The 2021 Retreat West Prize Shortlists

Thanks to all for their patience while we re-read the longlisted stories over and over and had quite a few debates! There was so much to recommend about all the stories that were longlisted in each category that getting down to a final 10 for each is never easy. So well done to all the writers who were longlisted and congratulations to the writers who have now gone through to the shortlist.

The stories are now with our final judges to make the decision on who wins the top prizes. All shortlisted writers who don’t get a top cash prize will receive a small cash prize and all writers included in the anthology get a free paperback copy. Plus they are eligible for the annual Retreat West Awards. Good luck everyone!

Short Story Prize Shortlist

  1. A Trip to the Island, One Last Time
  2. An Open Garden
  3. Grit
  4. Self-archaeology
  5. Stuck for Words
  6. The Jellyfish at the Traffic Lights
  7. The Lighthouse Keeper’s Wife
  8. The Leonids
  9. The Visitor
  10. Yet Another ‘Missing Children’ Poster Adorns the Lamppost of a North-East Fishing Village

Flash Fiction Prize Shortlist

  • A Cast of Crabs
  • Button Bus
  • Deep Secrets 
  • Hands
  • Paper
  • The Buttero
  • The Five Stages of Grief
  • The Turning Point
  • The Weathering
  • What My Therapist Calls Grounding To Calm My Triggered Body

Micro Fiction Prize Shortlist

  • America
  • Body of Christ
  • Cornfields
  • I Am Sailing Very Far Away
  • It’s a Beautiful Day for a Picnic
  • No Rain
  • Robert
  • Scratch Art for Grown-Ups
  • Tom’s Toy Gun
  • You Said You’d Always Wait for Me