The Judges
Your short story will be read, reviewed, and ranked by our panel of expert judges. They all have a wealth of experience and talent and are eagerly awaiting your entries. Here they are to tell you a bit more about themselves.
Dave Shelton
Author/illustrator of the Emily Lime: Librarian Detective series and creator of comic strip Good Dog, Bad Dog, as seen in The Guardian. His debut prose novel for children, A Boy and a Bear in a Boat, was shortlisted for the Costa Children's Book Award and the Carnegie Medal, and won the Branford Boase Award. He is fond of cake.
Dave Steele
An award-winning poet, author, and public speaker. Diagnosed with Retinitis Pigmentosa (RP) in 2014, which significantly impaired his vision, Dave has since become a beacon of inspiration and change, using his talents to illuminate the experiences of those navigating life with visual impairments.
Joe Haddow
Children’s author, radio producer and podcast host. His first book, “Art is Everywhere”, inspires us to get creative, and is the ultimate guide to awesome art in the world around us.
Julia Green
Julia Green is an author of over twenty novels and stories for children and young adults. She has worked as a publicity assistant for a publisher, a library assistant, an English teacher, and is currently Emeritus Professor of Writing for Young People at Bath Spa University.
Katharine McMahon
Katharine McMahon is the author of ten novels including the international bestsellers: The Alchemist’s Daughter and The Rose of Sebastopol . She is currently writing a thriller based on her experience of the criminal justice system.
Pamela Aculey
An award-winning author, entrepreneur, and the CEO of both Just Like Me Books and MIXD Reality. Just Like Me Books is the UK’s first interactive and inclusive picture books that utilise Augmented Reality (AR) to bring stories to life. Pamela created the business after struggling to find picture books that represented her autistic son, Walter.
Vanessa Harriss
Vanessa is the editor of the multi-award-winning weekly children’s news magazine, The Week Junior. She's passionate about storytelling and its power to bring people together, whether that's through imagined worlds or in the sharing of knowledge.
Enter the competition now!
Our short story competition is putting accessibility at its heart to celebrate Calibre Audio, a national charity who've been providing audiobooks to people who struggle to read print for fifty years.
Your story should be 550 words or fewer
It should feature a character with a print disability.
You can create and submit your short story in the format you prefer: written, audio or video – in poetry or prose.