Sidney Prize – Every year, the New York Times names its favorite long-form essays of the past twelve months. The list includes Hilton Als writing for The New Yorker, Ed Yong writing for The Atlantic, and other heavy hitters at top-tier national publications. But the list also honors writers whose work may be less visible than their big-name colleagues, writers whose ideas are often quietly radical and deeply humane. Among those unsung writers, the winners of the Sidney Prize are usually less famous but no less significant.
For nearly 80 years, the Hillman Foundation has awarded the Sidney Prize to journalists and authors who pursue investigative journalism and public policy for the common good. Those who win the prize, which is named after labor leader Sidney Hillman, have contributed to shaping the nation’s history and culture. The foundation has awarded more than 300 prizes and has honored a range of subjects, including the environment, globalization, and civil rights.
During the 2023 Neilma Sidney Short Story Prize, Overland sought original short fiction (up to 3000 words) inspired by the theme of travel. The judges, Laura Elvery, Paige Clark, and Michael Winkler, selected eight pieces for consideration from over 400 submissions. They then chose a winner and two runners-up from this shortlist.
Annie Zhang won the prize for her story, ‘Who Rattles the Night?’, which focuses on a couple living with ghosts in their new home. Zhang is a writer and editor who lives on unceded Wangal land and was a WestWords Western Sydney Emerging Writer Fellow in 2019. Her work has been published in Island, Kill Your Darlings, the Big Issue, and the Western Sydney Weekly. She has also been a finalist for the 2019 Overland Neilma Sidney Prize and the 2018 John Tibbetts Short Story Prize. In the future, she plans to pursue a PhD in creative writing and cultural history at the University of Sydney. The Overland Neilma Sidney Short Story Prize is supported by the Malcolm Robertson Foundation. Subscribers can enter the contest for a discounted rate. To do so, click here. Subscribers receive additional benefits beyond the discount.
