Fiction Factory First Chapter Competition 2026

Winning Chapters

1st, 2nd, and 3rd placed

1st place

Nobody’s Story – Shay McKiernan

“Tender, powerfully moving… brilliant development of characters… deliciously heartrending…”

2nd place

Circumnavigating the Beltway – Howard Cincotta

“A compelling, well-balanced read… poignant in its ability to handle emotions, subtly and beautifully written…”

3rd place

Babe in the Hearth – Katie Brown

“Gripping, powerful, scary in its echoes of today’s world at its worst and at its best…”

Other Short-Listed Chapters

With Every Secret Thing – Jane Keightley

Paprika – Charlotte Crowder

Dust and Shadow – Hannah Parry

Long Listed Authors

  • Sharon Purnell
  • Beccie Puneet Randhawa
  • Margaret Fry
  • Muriel Kwint
  • David Cary Lane
  • Helen Marie McKinney
  • Karen Storey
  • Pnina Shinebourne
  • Lefki Karantoni
  • Danielle Crofts
  • Lucy Grace
  • Niels Sorrells
  • Phil Batman
  • Dianne Bown-Wilson
  • Ron Ebest
  • Kathryn Müser
  • Fiona Barber
  • Jeanette Everson
  • Elisa Oh
  • Rick Brandt
  • Lizzie Clark
  • Rebecca Parfitt
  • Samantha Alwis
  • Sylvia Bluck
  • Victoria Vaughan
  • Vytautas Jokubaitis

Congratulations to our winners and all the short and long-listed writers.

A big thank you to all our entrants

If you wish to read the winning chapters, please let us know.

If you requested an assessment please be assured we are working tirelessly to complete them as quickly as possible. If you require yours urgently, please let us know.