Short stories leave authors nowhere to hide. But Ockham winner Beautrais nails it every time | Kiran Dass

Her winning short stories were a knockout but the longlist also makes a terrific reading list

There was a cool NZ$56,000 up for grabs for the winner of the 2021 Jann Medlicott Acorn prize for fiction. That's a lot of dosh for any writer, so judging this prize felt like an immense responsibility.

In judging this category of the Ockham New Zealand book awards, I was joined by Dunedin writer and former programme director of the Dunedin Writers & Readers festival, Claire Finlayson, and Hokianga-based writer and books editor, Paul Little. At the shortlisting stage we were joined by Tommy Orange, whose debut novel, the searing There There, was a finalist for a Pulitzer prize in 2019.