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.
Theme 2025
Theme: The Middle Ground
Entries Close Tuesday 8th July at 11pm BST.
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
The 2023 Anthology of “Motion” is available now on Amazon at:
Buy “Motion” on Amazon (UK)
Buy “Motion” on Amazon (US)
“I seek, in fiction, to advance ideas and naturally I repeat the ideas in which I believe.”
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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