‘Relentlessly Prismatic’ a short story by Erini Loucaides has won the Minds Shine Bright Places Writing Prize for 2026.
‘Relentlessly Prismatic will be published in November this year in the Places Anthology, together with the shortlisted stories and poems below. The story focuses on an Englishwoman Sara, ‘a romantic immigrant’, who left London for marriage in Cyprus. She has embraced and been embraced by the Mediterranean island. Half the story is narrated from her morphine-induced consciousness, the dream-like space of her psyche with its secrets, wonders and intricacies in the face of terminal cancer. The other half is narrated by Giannis and his own torment watching his wife slip away in the hospice.
Erini Loucaides is an Australian-Cypriot writer and English teacher living in Cyprus with a B.A in English from the University of London. Her prose and poems have been published in Mslexia’s Best Women’s Fiction, the London Independent, the Bournemouth Anthology and translated into Estonian for Veljesto amongst others. Other works have been short and longlisted in competitions that include Bridport, Commonwealth, Women on Writing and Fish. She is an Oxbelly Fiction Fellow and a recipient of the Commonwealth Mentorship Programme under Jennifer Makumbi.
Category prizes were awarded to ‘Sweet Summer of 15’ by Riley Yau from Vancouver, Canada for Micro Fiction, ‘Peach Island’ by Sarah-Kate Simmons from Tauranga, New Zealand for Short Story and ‘Nashville, January’ by Jennifer Yang from Seoul Korea for Poetry. The inaugural English as a Second Language Prize was awarded to short story ‘The Litchi Tree’ by Sanjeevani Canakiah from Mauritius in Africa.
The winners were announced at two online Minds Shine Bright Awards Celebrations this weekend.
All shortlisted writers will be published in the Places Anthology which will be launched in November this year.
Bringing together writers from across the world these stories and poems tell a powerful story about migration across generations, the meaning of home, the places we travel to and from, the connections we make, and the things that happen along the way—giving us glimpses of the human spirit and the human heart.
The judging panel included Jennifer Harrison (poetry), Karin Doucette (short story) and Amanda Scotney.
An Awards Celebration for the Young Writers’ Prize will be held next week.
‘Relentlessly Prismatic’, a short story by Erini Loucaides, Nicosia, Cyprus
‘Nashville, January’ Jennifer Yang, Seoul, Korea
‘Sweet Summer of 15’, Riley Yau, Vancouver, Canada
‘Peach Island’, Sarah-Kate Simons, Tauranga, New Zealand
‘The Litchi Tree’, a short story by Sanjeevani Canakiah, Mauritius, Africa
‘Invasive’, Suzi Mezei, Melbourne, VIC
‘In the Shadow of Great-grandparents’, Jude Aquilina, Milang, South Australia
‘Blessed are those who carry the sky in a jar’, Ljubica Perisic, Northern Sydney, NSW
‘Two brothers, a dune and a beach near Burleigh’, Bob Topping, QLD
‘Balikbayan’, Rhianna C. Laguesma, Melbourne VIC
‘On Rocky Road’, Kay Cairns, Wanneroo, WA
‘Yandjip (Yanchep National Park)’, Shey Marque, Two Rocks, WA
‘Inpatience’, Mari M. Bianco, Florida, US
‘Gusts’, Craig White, Turner’s Beach, TAS
‘Still Here’, Gayelene Carbis, Melbourne, VIC
‘The Car Wash was meant to be fun’, Angela Costi, Melbourne
‘Village vignettes’, Irina Frolova, Speers Point, NSW
‘Outside the Fishbowl’, Olivia EIrth, NSW
‘Retirement Home Happy Hour’, Jake Dennis, Noranda Perth, WA
‘Whispers from Shiraz’, Sepideh Fallah, Bentleigh, VIC
‘The Paper House’, Ella Eckford, Coogee, NSW
‘A real place’, Toby Sime, Daylesford, VIC
‘A Place Called Mercy,’ Nadia Soman, Trinidad and Tobago
‘Sans Souci’, Paulette Gittins, South Yarra, VIC
‘In the Spirit of Things’, Suzanne Hermanoczki, Coburg, VIC
‘Before the water views’, Evi Ruhle, Melbourne, VIC
‘Flamboyant’, Harriet Grace, Richmond, Great Britain
‘Into Exile’, Janeen Samuel, Morgiana, VIC
‘The Mercy of Extinction’, Lior Blum, London, UK
‘Devotional’, Taya Rose Holland, Williamstown, VIC
‘Fragmented Reminiscence’, Arindam Kalita, Kacharihat,Bongaon, Golaghat, India
‘All That Glitters’, Athena Law, QLD
‘Robb’s’, Brendan Murray, Nannup, WA
‘Relative Sins’, Haley Young Googong, NSW
‘Tat Tvam Asi,’ Anil Classen, Zurich, Switzerland
‘A Family of Four,’ Jayagandi Jayaraj, Parramatta, NSW
‘The School Tree’, Kirsty Cauley, Kingaroy, QLD
‘Know Your Place’, Dr Chelinay Gates, WA
‘Unseen’, Nadia Tariqi, Sweden
‘Green Tea’, Richard Yaxley, QLD
Untitled, Jaime Calle Moreno, London, UK
‘Show Homes,’ Pablo Alfierri, Melbourne
‘Grains of Sand,’ Emily Noske, Austria
‘I Remember Who You Are’, Gayelene Carbis, Melbourne, VIC
‘It’s been four months’, Naomi Currie, Adelaide Hills, SA
‘A Thread Over Water’, D. Adebiyi, Kent, England, UK
‘The Mermaid,’ Ali McLafferty, Austin, Texas, US
‘Hermannsburg Mission,’ Roger Vickery, NSW
‘Untitled’, Zan Chao Hao, Shanghai, China
‘Distant Magic’, Pam Garfoot, Bright Waters, NSW
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