An international award for new and emerging flash fiction and flash non-fiction writers has been launched in memory of a popular Manchester-based writer and critic. The QuietManDave Prize will be run by the Manchester Writing School at Manchester Metropolitan University, in conjunction with the Manchester School of Theatre, named in honour of Dave Murray, a keen writer and theatre blogger, and lover of flash fiction and non-fiction, who passed away last year.

In recognition of Murray’s achievements and his passion for writing that he embraced later in life, the QuietManDave Prize offers awards of £1,000 for Flash Fiction and Flash Non-Fiction under 500 words, as well as runner-up prizes. the Flash Non-Fiction category open for everything from creative non-fiction – which weaves fact into the form of a story using the tools of fiction, to blog posts or theatre reviews, which were QuietManDave’s particular passions. Judges are ShortStops curator, poet and short story writer Tania Hershman,  short story writer, essayist and poet Kate Feld, and Shane Kinghorn, Senior Lecturer in Drama and Contemporary Performance at Manchester Metropolitan.

Both prizes are open internationally to writers aged 16 or over – with award judges keen to encourage, discover and celebrate new writers, particularly those who have come to writing later in life. Sponsored entry is available for those who might not otherwise be able to participate. The deadline for entries is Friday April 17. Enter here