We are delighted to announce the longlist for the 2020 Bristol Short Story Prize.
All judging decisions have been made and we are thrilled to introduce the 40 writers and stories in the running for this year’s top prize.
A huge thank you to all the writers from across the world who sent in their stories during such extreme times. We feel very fortunate to have had the opportunity to read, discuss, absorb and reflect on the 2,705 entries we received.
A massive thank you to our readers and judges, too. They have been so adaptable and accommodating of the changing situation, and their commitment to the competition has been incredible.
Many congratulations to the 40 writers whose stories have been selected. Your writing has illuminated the past few months for us and we are extremely grateful to have the opportunity to celebrate it.
2020 Bristol Short Story Prize Longlist (stories are listed A-Z by writer)
Arif Anwar – Pig
Samuel Atkins – Today was Tuesday
Andre Bagoo – Simple Things
Erika Banerji – Marvellous Real
Jo Beckett-King – The Croft
Ella Bradshaw – The Living
Ethan Chapman – Where Have All the Children Gone?
Chelsea Chong – This is Not a Drill
Bethan Cooke – Stopping Point
Habiba Cooper Diallo – Desert Blues
Tessa Duell – Man’s Best Friend
Fiona Ennis – Host
Carol Farrelly – Clipped
Laura Freeman – One Last Look
Steven Fromm – Six Carp
Chris Gates – Weaver’s Trap
Faiza Hasan – A Tapestry of Flowers
David Shelley Jones – Six Foot Track
Lubnaa Joomun – A Dance with the Wind
Radhika Kapur – The School Play
Olivia Katrandjian – The Children Shall Be Spared
Sarah Burton Kennedy – How to Prolong Your Existence
Barbara Leahy – The Time It Takes to Smoke a Cigarette
Tehila Lieberman – Bedtime Story
Faraaz Mahomed – 1993
Wah Mak – Old Crush on the 703
Michael Mau – Pal
Stephen Narain – What in Me is Dark, Illumine
Gamuchirai Nhengu – Normal Girl
Will Neal – Interdependence
Makena Onjerika – Girl Games
Heenali Patel – Onwards
Natalie Serrag – Fish
Honor Somerset – The Jesus Tree
Susanne Stich – Unmappable
Valerie Trapp – Eve
Rowena Warwick – Smoking Area
Andrea Watts – Stone Flowers
Christopher Young – Centre
⍆⍅ Hex: A Self Instructs Itself (writer’s name withheld so as not to compromise another competition)
Notable Contenders
(these stories were in the running for the longlist until the final decisions were made)
Ali Al-Jamri – The Forecast from Jau Prison
Alan Bern – Twinzed
Annalisa Crawford – One Minute Silence
John Etcheverry – Speck
Aidan Furey – Vernon Montgomery is Not Dead
Bhavika Govil – Naan Bread
Raphaela Hopson – Rinse. Eat. Bathe. Repeat.
Christian Livermore – Bluet
Conn Redden – Gomoecca
Dierdre Shanahan – Overnight in the Day Room
Anna Stewart – Floors Spread Cold
We will be announcing this year’s shortlist at 2pm (BST) on July 29th 2020. The 20 stories on the shortlist will be published in our 13th anthology which will be published on October 10th. The winner of this year’s Bristol Short Story Prize, the two runners up, plus the Sansom Award for Bristol-based writers will all be announced on October 10th.