Short Story and Poetry Competition
2008 Competition
We had a record number of entries for the competition on the theme of "Coast".
Poems
The winner of the Poetry competiton was Diana Cockrill with "Tynemouth". Maggie Norton, South Cumbria Poet Laureate 2007, who judged the competition commented: “I like the way an obsession is conveyed by carefully chosen images and sounds along the coast. The poem is an event that celebrates its moment with an intriguing hint of action.”
The runner up was Gabriel Griffin with "Fading Coastlines", about which Maggie commented
“It was a pleasure to be surprised by dancing rhythms, changes of register, scents, sounds and sights that link four ages in memory to four different coasts.”
Read the winning entries here:
Fading Coastlines by Gabriel Griffin
Short Stories
The winner of the Short Story Competition was Gerald Vinestock for his story "Past and Present". Katherine Pirnie, our judge, commented: “Having shortlisted the thirty entries down to six, one story emerged the clear winner. The story uses clear, simple language to portray both the tragedy and the comedy of aging. It is well-crafted and confident and its understated tone allows the ache at the heart of the story to shine through”.
The runner up was Emily Benet with "Looking for Castles". In the words of the judge “Looking for Castles took the prize for its occasional flashes of brilliance and for the images that stayed with me throughout the judging process”.
Read the winning entries here:
Present and Past by Gerald Vinestock
Looking for Castles by Emily Benet
Details of our 2009 competition will be announced in the autumn.