Now in its eleventh year, the Commonwealth Short Story Prize is awarded annually for the best piece of unpublished short fiction from the Commonwealth. This year’s regional winners have been selected and risen to the top from over 6700 entries, from across 52 Commonwealth countries. Details of the full 2022 shortlist can be found here.

Chair of the Judges, Guyanese writer Fred D’Aguiar, said:

‘This year’s regional winners offer a cornucopia of riches for readers globally from sources located around the world. These stories testify to the varied tones of fiction, from the oblique to the direct reference, with moments of character illumination to those associated with an imperiled planet. If a reader harboured any doubt about whether fiction is relevant to today’s world these stories answer with a riposte that resonates beyond a resounding ‘yes.’  These stories fulfill a higher function as exemplars of the short story form: vibrant, memorable and indispensable.’

Fred D’Aguiar is joined on the international judging panel by a judge representing each of the five Commonwealth regions: Louise Umutoni-Bower (Africa), Jahvani Barua (Asia), Stephanos Stephanides (Canada and Europe), Kevin Jared Hosein (Caribbean) and Jeanine Leane (Pacific).

The five regional winning stories will be published online by the literary magazine Granta in the run-up to the announcement of the overall winner on 21 June. They will also be published in a special print edition by Paper + Ink, available online and in bookshops from 21 June.

Read on to hear more from this year’s winners HERE

Press contact: Ruth Killick  publicity@ruthkillick.co.uk