Sargeson Prize winners :: University of Waikato

Open Division winners

First Place

“The rain didn’t let up for a week. The rivers swelled, turned pastel and broke their banks. People were so focused on all the slash that came down off the forestry blocks that no one stopped to consider what else might have shifted.”

Ben Jeffries (Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland): ‘Greywacke’

Benn Jeffries is a Wellington-born writer. His work has appeared in the New Zealand Listener, The New York Times and other publications.

Previously an adjunct professor at Columbia University in New York, he once again calls Wellington home.

'Greywacke' was published on ReadingRoom (20 October 2024).

Second Place

“Robinson knows Kimba needs a bit of work. He’s not sure about her name, for starters. There’s a niggle that an uncle had a dog by that name. The kind of itch that even Google can’t scratch. She can’t have a dog’s name.”

Craig Cliff (Ōtepoti Dunedin): ‘Robinson in the Roof Space’

Craig Cliff is the author of two novels and a short story collection. His work has been described as ‘odd but rewarding’ (The Sunday Times) and translated into German, Spanish and Romanian.

‘Robinson in the Roof Space’ was written in two spurts, several years apart. The most recent spurt was this autumn while writer-in-residence at the Michael King Writers Centre in Devonport. Craig lives in Ōtepoti Dunedin and works in climate action at the University of Otago.

‘Robinson in the Roof Space’ was published on ReadingRoom (26 October 2024).

Third Place

“His head was framed by the sun behind him, and with a kind of clarity, I decided that he was unlike anyone I had ever met, in his singularity, the absence of self-doubt, his utter conviction in his own vision. The way he arched, like an arrow, so steadily toward his future.”

Cello Forrester (Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland): ‘Michael’

Cello Forrester is a musician and writer. Now based in Tāmaki Makaurau, Cello spent their childhood first surrounded by the gum trees of so-called Australia and then in the suburban Midwest of the United States, before moving to Aotearoa at twelve.

Cello completed a Masters in Creative Writing at the International Institute of Modern Letters in 2018. They are in the Flying Nun band Womb, alongside their siblings, and will be releasing their third album, One Is Always Heading Somewhere, in early 2025. Cello is currently working on their first novel.

‘Michael’ was published on ReadingRoom (2 November 2024).

Highly Commended

Gina Butson (Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland): 'At the Buyer’s Risk'
Timothy Jones (Dunblane, Scotland): ‘Second Unit’
Deborah Wilton (North Vancouver, Canada): ‘Pink Elephant
Jake Arthur (Te Whanganui-a-Tara Wellington): ‘Playing Hooky’
Rebecca Blackhurst (Buller): ‘The Clappers’
Sara Bucher (Te Whanganui-a-Tara Wellington): ‘Weird Fishes’

Secondary Schools Division winners

First Place

“Red filled the tubes as they took your blood for testing, and your crimson saree was handed to me; they said you had to change. Red was my anxiety. The days and days spent by your bedside. I clung to the crimson cloth with my life.”

Reshma Tala (Lynfield College): ‘Burgundy Bindi’

Reshma Tala is currently a Year 13 student at Lynfield College in Auckland. Her writing usually draws inspiration from her heritage, childhood, and other personal experiences.

In her free time, Reshma enjoys playing and coaching netball, swimming, and reading. She is part of the Puketāpapa Youth Foundation, a group that organises a range of community events. Reshma has also won the GirlBoss Edge Outstanding Achievement Award for raising awareness for race unity in 2020. Next year, Reshma will be attending university and hopes to continue writing short stories.

‘Burgundy Bindi’ was published on ReadingRoom (9 November).

Second Place

“She’s always found ticking boxes to be one of life’s greatest pleasures – nothing fills her with the same immense satisfaction as indulging in an especially lavish checkmark.”

Tessa Marshall (Avonside Girls’ High School): ‘The contributor’

Tessa Marshall is a Year 13 student at Avonside Girls’ High School – Te Kura Kohine o Ōtakaro. Born and raised in Ōtautahi, she enjoys being outdoors, painting, languages, as well as creative writing. She is also passionate about playing the clarinet and cello.

‘The contributor’ aims to surprise the reader with a dark twist at the end, while maintaining a humorous tone throughout. It was inspired by short pieces from authors Edgar Allan Poe and Lani Wendt Young. The uninspiring urban UK setting arose from a desire to both connect with and poke fun at her English culture.

Third Place

“Elliette. It was exactly the kind of name I expected her to have. One that twirled and dipped, that sounded like fresh raspberries or delicately spun sugar.”

Juliet Blythe (Waimea College): ‘Saturn’s Orbit’

Juliet Blythe is a Year 11 writer and poet living in Nelson with her family. Fond of reciting history facts and reading an entire novel in one sitting, she can also be found herding her friends into enthusiastic renditions of Oscar Wilde’s plays.

She responds to Writer's Block by making lists on loose pieces of paper that her bonkers cat eventually eats, and her favourite word is ‘squirelling’. Most of her work is inspired by her experiences as a young queer woman, growing up in a smaller town, and the sweeping prose of classic literature. Along with local and school awards for writing, she placed runner-up in the Under-16 Fiction category of the 2023 Out on the Shelves Writing Competition. She has written two fantasy novels and is currently working on a 1920s murder mystery.

'Saturn's Orbit' was published on ReadingRoom (1 February)

Highly Commended

Mina Belle Garay (Tawa College): ‘The Crescent Ace Constellation’
Sue Park (Glenfield College): ‘I Sang When I Was Twelve’
Madeleine Walker (Waikato Diocesan School for Girls): ‘A Matchstick’
Micah Bradburn (Otago Girls’ High School): ‘Conversations in my mother’s garden’
Carissime Alfante (St Dominic’s Catholic College, Henderson): ‘The Rosebush’
Amaya Colombick (Kāpiti College): ‘The House That Jack Built’