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Judges details, sponsors and prizes here...
Judges details, sponsors and prizes here...
English Language Section
First Prize:
My Alice by Jillian Robinson
Judge Paula Morris said:
This story stood out for me because of its tone, which managed to avoid sentimentality even while the narrator describes a much-loved grandmother. The narrator’s dry humour makes the difference here, particularly with characterisation and with the story’s ending.
There’s fluency to the writing here and a style in evidence from the opening: this drops us straight into the story without preamble. I particularly liked the author’s handling of scene, with just the right pace in the pikelet-making section, managing to balance point of view, action and dialogue at the same time.
Second Prize:
Rosie and the Wolf by Tania Norfolk
Judge Paula Morris said:
A number of the submitted stories dealt with trauma and death, and this subject matter can ensnare a story writer. In such a compressed form, some writers will tilt into melodrama, sentimentality or abstractions. This story avoids those traps by combining the story of a childhood friend lost to illness with the (topical) trauma of dealing with a flood, and by dealing with both subjects with a light and sure touch.
Third Prize:
The Thief by Angela Barnett
Judge Paula Morris said:
This story takes a familiar situation – a woman attending a funeral – and subverts it with an imaginative narrative about theft and coincidence. The author is adept with dialogue and also with maintaining tension in the story through subtle hints at conflict.
Other shortlisted stories:
A Father's First Steps by Josie Laird
Bloodbath by Kieran Stone
Braemar Seniors Parkour Club by Roly Andrews
Rainman by Pam Henson
Supi Run (Mate Whakaahuru) by Steph Le Gros
Taciturnity by K-T Harrison
The Ice-breaker by Pip Pam HensonHarrison
My Alice by Jillian Robinson
Judge Paula Morris said:
This story stood out for me because of its tone, which managed to avoid sentimentality even while the narrator describes a much-loved grandmother. The narrator’s dry humour makes the difference here, particularly with characterisation and with the story’s ending.
There’s fluency to the writing here and a style in evidence from the opening: this drops us straight into the story without preamble. I particularly liked the author’s handling of scene, with just the right pace in the pikelet-making section, managing to balance point of view, action and dialogue at the same time.
Second Prize:
Rosie and the Wolf by Tania Norfolk
Judge Paula Morris said:
A number of the submitted stories dealt with trauma and death, and this subject matter can ensnare a story writer. In such a compressed form, some writers will tilt into melodrama, sentimentality or abstractions. This story avoids those traps by combining the story of a childhood friend lost to illness with the (topical) trauma of dealing with a flood, and by dealing with both subjects with a light and sure touch.
Third Prize:
The Thief by Angela Barnett
Judge Paula Morris said:
This story takes a familiar situation – a woman attending a funeral – and subverts it with an imaginative narrative about theft and coincidence. The author is adept with dialogue and also with maintaining tension in the story through subtle hints at conflict.
Other shortlisted stories:
A Father's First Steps by Josie Laird
Bloodbath by Kieran Stone
Braemar Seniors Parkour Club by Roly Andrews
Rainman by Pam Henson
Supi Run (Mate Whakaahuru) by Steph Le Gros
Taciturnity by K-T Harrison
The Ice-breaker by Pip Pam HensonHarrison
Te Reo Māori Section
There were not 10 entries in this section. Judges chose three stories eligible for consideration.
First Prize:
Ko te Haerenga by Atakohu Middleton
Judge Vaughan Rapatahana said:
I think that, without any doubt, our first prize winner is Ko te Haerenga. Well-written, well-paced, suspenseful, as dark as the night on which the activity takes place.
Highly Commended:
Ko te rā tū tēnei by Hāmihi Duncan
Te Hapori Karawēne by Darryn Joseph
First Prize:
Ko te Haerenga by Atakohu Middleton
Judge Vaughan Rapatahana said:
I think that, without any doubt, our first prize winner is Ko te Haerenga. Well-written, well-paced, suspenseful, as dark as the night on which the activity takes place.
Highly Commended:
Ko te rā tū tēnei by Hāmihi Duncan
Te Hapori Karawēne by Darryn Joseph