Spineless Wonders seeks short prose writing of any genre and on any theme for the 2021 Microflix Writing Award. We are looking for writing that will zing off the page and inspire filmmakers to adapt it for the screen. Submissions can be up to 400 words in length. Entry is free and submissions close on 21 February, 2021. All submissions must be made via this link.
How it works
Submissions to the award will be judged by Microflix Curator and international expert on microliterature, Professor Cassandra Atherton. Selected authors will be notified and their submissions will uploaded to the Microflix website where they will be available to filmmakers to adapt into entries in the Microflix Awards.
Our panel of jurists will select the winner of the 2021 Microflix Writing Awards from the pool of finalist films selected for the Microflix Festival. All authors whose work is used as the basis of the finalist films will be paid a modest film royalty.
Conditions of entry
Submission will be curated on behalf of the Microflix Festival by the Australian publishing house, Spineless Wonders . Please read the following carefully:
- Submissions are to be presented in prose form in, in any genre and on any theme.
- Submissions can be up to 400 words in length.
- Entry is open to anyone living in Australia and Australians residing overseas.
- Entry is free.
- Each entry can consist of up to three pieces of writing
- Submissions will only be accepted via Submission Manager.
- Submission deadline is midnight AEST, February 21, 2021.
- Submissions which are selected for inclusion in the 2021 Microflix Awards will be made available in pdf format on the Microflix website from until the closing date of the 2021 Microflix Awards.
- Submissions which are adapted into films which then go on to be selected as finalists by the Microflix jurists will be eligible for the Microflix Writers Awards. Authors will be paid a modest fee for allowing their text to be adapted.
- All finalists will be in the running for the Microflix Writers Awards consisting of a $500 cash prize.
Any queries, email info[at]shortaustralianstories[dot]com[dot]au
2020 Writing Award – Stephen Kinnane for ‘Two Skulls’
Steve Kinnane has been an active researcher and writer for over 25 years. His interests are diverse encompassing history, creative documentary and sustainable livelihoods.
Steve is a Marda Marda from Miriwoong country in the Kimberley.
Previous Writing Awards
In 2020, the Award for Best Writing went to Steve Kinnane, a Marda Marda from Miriwoong country in the Kimberley, Western Australia for his microfiction, ‘Two Skulls’ which was adapted into the film, Returning Home. ‘Two Skulls’ was first published in Scars An anthology of microliterature edited by Professor Cassandra Atherton (Spineless Wonders, 2020). As winner of the award, Steve Kinnane received a $500 cash prize thanks to the generous support of the Copyright Australia Cultural Fund.
Jurists for the 2020 Microflix Awards were Romina Accorsa, Fatima Mawas and Will Simon. They nominated three other authors for the Best Writing Award, including:
Perth-based writer, Jude Bridge for ‘Pressure’ which was adapted into Boiling Point.
Sydney writer and filmmaker, Angela Blake for ‘Makeup’ which was adapted into the films, Makeup and Facing The Day.
Newcastle author, Kathryn Fry for ‘With the Moths on Ash Island’ which was adapted into Harriet Scott and the Moths.
The winner of the 2019 Microflix Best Writing Award was regional NSW author, Dorothy Simmons for ‘On The Hour’ which was adapted into ‘Die Like A Kelly’.
The theme for 2020 is IMAGE.
Submissions are now closed. We had an overwhelming response to our call out and are busy culling them for inclusion on this website for filmmakers to adapt. Selected authors will be notified via email.
This year, Microflix invites authors to submit microlit texts on the theme of IMAGE for adaptation by filmmakers. The texts submitted will be reviewed by microlit specialist and Spineless Wonders’ editor Associate Professor Cassandra Atherton. Submissions will be accepted until 1 February, 2020 and those selected by Cassandra will be included in the 2020 IMAGE Texts section on this website.
Exploring the theme of IMAGE
We are looking for short prose writing of any genre which reflects on the theme of IMAGE. You may wish to reflect on image vs reality, on the use, misuse and changing role of image and images over time. Or you may think about the image (and imagery) in terms of the imagination. Whether you turn to doppelgangers, alter egos, clones, dead ringers, avatars, simulacra or chips of the old blocks… be sure to take a fresh approach. We are looking for writing that will zing off the page and onto the screen.
Microflix Writing Awards
The Microflix Awards offered each year aim to reward and value the roles of both the author and the filmmaker in the adaptation process. For this reason we offer both the Microflix Awards to both authors and filmmakers.
The 2020 Microflix Writers Award, a $500 cash prize, is made possible by a grant by the Copyright Australia Cultural Fund. Prizes for Highly Recommended and Recommended Writers include discounts on writers’ centre memberships and other resources for writers as well as book packages.
Our panel of jurists will select winner of the
Submissions are called for microliterature for the 2020 Microflix
Writing Awards. Submission will be curated on behalf of the Microflix
Festival by the Australian publishing house, Spineless Wonders . Please
read the following carefully:
Microflix Writing Award Regulations
- Submissions must respond in prose form to the theme of IMAGE.
- Submissions can be up to 400 words in length.
- Entry is open to anyone living in Australia and Australians residing overseas.
- Entry is free.
- Each entry can consist of up to three pieces of microliterature.
- Submissions will only be accepted via Submission Manager.
- Submission deadline is midnight AEST, February 1 2020.
- Submissions which are selected for inclusion in the 2020 Microflix Awards will be made available in pdf format on the Microflix website until August 31 2020.
- Submissions which are adapted into films which then go on to be selected as finalists by the Microflix jurists will be eligible for the Microflix Writers Awards.
- The Microflix Writers Awards consists of a $500 cash prize as well as book packages and resources for writers.
Any queries, email info[at]shortaustralianstories[dot]com[dot]au