (Qld)
- Unspoken Words, Alessa Penglase-Fortunato (Qld)
Excitingly, all four shortlisted young writers are from the Greater Whitsunday region.
From this shortlist, our winners will emerge and be announced on Saturday 7 September 2024.
The Under 18 Best Short Story Award is proudly supported by James Cook University’s Roderick Centre for Australian Literature and Creative Writing. The Centre fosters the reading and writing of Australian literature and encourages the study of Australian literature and literary cultures.
Longlist for Best Short Story Award adult division
We are also delighted to announce the longlisted submissions for the 2024 Best Short Story adult division:
- All Good Things, Pi James (Vic)
- Bread Before Cake, D.J. Blackmore (NSW)
- Heart of a Lion, Amelia Olsen (Qld)
- In the Gardens, Gregory Vickas (NSW)
- Julian, Rick Brown (Qld)
- Out, Out Brief Candle, Himara Jayasundara (SA)
- Resurrection,Sue Osborn (Qld)
- The Appointment, Rod Francisco (Qld)
- The Cliff, Rick Brown (Qld)
- The Miracle Tree, James Manning (Qld)
- The Sofa Bed, Richie Black (NSW)
- Tideheart, Karen Ginnane (Vic)
Our judging panel have diligently reviewed blind submissions (all author information removed) for both short story divisions against five selection criteria of originality and creativity, plot and structure, character development, dialogue and voice, and emotional impact.
The longlist submissions for the adult division are currently under further consideration. From the longlist, a final shortlist will be selected, and winners announced on Saturday 7 September 2024.
“We have been very impressed with the entries for the 2024 Heart Awards, they all highlight the sheer creative talent and proficiency of Australia’s writing community,” remarked Karen.