The HG Wells Short Story Competition

The annual HG Wells Fiction Short Story Competition offers a £500 Senior and £1,000 Junior prize and free publication of all shortlisted entries in a quality, professionally published paperback anthology.

HG Wells Short Story Competition

Theme 2025

Theme: The Middle Ground

Winners to be announced Sunday 16th November.

For further information, please read the rules and FAQs below.

If you cannot find the answer to your query there, you can email hgwellscompetition@gmail.com

Competitions: — Overview

The Margaret and Reg Turnill Competition & Senior Writing Competition

The Margaret and Reg Turnill Competition for young writers of 21 years and under, for which the prize winner receives £1,000, and a competition for the over 21s which offers the Grand Prize of £500.

The Margaret and Reg Turnill Competition for young writers of 21 years and under, for which the prize winner receives £1,000, and a competition for the over 21s which offers the Grand Prize of £500.

HG Wells Short Story Competition Winners & Awards

At the 2024 HG Wells Short Story Competition Award Ceremony Sunday 17th November on the theme “The Fool”, the winners were announced as:

Celia Fournier for Vulture’s Field

Robert Maslen for Sally Grass

Short Listed

Junior Competition, The Margaret and Reg Turnill Prize

Eshaan Agarwal

The Cradle of Humanity

Scarlett Bailey

The Perfect Fool

Jahdai Grey

The Natural Enemy

Maisie Harris

A Trap Laid

Annabelle McGrane

Smoke and Mirrors

Ellie Mead

Summer Strawberries

Hector Reynoso

Out of Silence

Molly Venus

In the Weeds

Anna Wang

Bao

Senior Competition, The Grand Prize

Jo Holmwood

Con McGinty’s Shoes

James Skivington

The Dolls’ House

Peter Poole

Feeling Flat

Keith Porter

The Widow

Lalitha Ramanathan

A Concert, a Clown, and a Confession

Clare Shaw

Ladybird or Fool

Ian Slatter

The Deal

Rebecca Spillett

Thing-lings

Saria Steyl

The Marilyn Program

Emily Waugh

Genius

Colin Evans

A Certain Chemistry

Matthew Dickens

Where the Sun Don’t Shine

Lior Blum

The Sign

“I seek, in fiction, to advance ideas and naturally I repeat the ideas in which I believe.”

HG Wells

HG Wells

Events & Workshops

Every year, we run a series of workshops (often free to attend) in the lead-up to our writing competition’s closing date.

We hope that these workshops will inspire, educate and inform everyone who attends. You don’t have to be entering a story in to our competition – anyone can come to the workshops – but of course we hope you will send in an entry too!

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