Introducing the shortlist for Modern Stories: It Must be Love 2026
BY Abby Parsons
7th Jul 2026
Now in its second year, Modern Stories is a writing competition that runs as part of Hachette UK’s The Future Bookshelf. Curtis Brown Creative are proud to be a partner for this year’s competition hosted by Headline Eternal. The prize this year seeks to uplift and support emerging writers of romance fiction from Black, Asian, mixed heritage and/or multiple ethnic backgrounds.
The shortlist has been chosen by a panel of judges, including Soraya Bouazzaoui, senior commissioning editor at Headline Eternal and author, Abby Parsons, senior courses manager and editor at Curtis Brown Creative, authors Rufaro Faith Mazarura and Maame Blue, Caden Armstrong, founder of Book Lovers Bookshop, and Amy Beecham, senior writer at Stylist magazine.
- Soraya Bouazzaoui said: ‘The enthusiasm from writers has been so heartwarming to see. It was almost impossible to narrow it down to a longlist, let alone a shortlist! Romance brings reading and writing communities together so wonderfully, and I am so excited to be part of the journey that our shortlist will be going on with their writing careers. I had a blast reading all their entries!’
The shortlist
- The Benefits of Marriage by Amara Ede
- Deathborn: The Hidden Hearts by J. D. Malle
- The Elegance of Rollercoasters by Aditi Nichani
- Right Person, Wrong Timeline by Thara Popoola
- The Song Beneath Iron by Violet E. Scott
- Fashionable Love by Yolanda Tang
Find out more about our shortlistees
Amara Ede, The Benefits of Marriage
Amara Ede is a British Nigerian novelist and screenwriter from London. She writes fun, sexy contemporary romantic comedies featuring an eclectic cast of characters navigating journeys of personal growth while falling in love. Her novel, The Benefits of Marriage, has also been longlisted for the 2026 Mo Siewcharran Prize. You can find her on Instagram @amaraedewrites
J. D. Malle, Deathborn: The Hidden Hearts
J.D. Malle is a Cameroonian-Swedish fiction writer based in London. She studied English Literature at the University of Reading before working in tech marketing and film and TV. Her previous manuscript was shortlisted in the inaugural Penguin Michael Joseph Undiscovered Writers' Prize in 2023, and she is a 2026 Black Girl Writers mentee for another completed project. Learn more about her at jdmalle.com and on Instagram @jmalle
Aditi Nichani, The Elegance of Rollercoasters
Aditi Nichani has an MA in Creative Writing and Publishing from City St George’s, University of London. A swimmer and pianist from India, she now lives in London and works in the publishing industry. She’s always been drawn to the unabashed hope in a happily ever after, and spends her free time building messy, magical characters experiencing that feeling. The Elegance of Rollercoasters is her first novel. You can find her on Instagram and TikTok at @aditinwrites
Thara Popoola, Right Person, Wrong Timeline
Thara Popoola is a NAACP-nominated screenwriter and Forbes 30 Under 30 honoree, working across comedy and drama. Her television credits include Sex Education, Queenie, Crongton and more. Thara is currently writing her debut novel, Right Person, Wrong Timeline. You can find her on Instagram, TikTok and X @tharapop
Violet E. Scott, The Song Beneath Iron
Violet E. Scott is an emerging writer who loves to write stories that explore the intricate and messy realities of romance and fantasy. By day, they work as a clinical assessor in the neurodiversity space, a role that has helped inform their fascination with human connection, unique communication styles, and the diverse ways people experience love.
Yolanda Tang, Fashionable Love
Yolanda Tang is a paralegal by day and a romance writer by night and weekends. She is currently part of the 2026 cohort of the HarperCollins Author Academy and writes love stories featuring brilliantly stubborn heroines and the devoted, slightly pathetic men who would do absolutely anything for them. When she isn’t writing, she can be found watching Asian dramas with her dog, who faithfully soaks up her tears. You can find her on Instagram @authoryolandatang
And here’s a reminder of the longlist
- Layla by Sahar Arfeen
- Slush by Joyce Datiles
- Repaint Alone by Victoria D’Cruz
- The Benefits of Marriage by Amara Ede
- The Moon Between Worlds by Maya Fischer
- Influencing the Heart by Jennifer Francis
- Terms and Conditions Apply by Mariam Ilyas
- Deathborn: The Hidden Hearts by J. D. Malle
- Searching for Love by Rituparna Mallick
- The River Guardian by F. P. M. Martin
- The Elegance of Rollercoasters by Aditi Nichani
- The Scattering by Jana Pleyto
- Right Person, Wrong Timeline by Thara Popoola
- Substantial Figures by Miriam Rose
- The Song Beneath Iron by Violet E. Scot
- Fashionable Love by Yolanda Tang
Read the longlist announcement
The winner and runners-up will be selected by the judges from the shortlisted entries and will be announced approximately 3 September 2026.
The winner will receive a £1,000 cash prize and a place on Curtis Brown Creative’s flagship three-month Writing Your Novel course, alongside editorial mentoring sessions, a meeting with Sheila Crowley, literary agent at Curtis Brown, and a hamper of romance books. The runners-up will receive a place on one of Curtis Brown Creative’s 5/6-week writing courses, an editorial mentoring session, an introductory meeting with a Curtis Brown literary agent, and a hamper of romance books.