Hamilton Reads Short Story Contest

Presented by McMaster University Libraries, McMaster Office of Community Engagement, Hamilton Public Library and Mohawk College Library. 

Deadline: November 1, 2026.

Cost: Free  

Prizes: $200 for first place and $100 for two runners-up in each of three categories (college or university student; senior (55+), and HPL Member) with publication of stories on hpl.ca and an invitation to read at Hamilton Reads closing ceremonies. 

Theme/Genre: Fictional short stories of 2,000 words or less. Must contain a theme within the Hamilton Reads 2026 book The Migrant Rain Falls in Reverse by Vinh Nguyen or written in any genre of the book.

Eligibility 

• Writers must live in the Hamilton Public Library service area. Writers who live in communities with reciprocal borrowing privileges at HPL are not eligible.  
• Entries are not returned.  

Guidelines 

• Unpublished Work: Only unpublished works are accepted. All entrants must submit a piece of writing that has NEVER been published before in any form, including social media, blogs or websites. Entrants may be professional writers; or creative writers who have never had their work published before. 
• AI Work: AI-written, supported or generated pieces are not accepted. 
• Formatting: Use 12-point standard font (Arial, Calibri, Times New Roman) and double-space all pages. Formats may be Word, PDF or plain text. 
• Entry Categories: The awards program is open to anyone in the Hamilton Public Library service area and there are three categories of entrants. Entrants may enter one work in one category only. Entrants in each category will be judged within their category and will be able to select their category on the entry form. Categories are: 
• College and/or University Student 
• Senior (55 +) 
• Hamilton Public Library Member (entrants who are not within the above two categories and have a Hamilton Public Library card) 
• One entry per entrant: All entrants are invited to submit ONE piece of writing that has NEVER BEEN PUBLISHED BEFORE. 
• ‘Blind judging’: Your name must appear ONLY on your entry form, not on the work you submit. Jurors will read the works without knowing the names of the authors. 
• Publication Rights: Winning authors agree to have their stories published on hpl.ca. Copyright reverts to the author thereafter. 

Prizes 

• Prizes are awarded in each category 
• In each category: First prize: $200; Two runners-up: $100 each 
• Each winner and runner-up will have their story published on hpl.ca and will be invited to read an excerpt from their work at the Hamilton Reads closing ceremony on November 26th, 2026. 

All entrants will be notified of the results via email by November 2026. 

Judging 

Short stories will be judged by a panel of judges from Hamilton Public Library, McMaster University and Mohawk College, as well as a local author.

Submissions:  Enter online below. The deadline to submit is November 1, 2026 11:59 pm.