WE WANT YOUR SHORT STORIES

RT SHORT STORY COMPETITION 2020 INVITES SUBMISSIONS

RT has today invited short story submissions for one of Ireland's longest established and most significant literary prizes, the RT Short Story Competition in honour of Francis MacManus.

Writers have until Friday 8th May to submit their short story which will be judged by a panel of three judges: editor, lecturer and journalist, Madeleine Keane; award-winning short story writer and previous prize-winner of the RT Short Story Competition, Danielle McLaughlin; and writer and broadcaster, Vincent Woods.

Since its inception in 1986, the RT Short Story Competition has been a critically important launch pad for new and emerging writers in Ireland.

Previous prize-winner and judge for 2020, Danielle McLaughlin, says: I'll never get tired of the thrill of hearing somebody read one of my stories on the radio. A story told over the radio carries a particular intimacy, a sense that the telling of the story is a private thing between narrator and the individual listener. For the writer of the story, of course, there's the wonder of realising that the story you wrote at the kitchen table, or in a caf , is being heard by thousands. I still remember the joy of getting the phone call telling me I'd been shortlisted for the competition! So for anybody who has a story they'd like to get out into the world: get your entry in. You've got nothing to lose and wonderful things might happen.

The shortlist of 10 stories will be announced by early September, while the winners will be announced at an awards ceremony in RT later in September (final date TBC).

The overall winner will receive 3,000, while 2,000 and 1,000 will be awarded to the second and third place prize winners respectively. A further seven runners-up will receive 250 each, and all 10 short stories will be broadcast in a season of new writing on RT Radio 1 in the autumn. The top three prizewinning stories will also be published on thejournal.ie.

The RT Short Story Competition has been championing new talent for decades with the winning and shortlisted short stories being produced for radio broadcast and voiced by some of Ireland's most talented actors of the stage and screen. In recent years these have included Peter Hanly, Ali White, Emmet Kirwan, Cathy Belton, Ingrid Craigie, Denis Conway, Andrew Bennett, Caitr ona N Mhurch , Kathy-Rose O'Brien, and many more.

For information, competition rules and an entry form see www.rte.ie/writing. Submissions hard copy, postal or hand-delivered only must be received by 5pm on Friday 8th May 2020.

RT Short Story Competition judges 2020

Danielle McLaughlin

Danielle McLaughlin's short story collection, Dinosaurs on Other Planets, was published in 2015 by the Stinging Fly Press. Her stories have appeared in the Stinging Fly, The Irish Times, Southword, and The New Yorker and have been broadcast on RT Radio 1 and BBC Radio 4. In 2019, she was a Windham-Campbell Prize recipient, and won the Sunday Times Audible Short Story Award. Her first novel, Retrospective, will be published in 2021.

Vincent Woods

Vincent Woods is a writer and broadcaster whose plays include At the Black Pig's Dyke, Song of the Yellow Bittern and A Cry from Heaven; and for radio, The Leitrim Hotel, The Gospels of Aughamore and Broken Moon. Poetry collections are The Colour of Language and Lives and Miracles. Recent publications include Leaves of Hungry Grass: Poetry and Ireland's Great Hunger (Quinnipiac University Press) and Borderlines (with Henry Glassie). Awards include the Stewart Parker Award for Drama and The Ted McNulty Award for Poetry. He has scripted and presented many arts programmes and documentaries on RT Radio 1. He directs the Iron Mountain Literature Festival in Leitrim. Vincent lives in Dublin and is a member of Aosd na.

Madeleine Keane

Madeleine Keane is an editor, lecturer and journalist. She was educated at UCD and Trinity. She joined the Sunday Independent in 1988 and has been its Literary Editor for the last 18 years. She regularly writes about books, arts and travel. She has broadcast on tv and radio about books and publishing and presents at literary festivals and events. She lectures on writing at UCD and the Irish Writers' Centre.

About the RT Short Story Competition

A competition for original short stories for radio was first established in 1986 in memory of Francis MacManus (1909-1965), the Kilkenny-born novelist, biographer and former Head of Talks and Features at Radio ireann. Since its establishment, the competition has been a launching pad for many writers who have gone on to receive national and international acclaim, including Claire Keegan, Molly McCloskey, Anthony Glavin, Danielle McLaughlin and Nuala N Chonch ir.

The RT Short Story Competition in honour of Francis MacManus is produced by Sarah Binchy.

LINK:	https://about.rte.ie/2020/02/23/we-want-your-short-stories/...
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