This prize is run by Comma Press and the University of Lancashire. Send a short story between 2,000 – 7,500 words; the theme is ‘Found Fiction’. They have detailed guidelines, including, “The theme for this year is Found Fiction. We are looking for work that uses found text as its format, mimicking real documents to tell a story. Found text is anything from letters to text messages, police reports to diary entries, newspaper articles to post-it notes. You can find a longer – but not exhaustive – list of possible forms here to inspire you. 
Some examples of books written like this include: We Need to Talk About Kevin (told through letters), Bridget Jones' Diary (told through diary entries), Dracula (told through journal entries, letters, ship logs, telegrams, and various other media), Life on the Refrigerator Door (told through short notes).
These kinds of stories are also called ‘Hermit-crab’ stories.” The winning story, and shortlisted stories, will be published in an anthology.
Value: £500 for the winning story
Deadline: 11 October 2026
Open for: UK writers
Details here.

Deadline: October 11th, 2026