It gives us great pleasure to announce the winning and shortlisted stories in the 2026 Historical Writers’ Association (HWA) Dorothy Dunnett Short Story Competition. The winning story in the 2026 HWA Dorothy Dunnett Short Story Competition The winner of the 2026 HWA Dorothy Dunnett Short Story Competition: Just A Couple Of Sparrows by Valerie HoareOur […]
Final Score by Sean Lusk (the 2025 HWA Dorothy Dunnett Short Story winner)
Sean Lusk’s Final Score won the 2025 HWA Dorothy Dunnett Short Story Competition. It’s with great pleasure that we publish it here in Historia. The competition judges called it: “A brilliantly-crafted and poignant story set in the wake of WWI. The dry, courageous narrator delivers a heart-rending and thought-provoking story of a veteran playing piano […]
The 2025 HWA Dorothy Dunnett Short Story Competition winner and shortlist
It gives us great pleasure to announce the winning and shortlisted stories in the 2025 Historical Writers’ Association (HWA) Dorothy Dunnett Short Story Competition. The winning story in the 2025 HWA Dorothy Dunnett Short Story Competition The winner of the 2025 HWA Dorothy Dunnett Short Story Competition: Final Score by Sean LuskThe judges say: “A […]
St Kilda Bird Song by KF MacCarthy (the 2024 HWA Dorothy Dunnett Short Story winner)
St Kilda Bird Song by KF MacCarthy won the 2024 HWA Dorothy Dunnett Short Story Competition. Our judges said: “A magical and immersive story of a late 19th-century teacher on the remote island, told from diverse perspectives with fluency and confidence. A very special piece of writing about a remarkable place.” The 2025 Short Story […]
The 2024 HWA Dorothy Dunnett Short Story Competition shortlist and winner
Here are the shortlisted and winning stories in the 2024 Historical Writers’ Association (HWA) Dorothy Dunnett Short Story Competition. The 2024 HWA Dorothy Dunnett Short Story Competition shortlist Three short stories are shortlisted for this year’s competition: Mother’s Fury by Laura Karim Our judges called this story “a taught slice of violence and revenge at […]
Hecate’s Daughter by Jo Tiddy (the 2023 HWA Dorothy Dunnett Short Story winner)
Jo Tiddy’s story, Hecate’s Daughter, won the 2023 HWA Dorothy Dunnett Short Story Competition. “A clever story, written deftly and colourfully, showing the cruelty and ignorance (and small kindnesses) of the period,” the judges said. “[We] adored this original and subversive take on a well-worn tale, told in such a vivid and powerful voice that […]
The 2023 HWA Dorothy Dunnett Short Story Competition shortlist and winner
Here are the shortlisted and winning stories in the 2023 Historical Writers’ Association (HWA) Dorothy Dunnett Short Story Competition. The 2023 HWA Dorothy Dunnett Short Story Competition shortlist: Black Christ by Judith Wilson The judges said: “The central motif of Liverpool’s Black Christ gives a familiar story new grace. Wilson cleverly sets everyday tragedy against […]
Collapse by Chrissy Sturt (the 2022 HWA Dorothy Dunnett Short Story winner)
Collapse by Chrissy Sturt won the HWA Dorothy Dunnett Short Story Competition in 2022. In the words of the judges, it’s “an immediately engrossing tale of a family in Southampton in 1940. A great sense of place and character and a full and satisfying story told with economy and grace.” To celebrate the 2023 HWA […]