Spread the Word has announced that the winner of the 2018 London Short Story Prize is Guy Ware for his story the year of peace. Highly commended were A Complete History of Portraiture by Kira McPherson and Dead Shark by Emma Hutton.
There were over 500 entries to the competition, which aims to find the best stories and writers coming out of the capital. The judges, authors Guy Gunaratne and Clare Fisher, and agent Sarah Such, chose the winner from a high quality selection of stories in a variety of genres, styles and subject matter.
The winner receives £1,000 and a meeting with an agent. The two highly commended authors receive £250 and a meeting with an editor. Further prizes include places on Spread the Word courses, and membership to the London Writers Network. The twelve longlisted writers will see their stories published in the London Short Story Anthology 2018, produced by Kingston University Press and launched in April 2019.
The full London Short Story Prize 2018 list is as follows:
Winner
the year of peace – Guy Ware
Highly Commended
A Complete History of Portraiture – Kira McPherson
Dead Shark – Emma Hutton
Shortlist
Chicken Shop Girl – Katie Lumsden
Like A Blooming Discotheque – Judith Wilson
Real Estate – CG Menon
Longlist
As Close As It Comes – Adam Welch
End of Terrace – Luan Goldie
First Time Ever – Erika Banerji
Granda – Ken Barlow
Madrid – B R Porter
Strange Inherited Jazz- Lou Kramskoy
