Mulga Bill Writing Award
Entries are now closed for the 2025 Mulga Bill Writing Award, and winners have been selected!
Thank you to everyone who took the time to enter our award and inspired us with a myriad of takes on the theme ‘Fiesta’. We have so enjoyed reading your poems and short stories and wish to acknowledge the hard work and creativity you put into your work – thank you!
We’re also very grateful to our judges, Anne Gleeson and Lauren Mitchell, who read and deliberated over almost 200 entries – it was not an easy task!
The results are now in, and a huge congratulations goes to:
2025 Winners
Poetry First Place
Pride March, Nik Willmott
Anne Gleeson’s judge’s comment:
This is a thrilling poem with onomatopoeia reigning supreme. Rhythm and imagery add to the vitality of the poetry. There is an energy throughout, capturing the atmosphere of the march, the abandon and the fun. This liveliness, though, does not hide the menace, subtly alluded to through layout and telling imagery of the police and their “weapons”. Full credit to its author who has captivated the spirit of this “fiesta” and given it to the audience with abundance and flair while we, with the narrator, wonder what else is “going on…”
Read Pride March.
Poetry Second Place
Fiesta Fever, Claudia Scott
Anne Gleeson’s judge’s comment:
This highly controlled poem features ordered verses, a dependable rhyme scheme, and a steady rhythm to create a poem that surprises in its joy and exuberance. Rich imagery and the consistent style highlight the details of this fiesta and indeed allow the listener/reader to experience the enduring delight this fiesta brings.
Read Fiesta Fever.
Poetry Highly Commended
Winter Festivities, Jennifer Zimmer-Wilson
Anne Gleeson’s judge’s comment:
This ekphrastic poem captures the essence of Christina Cordero’s etching so beautifully. The softness of imagery and movement echo Cordero’s style subtly and aptly. Yet there is a lightness of touch, allowing for the whimsical to shine through.
Read Winter Festivities.
Short Story First Place
Promise, Marie Low
Lauren Mitchell’s judge’s comment:
A moving, emotive story about a family in crisis. And at its heart, a woman who cuts through the blues with a fiesta-for-three under sunset orange crepe paper hanging in a drought-ravaged gum.
Precisely drawn characters reveal story within story. We feel these people, and we care for them. Literary yet light, this lovely piece was a pleasure to read. It has stayed with me. Congratulations to the author on the quality and creativity of the work.
Read Promise.
Short Story Secon Place
Fireflies, Stephen D’Arcy
Lauren Mitchell’s judge’s comment:
Eccentric, delightful, and sweetly funny. The author has taken us to 1908 Creswick and into the life of their main character via a series of letters that steadily reveal his heart’s obsession and contradiction.
The time and scenes depicted are foreign to me, and yet images of them burn brightly in my mind. Much like the 100 Princess Splendor fireflies that arrive in the final paragraph. Splendid. Yes, that’s the word to describe this story! I also enjoyed the refreshing and effective structure.
Read Fireflies.
Short Story Highly Commended
Day of the Drop Bear, Jack Henry
Lauren Mitchell’s judge’s comment:
This fun furphy drops us straight into the pub of Didilabong, in a scene reminiscent of the 2023 Netflix hit Last Stop Larrimah. Here, a city journalist is tasked with covering an outback festival, only to find something much richer in the bar-side locals.
The author generously gets out of the way of the story and lets their characters shine via colourful dialogue that drives the tale forward. Laugh-out-loud funny and worthy of commendation – not to mention reading. Note the language warning and enjoy.
Read Day of the Drop Bear.
(warning: contains strong language)
Read past entries
