Desperate Literature

2026 PRIZE NOW OPEN 💫 Calling writers of innovative fiction under 2000 words! Prizes: €2000 / 1000€; residencies @civitellaitaly & at DL in Madrid; manuscript assessment w/ @TLCUK; publication; salons; and more... desperateliterature.com/prize 1/

Check out the latest issue of my ezine Latinidad featuring a Q&A with @kate_mckean, author of Write Through It published by Simon Element/@simonschuster, marcelalandres.com/e-zine/.

SIX WEEKS REMAINING 💫 Calling writers of fiction under 2000 words! Prizes: €2000 / 1000€; residencies @civitellaitaly & at DL in Madrid; manuscript assessment w/ @TLCUK; publication; salons; & new prizes with new prizes from @ReedsyHQ desperateliterature.com/prize

For all the info and to enter see: desperateliterature.com/prize 10/10

You can find our previously shortlisted stories here! desperateliterature.com/product/full-w… 9/

2026 PRIZE NOW OPEN 💫 Calling writers of innovative fiction under 2000 words! Prizes: €2000 / 1000€; residencies @civitellaitaly & at DL in Madrid; manuscript assessment w/ @TLCUK; publication; salons; and more... desperateliterature.com/prize 1/

🎊 Charlotte y Terry @DesperateLit reabren en la Cava Baja tras perder su local por pisos turísticos, su comunidad lectora los salvó 📚Vuelven a #BookFriday junto a @LaCalders referente en #Barcelona desde 2014 Compráles presencial 28/30NOV Gana premio bookfriday.org

Join Jacob Rogers & @RobMunb in conversation on What Remains tonight at @DesperateLit in Madrid! All are welcome - no ticket required. Make sure to check out this really interesting interview with Jacob in @madridlitmag (linked below).

TUESDAY NIGHT 20h!

🕊️🕊️🕊️Celebramos en este día la apertura en el barrio de @Desperateliter1 Librería Internacional. Dentro de sus proyectos está el de ofrecer un fondo sobre #PatrimonioCultural ¡Enhorabuena!!!! 📯 ✅🕊️¡Bienvenidos!!

Shastri Akella has won the @DesperateLit Short Fiction Prize for The Border Ghosts, a 'tender and haunting' story of queer love on the Kashmir border bookbrunch.co.uk/page/article-d… (£)

ICYMI: Shastri Akella has won the 2025 Desperate Literature Short Fiction Prize (@DesperateLit) for The Border Ghosts, described by 2025 judge Ottessa Moshfegh (@MoshfeghOt716) as a "tender and haunting" story of queer love 👇 ebx.sh/AOhlbV

We are exceptionally proud of this year's writers and we hope you'll enjoy their work. Eleven Stories 2025 is available for pre-order (and you can get the pdf today!): desperateliterature.com/product/eleven…

THE 2025 SHORTLIST: "Generous, soulful distillations. A tasting flight of prosaic kerosene. Each story ignited a flare in a forsaken corner of my mind. I can’t wait to experience more from these voices." —Henry Hoke, judge Get the pdf and pre-order the book on our website!

ANNOUNCING THE WINNERS of the 2025 Short Fiction Prize Shastri Akella takes the winning spot with ‘The Border Country,' a ‘tender and haunting’ story of queer love on the Kashmir border. Runners-up are Swithun Cooper and Alisha Dietzman @agdietzman