Folktale Flash Prize Shortlist
The stories through to the final round are...
Well done again to the writers whose stories were long listed for this competition. We’ve been reading them all over and over again and are delighted to announce our shortlist, all of which will be published in the anthology edition when the results are announced. We can’t wait to share them with you!
Shortlist
After the Ball
A Tale of Fairies
Big Mike
How to Stich the Emporer’s New Clothes
Jack the Butter-Milk
Mirror, Mirror, Mirror
Poison
The Last Dance
The Mermaid of Brockwell Lido
Other submission opportunities
There are currently three different submission categories open:
The Past Times Prize for historical flash fiction is also accepting entries and the deadline is 31st August 2025. The historical era for this year’s competition is the 1920s.
Edition 10 - November 2025: THRESHOLD
For our November 2025 edition, we're exploring Threshold — those powerful moments of crossing from one state to another. Whether it's a literal doorway, the cusp between seasons, or that liminal space where everything shifts, we’re looking for stories that capture the profound nature of transition. We want your best micros (up to 350 words), flashes (up to 1000) and short stories (up to 3000).
Think about those moments when we stand on the edge of something new, when we're neither here nor there, when possibility hangs in the air like morning mist. What stories emerge from these spaces of becoming?
Submission deadline: 30th September 2025
Looking Ahead: All Our 2026 Themes
Start drafting your stories for all our themes so they have time to percolate and you find the real truth at the heart of them.
January 2026 (October deadline): Ember
March 2026 (January deadline): Bloom
May 2026 (March deadline): Current
July 2026 (May deadline): Compass
September 2026 (July deadline): Echo
October 2026 (August deadline): Shadow
November 2026 (September deadline): Mirror
Upcoming workshops
The July and August workshops with me are the final three in the Slow Story series that are for WestWord Members only. Join our community to take part and access the full archive of workshops. There is an additional July workshop that is also included with our membership but you can buy a ticket for it separately. Everyone with a ticket will be sent the replay link. View our upcoming workshops and book tickets here.
Slow Story Workshops
The journey of story
6th July - 14.30-16.30 BST
After focusing on themes, the protagonist, storyline, conflict, and the world it all takes place in, now we’re zooming back in on the character at the heart of the story and the journey they go on throughout it to be in some way different by the end.
This is the end
03rd August - 14.30-16.30 BST
This the end of the workshop series and the end of the story we’ve been writing. So we are looking at how we can make sure that the ending leaves the reader feeling satisfied. As mentioned before, stories are a container for change and there should be some sense of a shift by the end, even if it is just a subtle shift in perception for the reader through a small change in circumstance or mindset for the protagonist. We’ll look at how you can end your story to bring that satisfaction for the characters, for you, and for the reader.
Hope to read your words and see you at a workshop soon!
With love,
