Honours go to Australian writers

Judge Fiona Cooper has selected her winners for the November Global Short Story Competition and writers from Australia have taken the honours.

The £100 first place prize goes to Jacqueline Winn, of Possum Brush, NSW, of whose story Her Quiet Company Fiona says: “This is one of the best stories about mother/daughter love that I have ever read. The style is immaculate, words so well chosen that one can feel every texture of the clothes, the hankies, the minutiae of a whole life. The strata of emotions are laid bare with the delicacy of an archaeologist, not a crumb of dust discounted or tossed aside. Lovely stuff, reminiscent of the more tender side of Alan Bennett.”

Our highly commended runner up is Vicky Daddo, of Hazelwood South, Victoria, who wins £25 for If you’re happy and you know it.

Fiona says: “They say that if children and parents are not embarrassing each other, they’re no doing their job right. This is a witty piece full of wry understatement and an unpicking of the many stranded ropes of love, affection and exasperation that bind us together. This story could well extend into a novella. While wholly satisfying, there is an element of what happens next which is intriguing.”
Just missing out on the prizes but commended is Karen Hollands, also from Australia, of whose story The Buddha Fiona says: “Quirky and raw, it shows great promise.”
The other writers on the shortlist are:

Satyapravin Bezwada, Hong Kong

Jonathan Saint, Dublin, Ireland

Mark Shadwell, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Alex Reece Abbott, York, England

Natalie Scott, Ingleby Barwick. North Yorkshire, England

James McPherson, Glasgow, Scotland

Nicola Cleasby, Turon, Grenada
Winning stories will be posted on www.inscribemedia.co.uk Well done to our successful writers. You can enter the latest competition at the same address.

John Dean