From Orange City Council, 1 August 2026
The winners of the 2026 Banjo Paterson Writing Awards have been announced, with two writers sharing first prize for the prestigious Short Story category.
The winning entries were announced at the Orange Readers and Writers Festival at the Hotel Canobolas and prizes presented by Orange Mayor Cr Tony Mileto. The judges had a difficult task given the high quality of entries from around Australia in this year’s competition.
Cr Mileto said the Banjo Paterson Writing Awards continue to celebrate the creativity and storytelling talent that Banjo Paterson inspired through his own writing.
“It is wonderful to see such a high standard of entries year after year. Congratulations to all of the winners and finalists, whose stories and poems demonstrate the richness of Australian writing and the power of words to entertain, challenge and connect us,” Cr Mileto said.
The Banjo Paterson Writing awards were established in 1991 to honour Banjo Paterson, a great Australian writer and favourite son of Orange, with a competition to encourage short story or poetry writing with Australian content.
Dual winners of the Short Story competition section were Sharon Willdin, for Satellites, and Jane McGown for Ergie. The two Sydney-based winners shared in the $2,000 prize money.
Satellites is a descriptive moving story of love, loss and intergenerational grief at the site of a memorial.
Ergie is a fun and entertaining story about an adopted dog and his adventures with Police with a real twist at the end.
The Contemporary Poetry Award was won by Libby Sommer, also of Sydney, for Waves. It describes apprehension and judgement about an emerging relationship with a surfer.
The Children’s Award of $200 was won by Alizetta for the short story Between The Lines. The story describes the scene of a pedestrian crossing and bus stop outside a school with clever use of economic phrases commenting on how little we take in about the world around us.
Second prize of $100 went to Gabriel for the poem Dawn to Dawn. It uses wonderful rhyme to convey the various scenes of a country town.
Third prize of $100 went to Lucy, for the poem My Country. It is a powerful poem with descriptions of the land, excellent use of repetition and conveys the significance of place.
The winning entries can be viewed on the recollect Central West website https://centralwest.recollect.net.au. It’s a place to capture and share the history, heritage and stories of Central West NSW. It provides easy online access to a rich store of heritage material.
The judges for the 2026 awards were author Rebecca Wilson for the Short Story section, Dr David Stanley for the Contemporary Poetry, and author Brendan Lamerton for the Children’s entries.
The Banjo Paterson Writing awards were established in 1991 to honour Banjo Paterson, a great Australian writer and favourite son of Orange, with a competition to encourage short story or poetry writing with Australian content.
Winning entries published on https://centralwest.recollect.net.au
For media enquiries please contact Central West Libraries Reading and Writing Coordinator Jasmine Vidler on 6393 8125.
Judges’ comments on the winning works
2026 Winner Short Story Shared Prize
Ergie by Jane McGown
“Congratulations ! Your entry Ergie is a fun and original story.
Well plotted, great characters and a fun storyline, with a cute revenge to wrap it up!
Good use of metaphor and told in a natural voice that is engaging!! R.I.P Ergie!!
2026 Winner Short Story Shared Prize
Satellites by Sharon Wildin
“Congratulations! Your entry Satellites is a very moving story which says so much in a very few words. This gentle, impactful work draws the reader in and carries us across the landscape, connects us with spirit of those who have moved on and joins multiple generations of family in a unique and quiet way.
This storytelling powerfully traverses the concepts of memory, grief, loss, spirituality and hope for the future. The past and the present together at once. Great descriptions too and a very natural voice which is engaging and wise.”
2026 Winner Contemporary Poetry
Waves by Libby Sommer
“A mature and modern poem with a contemporary theme. The poem was wonderful. Addressing some very contemporary issues, of relationships being questioned / loneliness / age and surfing! (all great topics in combination).
Excellent, easy to read, well-structured and with deep descriptive imagery and frequent phrases use in refrain. A lovely poem, wonderful. Many great lines too (Eg. Have seen the beginnings and endings And the beginnings of endings).
There are many others I found that resonated with my sensibilities and capture the message of the poem’s themes. Again wonderful.”
2026 Children’s Writing Awards
Between The Lines by Alizetta
“Congratulations and well done! I truly enjoyed this piece. You have a real talent for observation and description. Your theme resonated with me.
Your descriptions were excellent and helped you tell your story without being overwritten. Lines like “the same brown coat, even when it isn’t that cold”, “the kind of heat that lingers even when the sun starts to set,” as well as your crossing scene, really let me picture the story as I read it.
Your observations on isolation, even with multitudes of people around us, were also great. Lines like, “heads down, faces lit by their phones”, and “we’re close enough to touch, but not enough to notice, really work, once again, the crossing scene, with everybody moving together but being entirely separate, really works as an introduction to your theme.
I also enjoyed you playing with the formatting of your story, breaking some of your paragraphs down into single lines to draw out tension and suspense.
All in all just an excellent piece of writing, and I hope you continue with it.”
Dawn to Dawn by Gabriel
“Congratulations and well done! This poem felt like warm days and cosy nights and I thought its rhyme scheme and rhythm were excellent.
I enjoyed the structure of the poem, watching over a small town over a day’s cycle, exploring the different sights and sounds and scents you might experience if you were there.
I think the best writing makes people feel something, this made me feel nostalgic for both warm Summer days, buying crusty break from the baker, and cool winter nights, tucked safely away.
It evoked a comfortable mood that makes me happy just to reading. Once more, well done!”
My Country by Lucy
“Congratulations and well done!
I really enjoyed your poem and thought it was very well written. Your use of repetition, along with your excellent rhyme scheme and evocative imagery really made it stand out.
The repetition of “my country, my name, my land, my people,” pushes home the poem’s theme, as well as providing a nice rest between stanzas.
Your rhymes were well done and painted a very evocative image. Lines like “river runs dry, the cattle die,” and “ghost gums stand guarding the night,” perfectly encapsulate the Australian country.
I also enjoyed your use of Wiradjuri language in the poem and after reading it, I spent some time researching the words. So thank you for teaching me something. Great work!”