Francesca Scotti wins the Chiara: three votes settle the short-story contest
La stagione delle case vuote, published by Hacca, wins the 38th edition. The result was announced in Varese on 18 October.
Short fiction has a new winner: Francesca Scotti has won the 2026 Premio Chiara with La stagione delle case vuote, published by Hacca. At the final on 18 October at Varese’s Ville Ponti, the collection received 58 votes, against 55 for Gianni Biondillo and 34 for Marco Malvaldi. The decision rested with 147 readers from Italy and Italian-speaking Switzerland.
It is the first Chiara victory for both Scotti and Hacca. The collection explores relationships and everyday life marked by absence and transformation, demonstrating the possibilities of the short form. The thirty-eighth edition also recognised Carolina Reguzzoni in the young writers’ category and Luca Astone for unpublished work: three different paths bringing short stories back to the centre of literary conversation.