New Writers Historical Flash Fiction Competition 2025

• Deadline: 23.59 (UK time) on Wednesday 5th November 2025
• Entry Fee: £8 for one entry, £15 for two entries, £21 for three entries
• Main Prizes: 1st Place: £500; 2nd Place: £300; 3rd Place: £200
• Additional Prize: The best story set in one of these historic properties will win a year’s Historic Houses membership for one or two adults (living at the same address)
• Publication: The three winning entries will be published on the NewWriters.org.uk website and in the next New Writers Anthology; the winning Historic Houses entry will be published in the Historic Houses Magazine
• Word Limit: 300 words (excluding title)
• Theme: Entries must be set before 1960 (Historic Houses setting optional)
• Charity: 10% of the proceeds will be split equally between First Story and The Funzi & Bodo Trust
• Judges: Editorial team at NewWriters.org.uk
• Eligibility: Open to poetry or prose from writers based anywhere in the world
• Competition Page: newwriters.org.uk/historical-flash-competition

The New Writers Historical Flash Competition 2025 is open to stories or poems of up to 300 words set in any time period before 1960.

There’s a prize fund of £1,000 plus an additional prize available for any entries set in one of these historic properties, which would be perfect for a haunted house tale or an Agatha Christie-style mystery. (This prize is offered courtesy of Historic Houses, who are also offering a £5 discount on new memberships if you use the Historic Houses Discount Code: TREX05).

The top three entries will be published on the website and in the next New Writers Anthology, while the winner of the additional prize will be published in the Historic Houses Magazine.

Also, 10% of the proceeds of the competition (i.e. 10% of the entry fees collected) will be split equally between First Story and The Funzi & Bodo Trust. So even if you don’t win, you’ll still be contributing to a good cause.

We want to make the competition accessible to as many writers as possible. We therefore have a limited number of free entries for low-income writers, available on a first-come, first-served basis (up to 23rd October 2025). Please see the terms and conditions for details.

So if you’d like the chance to win up to £500 for (up to) 300 words, and you’ve got a great idea for a story or poem set some time before 1960, please get involved.