TELL US YOUR (SHORT) STORIES
The 2025 RT Short Story Competition is now open for entries
Recognising and rewarding the best new Irish fiction writing for radio
Short story deadline Friday 23rd May
RT is inviting entries to one of Ireland's longest established and most significant literary prizes, the RT Short Story Competition in honour of writer and broadcaster, Francis MacManus.
Free to enter, the popular competition recognises and rewards the best new Irish fiction writing for radio and presents the winning author with a cheque for 5,000, while the second and third placed writers will receive cheques for 4,000 and 3,000 respectively. A further seven runners-up will receive 300 each.
Writers over the age of 18 living in Ireland, and Irish writers around the world have until Friday 23rd May 2025 to submit their short story, in English or Irish, to the competition at www.rte.ie/writing. Story wordcounts must fall between 1800 and 2000 words, excluding the title.
This year's entries will be judged by Neil Hegarty, Tristan Rosenstock and Jan Carson, who will be talking to Se n Rocks on Arena, RT Radio 1, on Thursday 27 March about what they're looking for in this year's entries.
Returning judge Neil Hegarty says: It's the unexpected thoughts and connections that interest me. We all aim as writers for this time of flow, when we write and write: and then afterwards, we sit back and marvel at the words that have appeared on the screen or the page, at the thoughts and images that we hardly knew - that often we simply didn't know - were in our heads. And now there they are, our words manifest, as if by magic.
And it seems to me that we can put ourselves in the way of this flow of magic by resolving to write about what interests us and then seeing where this resolve will take us. I felt this sparkle of magic last year. It was such a privilege to judge the 2024 competition and I'm very much looking forward to the 2025 edition. It will be a pleasure to read your work.
Talking about the uniqueness of this competition, new judge Tristan Rosenstock adds: What makes this competition so special is that the short stories that reach the shortlist will be both heard and read. As you're writing your story, read it aloud. If a sentence feels clunky as you read it be sure it won't land well on the ear Watch out for over-populating your story and try to put manners on your characters (even the brats) to ensure they're not all talking at one another. Even Cillian Murphy would struggle to read lots of dialogue between multiple characters. Your story must engage the ear, and also keep eyes glued to the page. No pressure, then. dh m r!
Also joining the judging panel this year, Jan Carson explains what she is looking for in a short story: A deftness of touch regarding language. The understanding that a prose fiction sentence, like a line of poetry, should carry meaning and also sing. Characters who, however unlikable, are nevertheless worthy of the reader's time. A narrative which feels fresh and uniquely told. Discombobulating twists and revelations, which may shock but never surprise
If you're listening [to a story on the radio], you're conspiring with the story. Here, the voice is sacrosanct. It must feel as if you're enjoying an intimate moment, just you and the oracle in your ear.
Producer of the competition, Sarah Binchy, says: This is an excellent opportunity to get your work seen and heard by a wide audience, and by publishers and agents, who pay close attention to our lists. It's free to enter, the prizes are substantial, and the chance to hear your story performed by a leading actor is a particular bonus offered by this competition. We're consistently heartened by the energy, verve and range of talent on display in the shortlist year by year, and are very much looking forward to reading your stories.
The winning stories will be revealed at a special RT Arena live programme with Se n Rocks in the autumn and all 10 shortlisted stories will be published on rte.ie/culture and broadcast in a season of new writing on RT Radio 1.
The RT Short Story Competition has been championing new talent for decades; past winners and shortlisted writers include Claire Keegan, Danielle McLaughlin, Anthony Glavin, Chris Binchy, Nuala O'Connor, Liz Nugent, Austin Duffy, Colin Walsh, Stephen Walsh and Sarah Gilmartin.
All shortlisted stories are produced for radio, voiced by some of Ireland's most talented actors. In recent years these have included Marty Rea, Aaron Monaghan, Jane Brennan, Cathy Belton, Derbhle Crotty, Eamon Morrissey, Ali White, Ingrid Craigie, Janet Moran, Kathy Rose O'Brien, Peter Coonan, Emmet Kirwan and Andrew Bennett.
For rules and all information about the competition, see www.rte.ie/writing. You'll also find winning and shortlisted stories from previous years there.
Pictured are last year's winners: Winner, Mattie Brennan (centre) for his short story Dead Bait', second placed, Stephen O'Reilly (left) for his short story, Divination' and Emer O'Toole who took third prize for her short story, The Other rla'.
ENDS
For information:
Neil O'Gorman | Corporate Communications Manager, RT | E neil.ogorman@rte.ie
ABOUT THIS YEAR'S JUDGES
Neil Hegarty's novels include The Jewel, and Inch Levels, shortlisted for the Kerry Group Novel of the Year award. Neil's non-fiction titles include the biography Frost: That Was the Life That Was, and The Story of Ireland, which accompanies the RT -BBC television history of Ireland. His short fiction and essays have appeared in the Dublin Review, Stinging Fly, Tangerine, and elsewhere. He is co-editor of the essay collection Impermanence, and is a regular literary reviewer on the Irish T
Europe Stories
09/11/2025
Dalet today announced a transformative leap forward for media operations: Agentic Artificial Intelligence (AI) that unifies the Dalet ecosystem under one natura...
06/10/2025
France T l visions, France's leading broadcaster, has received the 2025 EBU ...
13/09/2025
Harmonic's Software-Based XOS Advanced Media Processor Provides Unparalleled Efficiency and Unlocks New Business Models SAN JOSE, Calif. - Sept. 13, 2025 -...
12/09/2025
For fans, we know how important it is to stay plugged into music culture and dis...
12/09/2025
Link ping, Sweden and Shipley, United Kingdom, September 12, 2025 - Agama, the expert in video observability and analytics for service quality and customer expe...
12/09/2025
Feature-length retrospective from Studio Crook to air in 2026
Sir David Jason returns to the nation's favourite comedy channel, U&GOLD, for Open All Hours:...
12/09/2025
Friday 12 September 2025
The Boomtown Rats, Nyah Grace, Soweto Kinch, Royal Ballet and Madness also announced to perform at the ceremony on Tuesday
Sky today ...
12/09/2025
Wuppertal September 12, 2025
Riedel Unveils Ultra-Light Bolero Mini Wireless Intercom BeltpackAt IBC2025 in Amsterdam, Riedel Communications unveiled Bolero M...
12/09/2025
Wuppertal September 12, 2025
Riedel Communications Acquires hi human interfaceRiedel Communications today announced the acquisition of hi human interface fro...
12/09/2025
CORE+ virtually removes distortion, setting a new standard for church sound and giving worship teams the clarity and confidence they need.
Read the full artic...
12/09/2025
The Late Late Show is back with a bang after the summer break, and Patrick Kielt...
12/09/2025
The World Athletics Championships, Ireland v France in the Women's Rugby World Cup quarter-final, the Irish Champions Festival, and two Sports Direct Men...
12/09/2025
The Records Show starts Sunday at 6.30pm on RT One and RT Player.
Katie Hanno...
11/09/2025
RADAR, Spotify's program for emerging talent, recently hit a major milestone...
11/09/2025
Link ping, Sweden, September 11, 2025 - Agama, the expert in video observability & analytics for service quality and customer experience, announced today the la...
11/09/2025
Under the USD 89.6 Million award, SES Space & Defense will provide global commer...
11/09/2025
Leading Balkan DTH provider adds capacity to consolidate its m:Sat TV platform at 23.5 degrees East and serve more customers across the region
Luxembourg, 11 S...
11/09/2025
UKTV's free streaming service U launches on Sky Q
Free streaming service U has launched on Sky Q in the UK, UKTV and Sky confirm today, expanding the footp...
11/09/2025
From the discreet 2061 lavaliers to 4099 and 4011 mics, the setup delivered clean, natural sound in one of the most challenging broadcast environments.
Read th...
11/09/2025
From rugged build quality to natural, detailed sound, the verdict is clear: big performance can come in a very small package.
Read the full review here!...
11/09/2025
Tonight on Prime Time
RT One and RT Player at 9:35pm
Tonight RT Prime Time...
11/09/2025
RT Statement: 2026 Eurovision Song Contest
At the General Assembly of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) in July, a number of EBU members raised concerns ...
10/09/2025
Lossless on Spotify Premium is here.
Lossless audio has been one of the most a...
10/09/2025
The Television Will Be Revolutionised Sep 10, 2025
Written by Sunit Kotecha, Director of Delivery and Operations, YouView
2025 marks a century since the f...
10/09/2025
First of Spains F110 frigates get future-ready with Rohde & Schwarz communicatio...
10/09/2025
Harmonic's cOS Platform Supports DOCSIS and Fiber, Enabling Midco to Deliver Reliable Multi-Gigabit Connectivity to Subscribers SAN JOSE, Calif. - Sept. 10,...
10/09/2025
RT brings three days of live radio, live entertainment, live news, live weather, personal appearances, and more
Join RT Radio 1: Morning Ireland, The Oliver ...
09/09/2025
Since 2020, Spotify's RADAR program has been a launchpad for emerging talent...
09/09/2025
In 2020, Spotify launched RADAR with a clear mission: to identify, nurture, and ...
09/09/2025
If you're on BookTok, you know the drill. You scroll, you tap, and suddenly your To Be Read list is overflowing with trending must-reads. Not unlike Spoti...
09/09/2025
eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({ content_source:......
09/09/2025
Harmonic's VOS360 Ad SaaS Enables Personalized Ad Delivery and Seamless Integration with the Ad Tech Ecosystem SAN JOSE, Calif. - Sept. 9, 2025 - Harmonic ...
09/09/2025
St. Luke's Episcopal Church in New Jersey needed audio that truly connects and they found the answer.
Read the full case study here!...
09/09/2025
From AI-driven sound design to adaptable systems and uncompromising audio quality, the discussion highlights how innovation is shaping the future of performance...
09/09/2025
The conversation covers DPA's natural, uncolored sound, how to choose the right mic for any application and the company's latest innovations including C...
09/09/2025
From the origins of CORE to the latest CORE+ upgrade, the article explores how DPA minimizes distortion, expands dynamic range and ensures clarity at every SPL ...
09/09/2025
September 9 2025, 07:22 (PDT) Dolby Revolutionizes Entertainment on Four Wheels...
09/09/2025
The Autumn Schedule has begun on RT Raidi na Gaeltachta, with a feast of music, entertainment, news and current affairs programmes as well as an interesting s...
08/09/2025
The company continues to focus on its own training programs. Recently, 20 new ap...
08/09/2025
How an MVP-first approach helps you move faster, stay flexible, and deliver smarter.
Too often, media technology projects aim to solve everything at once ma...
08/09/2025
Fox Corporation Announces Resolution of Murdoch Family Trust Matter New York, NY and Los Angeles, CA - September 8, 2025 - Fox Corporation ( FOX or the Comp...
08/09/2025
Fox Corporation Announces Secondary Offering of Class B Common Stock New York, NY, and Los Angeles, CA - September 8, 2025 - Fox Corporation ( FOX or the Co...
08/09/2025
Fox Corporation Announces Pricing of Secondary Offering of Class B Common Stock New York, NY, and Los Angeles, CA, September 8, 2025 Fox Corporation ( FOX ...
08/09/2025
PantoneLIVE Adds New Color Libraries to Meet Growing Demand for Two-Piece Alumin...
08/09/2025
Advanced Workflow Management Simplifies Streaming Operations and Lowers Costs SAN JOSE, Calif. - Sept. 8, 2025 - Harmonic (NASDAQ: HLIT) today announced an adva...
05/09/2025
Your listening habits are as unique as you are-and this year, Spotify has introduced a wave of new features to help you personalize your experience. From playli...
05/09/2025
Rohde & Schwarz UK awarded Silver Award under Defence Employer Recognition Schem...
05/09/2025
This weekend sees another feast in store for all sport fans as RT airs a jam-packed schedule of live, free-to-air sport.
The Amgen Irish Open continues all we...
04/09/2025
Experience true spectrum dominance in all domains with Rohde & Schwarz at DSEI 2...
TELL US YOUR (SHORT) STORIES 
