Stringybark Open Short Story Award 2024

CLOSED


The Stringybark Seven Deadly Sins Award 2017

Competition Closed: 23 April 2017


174 entries.  $1085 in prizes.

Judges: Zena Shapter, Julia Robertson, Graham Miller and David Vernon

Editor: David Vernon

Cover designer: Michael Vernon

Ausralian printer: Kainos Print

I never thought pinking-shears would be sharp enough to kill someone.

But then I didn't expect to find a dead body in my sewing room either. A very dead body. I knew this because of the circle of wine-black blood.

A man without trousers.

From “Not With the Good Scissors” by Barb Ettridge


Danny stared through the glass at the young, voluptuous woman, her turquoise bikini luminous in the subdued street lighting. A gaggle of men formed a half-circle outside the window in Amsterdam's red-light district. Danny's bestie, Si, egged him on.

“Go on, Dan, she's the one. Look at those tits, dude!”

Danny's heart sank. Why had he agreed to have his stag do in Amsterdam?

— From “Caged Birds” by Susan Carey


Lust, envy, greed, wrath, sloth, gluttony and pride. What a collection of sins to make the heart beat faster. This is the second anthology of short stories we have published that explores these dark human motivations. Here we present to you the thirty highly commended and three prize-winning stories from the Stringybark Seven Deadly Sins Award 2017.


32 published stories.  One e-book and printed anthology, Gift of a Casserole and other Deadly Sins


Edited by David Vernon, e-book and paperback, Stringybark Publishing,

ISBN: 978-0-9925759-9-1


$14.95 includes postage within Australia.  Discounts for multiple purchases.  Please enquire for international orders.

Purchase a Paperback

Purchase E-book ($3.95 AUD)

THIRD PRIZE


If it Don't Fit, Don't Corset

by

Penny Gibson

FIRST PRIZE


Gift of a Casserole

by

Eugenie Pusenjak

SECOND PRIZE


The Revolution of You

by

Cam Dang

HIGHLY COMMENDED


Kit Kat's Revenge — Donna Lee Austin

Sinner — Irene Buckler

The Wages of Sloth — Laura Campbell

A Black Friday — Anthony Coorey

A Matter of Taste — Graham D'Elboux

Casting Stones — David Day

The Book Club — Howard Englander

Not with the Good Scissors — Barb Ettridge

The Fall — Chris Faassen

Bad Seed — Gabrielle Gardner

Everything — Jordan Hagedon

The Croc Hunter — Cassie Hamer

Six Inches — Harry Huang

The Death of Mrs Book-Book — Kym Iliff-Reynolds

Chocolate Biscuits — Stephen Knox

Eternal Dreams — Tyler McPherson

The Scarlet Dress — Mary Ann Napper

Hot Slick of Sin — Nikki Reid

The Rime of the Ancient Sex Tourist — Steve Rhodes

Petronella — Phillip Richards

Play Big to Win Big — D.H. Mamet

Seven Sins Seven Gears — John William Smithwick

Future Past — Anne Tavares

Under the Canopy of a Fig Tree — Darcy-Lee Tindale

Cake — Darcy-Lee Tindale

Dirty Old Man — Michael Wilkinson

Caged Birds — Angela Williams

Stupid Idea — Paula Wilson

How Haught Are You? — Alan Wolfe

Stepsister — Annie Xinyuan Zhang




Multiple copy discount