The Commonwealth Foundation has announced the opening of submissions for the 2026 Commonwealth Short Story Prize, which will accept entries from September 1st until November 1st, 2025.
The prize is open to all Commonwealth citizens aged 18 and over, with a chance to win £5,000, awarded to the overall best short story. Eligible stories must range between 2,000 and 5,000 words.
Submission Guidelines
- Entries will only be accepted via the online form.
- Submissions, including translations, must be made by the original author.
- The deadline for entries is 1 November 2025 (11:59 p.m. GMT).
- Stories must be a minimum of 2,000 words and a maximum of 5,000 words (excluding the title).
- There are no restrictions on setting, genre, or theme.
- Entries should be uploaded as a PDF document with the title of the story as the file name. The first page must include the story title and word count.
- For any questions regarding eligibility or rules, applicants can contact: creatives@commonwealthfoundation.com.
The Commonwealth Short Story Prize is an annual award for unpublished short fiction, administered and funded by the Commonwealth Foundation. It spans the five Commonwealth regions: Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, Canada & Europe, and the Pacific.
Shortlisted writers, regional winners, and the overall winner will be expected to participate in publicity activities, including social media, where possible.
Writers are encouraged to submit their stories and stand a chance to be part of one of the most prestigious literary prizes in the Commonwealth.
Sarah Adeyemo
Sarah Adeyemo is a poet, writer, editor, and spoken word artiste from Nigeria. She is a fellow of the SprinNG Writing Fellowship. Sarah has work published or forthcoming work in ANMLY Lit, D’Iit Review, The Fiery Scribe Review, Con-Scio Magazine, Sevhage Review, Okiti Literary, Synchronized Chaos Magazine, Pepper Coast Magazine, The Weeds Review, Akpata Magazine, The Shallow Tales Review, The Muse Journal, The Weganda Review, Everscribe Magazine, Afrillhill Press, TV-63 Magazine, Poems for Persons Interest, Northern Writers Forum Journal, Eboquills, Rinna Lit. Anthologies, and elsewhere. Her works have been shortlisted for the 2025 Labari Prize for Poetry and longlisted for the 2025 Eriata Oribhabor Poetry Prize. She serves as the Managing Editor at Words-Empire Magazine, a Poetry Editor at Yarnz Magazine, PFPOI, and a News & Feature writer at the Journal of African Youth Literature (JAY Lit). She was a writing resident of the Rongo Artist Residency in 2026 and is currently a writing resident at the Ebedi International Writers Residency. She is a member of The Swan Collective. A dramatic poet who tweets @sarahinkspires.
