Competition Shortlist Announced

The Chalk Circle Short Story Competition 2026 shortlist

Thank you to everyone who entered our competition this year. Our judges have been busy reading and discussing all your submissions and are now ready to announce the shortlist.

Many congratulations to the successful writers - and good luck in the next stage of the competition.

The final prize winning and commended stories will be announced in November 2026 but here is a preview of the shortlisted entries so far.

Chalk Circle 1500 Short Fiction

• A Blanket, But No Umbrella

D.M. Tomlinson

• The Cabbage Rabbit

Kevin Lymer

•  The Weight Of It

Twist Phelan

• Until the Sun Goes Down 

Steff Morgan

•  Void 

Terry Kerins

Chalk Circle 360 Circular Flash Fiction

• For the Love of Mackerel

Hilary Smith

• House Rules 

Lana Dove

• Landscape 

Rebecca Kinnarney

•  My Daughter’s Desperate for a Dog but Her Mother’s a Cat Person

Chris Cottom

•  Sorry Sorry

Twist Phelan

• The Asymmetry of Truth

Sam Austrums

• The Fire That Never Dies

Ahmet Ersozlu

The winners of the 1500 Category and the 360 Category will receive £200 and £50 respectively. Both winning stories will be published on our website.

Here is more information about the shortlist, and here are details on the different competition categories, the thinking behind them and the writing qualities our judges were looking for.