New short story contest

Hedley’s Bookshop and the Wairarapa Times-Age are going down the write track in announcing plans for a short fiction contest that will commence in the new year.

“I’m delighted to announce that Hedley’s Bookshop and the Times-Age are partnering to present our inaugural Short Story Competition 2024,” Times-Age publisher Andrew Denholm said.

Although the competition is primarily aimed at adults, promising young teenage writers are also encouraged to give it a go.

“We are passionate about inspiring our community’s love of reading,” Hedley said, “and so we’re very pleased to be able to partner with the Times-Age in bringing this short story competition to Wairarapa.”

All entries to the competition must be set in Wairarapa and come in under the prescribed word limit of 3000 words.

“I’ve wanted to bring a short story competition to Wairarapa for some time, so I’m thrilled that, with Hedley’s sponsorship, we can now make it happen,” Denholm said.

A panel of three Wairarapa writers will judge the stories: Angela Yeoman, who also works for the Times-Age, Pia Buck, who publishes under the name Melissa Crosby, and Rawiri Smith [Ngāti Kahungunu], a former English teacher who writes short fiction and poetry.

Prizes include publication in the Times-Age and book vouchers provided by Hedley’s.

Entries for the short story competition open on January 15 and close on February 23.

More information is available at www.times-age.co.nz/short-story-competition.