The Furphy Anthology 2020

The popularity of photoblogs like Humans of New York and the storytelling trends of TikTok tell us that everyone has a story to share. It’s therefore not much of a stretch to believe that everyone can also write at least one good story. Such was the belief of J. F. Archibald, editor and founder of The Bulletin. His legacy and passion for encouraging readers to be contributors was the spark which inspired Joseph Furphy to write his novel, Such Is Life – a classic in Australian literature.

During the First World War, Australian soldiers congregated at the back of Furphy water carts manufactured by Joseph’s brother John to trade speculative and wild rumours and stories. These ingenious fabrications became known as ‘furphies’. Jointly honouring the author of Such is Life and ‘the furphy’ that was born from water-cart tales, the Furphy Literary Award promotes and extends the tradition of storytelling that is entrenched in Australian life.

Cousins Adam and Sam Furphy – fifth-generation custodians of the Furphy family businesses and now the Furphy Foundation –say, ‘the art of storytelling is at the heart of human existence. It has been fundamental to people and their communities across all cultures. Stories inspire, comfort, convince, entertain. Storytelling is a powerful way of bringing people together to celebrate life in all its diversity’.

The Award became a national competition for the first time in 2020 with a $15,000 first prize, making it the richest prize for a short story in Australia. For its inaugural year, entrants were asked to respond to the apt topic of ‘Australian Life’. Writer and poet Ruby Todd’s story, Awakening, was judged the winner.

Ya Reeve’s story Pub Raffle – an evocative account of a coastal town surrounded by bushfires derived from her own experience – and popular writer Cate Kennedy’s amusing piece, Ando Gets Plastered, were awarded second and third prize respectively. These pieces, alongside thirteen other highly-commended stories, are championed in the anthology.

Published by Hardie Grant, The Furphy Anthology 2020 (RRP: $35.00) will launch in March 2021. Sit back, relax and be inspired, entertained and amused by the imaginative and thought-provoking stories that captivated the judging panel.

Have a furphy to tell of your own? Registrations are now open until 30 April for the 2021 Furphy Literary Award. Writers are invited to submit a prose work, either fiction or non-fiction, with a maximum length of 5000 words. Writers must be aged 18 years or more at the time of submission. Judges will include novelist Anson Cameron, historian Clare Wright and journalist John Harms.

For further information regarding the competition, or to enter the award, please visit the website.

The Furphy Anthology 2020
Available March 2021
hardiegrant.com/au/publishing/bookfinder/book/the-furphy-anthology-2020-by-the-furphy-literary-awards