The 2026 RTÉ Short Story Competition is now open for entries  

RTÉ is inviting entries to one of Ireland’s longest established and most significant literary prizes, the RTÉ Short Story Competition in honour of writer and broadcaster, Francis MacManus.  

Free to enter, the popular competition, which marks its 40^th birthday this year, recognises and rewards the best new Irish fiction writing for radio and presents the winning author with a cheque for €5,000, while the second and third placed writers will receive cheques for €4,000 and €3,000 respectively. A further seven runners-up will receive €300 each.  

Writers over the age of 18 living in Ireland, and Irish writers around the world have until Friday 15^th May 2026 to submit their short story, in English or Irish at www.rte.ie/writing. Story wordcounts must fall between 1800 and 2000 words, excluding the title.  

Full details here.

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