Annual short story competition
First offered in 2019, the Sargeson Prize is New Zealand’s richest short story prize, sponsored by the University of Waikato. Named for celebrated New Zealand writer Frank Sargeson, the Prize was conceived by writer Catherine Chidgey, who also lectures in Writing Studies at the University.
Entries open on 1 April for the 2022 Sargeson Prize and close at 11.59pm (NZST) on 30 June 2022. There is no entry fee, and entries are limited to one per writer, per division.
Image of Frank Sargeson by Robin Morrison, 1978. Used with permission of copyright holder.
- Divisions
- Judging
- How to enter
- Terms and conditions
Open Division
The Open Division is open to New Zealand citizens or permanent residents aged 16 and over who are writing in English. Published and unpublished writers are welcome to enter. Entries must be single stories of no more than 5000 words. They must be original, unpublished pieces of work.
- First Prize: $10000
- Second Prize: $1000
- Third Prize: $500
The winning stories will be published by Newsroom in its literary section ReadingRoom.
Secondary Schools Division
The Secondary Schools Division is open to students enrolled at a New Zealand secondary school, or home-schooled students, who are aged between 16 and 18 years on the date that competition entries close. Entries must be single stories of no more than 3000 words. They must be original, unpublished pieces of work.
- First Prize: $500
- Second Prize: $200
- Third Prize: $100
The winning story will be published by Newsroom in its literary section ReadingRoom.
The winner of the Secondary Schools Division will also be offered a one-week summer residency at the University of Waikato, to be taken up in January or February of the following year. The residency will include accommodation and meals at one of the University of Waikato Halls of Residence, a writing space in the School of Arts, and mentoring from postgraduate students and/or academic staff in the Writing Studies programme. If the winner is under 18 years of age, parental consent will be required.
If you have any questions email sargeson.prize@waikato.ac.nz
Judging
Photo credit: Robert Cross
Each year we invite a leading New Zealand writer to judge the Sargeson Prize. In 2022 our Chief Judge will be Fiona Kidman.
Fiona Kidman DNZM OBE has written novels, short stories, poetry and plays. Her fiction has an international audience and she has received several awards for her writing. Her most recent novel, This Mortal Boy (Penguin Random House 2018), won the Jann Medlicott Acorn Foundation Prize for Fiction, as well as the Ngaio Marsh Award for Crime Fiction, the NZ Booklovers Award for Adult Fiction and the NZ Heritage Prize for Fiction. In 2021, she was the Inaugural Irish Studies Fellow at Otago University. Her most recent book is So far, for now (2022), a collection of autobiographical essays. Her international recognition includes the French Legion of Honour. She lives in Wellington.
Judging is conducted “blind” – ie without the writer’s name attached to their submission. Entries are subject to a pre-judging screening process by a panel overseen and moderated by the Chief Judge.
