The Stringybark Open Award 2026

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Competition Closed: 1 February 2026

246 entries.  $1448.00 in prizes.

Prizes sponsored by Graeme Simsion, Ann Buist and Stringybark Publishing

Judges: Antoinette Merrillees, Meredyth Cilento, Julia Robertson and David Vernon

Editor: David Vernon

Cover designer: Jonathan Vernon

Layout: Stringybark Publishing

Proof reader: Daan Spijer

40 published stories. One e-book and one anthology, Thanks for Asking, proudly printed

in Australia by Printstant (Canberra).

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

ISBN: 978-1-7640166-9-8

A$22.95 includes postage within Australia.  Discounts for multiple purchases.  Please enquire for international orders.

Books can be purchased via Paypal (and credit card) or direct deposit by clicking here.

The Stringybark Open Award 2026

THIRD PLACE

A Delicious Bubble of Oblivion

by

Tanya Allen

WINNER

Thanks for Asking

by

Kerri Hill

SECOND PLACE

Revelation River

by

Jennifer Shepherd

FOURTH PLACE

Stupid

by

Sally Lewry

What does it mean to be seen, heard, loved, forgiven—or simply understood? In Thanks for Asking, forty award-winning stories from the Stringybark Short Story Awards explore the small moments and life-changing choices that shape who we are. Across country towns, city streets, family kitchens, train carriages, beaches and backroads, these stories introduce characters experiencing longing, loss, humour, resilience, mystery and hope. Some tales are tender, some unsettling, some sharply funny, but all resonate with the human experience. From quiet acts of courage to unexpected reckonings, each piece offers a fresh voice and a vivid glimpse into lives both ordinary and extraordinary.

Selected by judges Meredyth Cilento, Julia Robertson, Antoinette Merrillees and David Vernon, this anthology showcases the strength and breadth of Australian contemporary short fiction. Whether you dip in for a single story or read cover to cover, you'll find writing that surprises, moves and stays with you long after the final page.

I turn to Mick. I know him as a gentle boy. We have shared kisses and more on hot summer nights. We have shared laughter, stories, and moments of joy. Today he is cold. I don't understand. “What is it?” I say, “What are you two laughing at?”

When Mick looks at me then, I feel it. I feel real fear. A bitter taste at the back of my mouth and a clenching deep inside. He looks at me with contempt. He has always laughed. He has always smiled. It is still a bright, sun-filled afternoon. It seems the wrong time to scream. I know something bad is coming.

— From Paradise Lost by Deb Pugh

Some duties of a haunted house employee were predictable. She was primarily a tour-guide – recounting every horrible historical detail of servants thrown into fireplaces and disabled farm boys locked in barns. With the property's view of the vast coastline, she wondered if it was a curse that drove past inhabitants insane, or just the overwhelming sense of isolation.

— From Ghost Hunter by Hayley Young

As an ex-copper turned fire crew captain, Blewy had learned to trust his instincts. And he knew there were really only two kinds of arsonists: those who lit fires for calculated ends, and those who needed to feed something dark.

The first used fire as a tool – insurance, warnings, leverage. Bikies torching rival tobacconists to protect turf and choke competition. Purposeful. Transactional.

The others were a breed apart.

— From Fire Storm by Des Brady

HIGHLY COMMENDED

The Whale — Brielle Bates *

One Way Out — Susan Booker *

Fire Storm — Des Brady

Those Wild Colonial Boys — Judy Broad *

Uncle Jack — Andrew Brown

On the Train — Margaret Dakin

Beyond the Paddocks — Elizabeth Evans *

It Was All Because of the Baby — Jodie Haid

Be Careful What You Wish For — Jan-Andrew Henderson

Dancing in Spain — Jacqueline Hodder

The Prisoner — Kenneth J Johnson

Writer's Block — Nicole Kelly

No Compromise — Robyn Knibb

The Dignity of Life — Roger Leigh *

House Guest — Corinne MacKenzie

Waiting for Blade — Beatrice Marshall

Deft Footwork Required — Rob Osborne

The Broken Mirror — Robert Padgett

Step-by-Step — Tania Park

Imagine — James Parsons *

The Haunted Bedroom — James Parsons

In God's Grace — Jon Presswell

One Meal at a Time — Deb Pugh

Paradise Lost — Deb Pugh

Bound for Change — Alyssa Ramjan

Lost Memory — Daan Spijer

Echoes — Sandra Thom-Jones

Writing Group Apocalypse — Garth Thomas

The Herringbone Coat — John Toohey *

Grandma's House — Holly Trenaman

Who'll Come A-Waltzing with Me, Matilda? — Varda Tully *

Cords. 2015 — Roger Vickery

A Good Length — Helen Walker

The Story of the Red Suede Boots — Fiona Wannenmacher

Once a Prude… — Mike Woodhouse

Ghost Hunter — Hayley Young

* Signifies that the story received a Favourite Story Award from an individual judge. Each judge was asked to allocate two Favourite Story Awards to those stories that stood out as their absolute favourite stories from amongst the Highly Commended stories.