Awards

The Seán Ó Faoláin International Short Story Competition

On Saturday 18th October Tim Collyer will read his winning story, ‘Spent Leaves’.

Tim Collyer is a Wiltshire-based writer of speculative fiction, literary drama, and darkly comic tales. He won the New2theScene Flash Fiction Competition, was Runner-Up in both the Pokrass Flash Fiction Award and the DuMaurier Literature Award, and published three consecutive sci-fi stories in Andromeda Magazine. When not writing, he brews craft beer, grows chillies, and ponders unruly characters.

“‘Spent Leaves’ had me from the very first line and never let me go. I was transfixed by the gentle speculative beauty of this piece and the way the author manages to weave global and local crises into the intimacy of daily ritual. In ‘Spent Leaves’ there are echoes of Dylan Thomas’ Under Milk Wood – the village of opinions – and yet the voice is all the author’s own. This is a story that speaks to our times, in elegant, playful prose. Congratulations to Timothy Collyer, the winner of the 2025 Seán Ó Faoláin International Short Story Competition.” — Laura Jean McKay

The Seán Ó Faoláin International Short Story Prize is awarded to the best single story entered in competition from anywhere in the world. The first prize is €2000, a featured reading at the Cork International Short Story Festival (with four-night hotel stay and full board) and publication in Southword. This occasion is an opportunity to hear the winning story as chosen by this year’s judge Laura Jean McKay (who is also this year's Frank O’Connor International Short Story Fellow.

Frank O’Connor International Short Story Fellowship

The Frank O’Connor International Short Story Fellowship is made possible through the very generous sponsorship of Cork City Council. Named for one of Cork’s most renowned writers, it acknowledges the special place the short story form occupies in the cultural history and contemporary practice of the city. The fellow benefits from the prestige of receiving a highly competitive international literary award which will not only allow the candidate to spend three months concentrating on their own work, but also to acquire more experience in the delivery of workshops and mentorships.

Laura Jean McKay, the 2025 recipient of the Frank O’Connor International Short Story Fellowship, will read at the festival on Wednesday 15th October.