The Dinesh Allirajah Prize for Short Fiction 2023
Comma Press open submissions for the Dinesh Allirajah Prize for Short Fiction 2023.
Submissions Close on 22nd September 2022 at midnight.
We are delighted to announce that the Dinesh Allirajah Prize for Short Fiction is once again open for submissions with the theme ‘Music’.
The Dinesh Prize was set up following the death in 2014 of Comma’s much-loved director and founding board member, writer Dinesh Allirajah. The prize aims to create a lasting legacy out of Dinesh’s love for writing short story fiction during his lifetime.
Now in its sixth year, submissions will be open from 11th July, 2022 for the 2023 prize and will close on the 22nd September 2022.
In honour of Dinesh Allirajah, this prize is open to both published and unpublished writers and aims to seek out the best established and up and coming voices in the form.
The 2023 theme of ‘Music’ is fitting for a prize in Dinesh’s memory, as he once said of himself (referencing a Sonny Criss sleeve note): ‘I am a jazz writer, which is a full-time creative job’. As well as being a poet, Dinesh wrote song lyrics and was also a DJ as well as a radio presenter at different stations over the years.
Author and lecturer at UCLan, Naomi Krüger, said: ‘We are thrilled to continue our work with Comma Press on the Dinesh Allirajah Prize this year and can’t wait to see how the writers interpret the theme of ‘Music’. We know that as our students rise to the challenge of producing the shortlist they grow as readers, critics and negotiators. It is a unique opportunity for them to learn how varied and complex the short story can be as well as gaining valuable insight into the publishing industry.’
The prize is open to anyone 18 years or over who is a resident of the UK, and the story submitted must not have been previously published anywhere else, online or in print.
It is free to submit your entry and the winning writer will receive £500 and all 10 shortlisted authors will be featured in an eBook anthology which will be published by Comma Press and sold online.
To submit your entry please fill out this Google Form and upload your short story.
If you have any questions or trouble with submitting your short story please contact our Events, Courses and Marketing Coordinator Nia at nia.thomas@commapress.co.uk and they will get back to you.
