Southam Book Festival

Flash Fiction Competition 2026

This Year's Competition is now closed

and the winners have been chosen.​

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The Judges Report

The ninth SBF flash fiction competition brought in 259 entries from all across the world and it was a pleasure reading each and every one. Many stood out as excellent pieces of writing, making the work of all five judges especially hard. In the end it came down to five different perspectives agreeing. Several same themes arose this year, including ageing, dementia, the end of humanity, survival – in its many forms – but also some more upbeat ideas. A good proportion of entrants chose to write on the state of the world, or us leaving it all behind and hurtling ourselves into space – mindful that the word ‘horizon’ had to be included in the story. In the end, it was those stories that were original, left the reader uplifted, with a smile even, that shone through and stood a better chance of getting into the top ten. The majority of entries were well written – albeit some tighter and more focused than others, making good use of those 100 words. There is no secret formula for writing good flash fiction, other than to say the ‘good’ comes from originality or from a subject not encountered before, or even from a very different way of looking at something familiar. It’s a good guess that if you feel like writing about something in the news, or bereavement or illness, then it’s very likely a hundred or more of your competitors will too.

The winning story was chosen because it is tightly written, with a generous amount of tongue in cheek, and left all judges smiling. Unusually this year, we had joint second place winners. These second-place stories were poles apart in content and style but show what can be done in so few words. Writing flash is not easy, and unfortunately several writers didn’t check the rules closely enough and wrote over the 100-word limit – which was a terrible shame as some really good entries had to fall by the wayside. The 100 words also included the title, so it’s always wise to double-check before any submission.

Next year will be the 10th Southam Book Festival writing competition. For those aiming for the top spot, imagine what everyone else might be writing – then write something totally different. Death, divorce, illness are all very tangible life events, which means that many people want to write about them, which in turn reduces your chances of getting that top spot. Think outside the box! Good luck!

The SBF Team

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First Place - Summer's End by Richard Ousey

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Gripping tighter I apply pressure with both knees, an exhilarated spasm vibrating through me with control now complete. 

Nearly done, the light, late summer breeze now stronger than your faltering exhale. Both kids laugh – ignorant of what is going on just metres away. I’ll hide you in the shed whilst they’re getting ready for the birthday party. It will be late when we return, they won’t notice you’re gone until tomorrow. 

I know you’ve made them very happy, still tempted to extend your time horizon….but no, leaning forward I apply the final squeeze. 

The paddling pool is flat. 

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Joint Second Place - Flight Plan by Claire Boot

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“Broaden your horizons,” said Gary. “Spread your wings. See the world!” 

Everyone ignored him, called him a right birdbrain. But I liked Gary’s stories. He’d been everywhere, seen everything. Sunrise in the jungle, sunset in the mountains, sunburn at the beach. 

“You should fly the nest!” he said. 

So, after months of planning, I set off. My departure was smooth, but bad weather soon closed in. A violent storm caused delays and diversions. In desperation, deteriorating conditions forced an emergency landing in an unknown destination. 

And that’s why I’m the only African Green Pigeon in Trafalgar Square. 

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Joint Second Place - The Merciless Sun by Colin Evans

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Drought: 

Look at our lawn. Scorched. And they’ve banned hosepipes. We need rain – the garden will be ruined. 

Hey, look on the bright side. The charity shop is selling supermarket leftovers at £2 a bag. I’ll grab some burgers – let’s have a barbie. 

Great. What about wine? 

I’ll nip into the off-licence – they’ve got a deal on Chardonnay. 

Thank God for small mercies. 

***** 

Drought: 

There’s a new camp. With water and rice. Only a day’s walk. Over the horizon. 

I’ll gather the children, but the little one may not have the strength. 

We must pray to God. 

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Writers submitting 100 word stories for Southam Book Festival’s Flash Fiction competition  

 must include one particular word selected by one of the judges.

This years chosen word is HORIZON - we opted for a noun for a change.

We will be looking for works that are original and can be entertaining, thought-provoking, witty, have a relevant message or observation of society, for example.

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Please take note of the rules below:

                                    

The closing date for entries is 5th September - noon (UK time).

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1st prize £60

2nd prize £30

3rd prize £20

 

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RULES, CONDITIONS & HOW TO ENTER

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1. The competition is open to anyone who is 16 years and over.

2. The competition is for an original work of fiction no longer than 100 words in length.

3. Each story must have a title and the title must be included in the word count. Hyphenated words count as one word.

4. The work must contain the following word : horizon

5. The key word must not be used as the title of your story.

6. The work must be previously unpublished and not be simultaneously entered into any other competition. It must be that the work has been created solely by the person submitting the entry to the competition.

7. The closing date is 5th September 2026 at noon.

8. The entry fee is £3 per story. Competitors may enter as many stories as they wish. Up to five stories may be entered for £10.

9. Entries must be made electronically.

10. The judges' decision is final. Judges will not enter into any discussion.

11. The names of short-listed competition entrants will be published on the Southam Book Festival web site shortly after the closing date.

12. The names of winner and runners up will be published on the Southam Book Festival web site as soon as possible after the day of the festival and listed on the Festival social media page. Winner and runners up will be contacted individually. 

13. Submission of work will be taken as acceptance of rules and conditions.

14. Copyright of each story remains with the author, but Southam Book Festival reserves the right to publish a selection of the stories at some point during or after the Book Festival.

15. Do not put your word count or your name in the in the story document.

16. Do not put your name in the title of the document as we anonymise each entry.

 

 

HOW TO ENTER

 

 All entries must be made via Email. 

 

• Choose the £3 or £10 PayPal button below

 

• Next email your story or stories to southambookfest@gmail.com.

 

• Please put FF and your name in the subject box eg FFPennySmith

 

• For further emails simply add B, or C etc   eg FFPennySmithB

 

• On the email sheet please give details of your name, address, email address, the name of your story/stories and your PayPal transaction number.

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• ​Your story, with its title, should be included as an attachment. If you are submitting more than one story, please use a separate attachment for each story. Please check the title in the attachment matches the title in the email.

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