2025 J.F. Powers Prize for Short Fiction

The editors of Dappled Things are pleased to announce that submissions for this year’s J.F. Powers Prize for Short Fiction are now open. Named after one of the greatest writers of the 20th century Catholic literary renaissance–often called a writer’s writer–the contest aims to honor his legacy by awarding stories that, like the priests he wrote about in his fiction, have “one foot in this world and one in the next.” The contest awards prizes of $700 to the winner, $300 to its runner up, and publication for any additional honorable mentions at the discretion of the editors.

Submissions will close on November 30, 2025.

Winners will be announced Spring 2025.

Send us your very best short stories here.