Ms Ayres claimed the top prize with her piece, The Elephant in the Room, in a tightly contested field of the region's writers.

Her story follows Elly as she attempts to guide friend Becky through a storm of domestic abuse viewed primarily from the child's perspective.

Ms Ayres said the piece had evolved from the Simone De Peak photo, immediately bringing the phrase to mind.

"I guess I think in puns," she said.

Ms Ayres will receive a studio space residency at Lighthouse Arts from Hunter Writers Centre valued at $200 and a $200 voucher at Hamilton's MacLean's Booksellers and a 12-week digital subscription to the Newcastle Herald and a Kindle courtesy of Domayne @ Harvey Norman Kotara.

Voting is open now for the people's choice winner, who will receive a $50 voucher at MacLean's, a Kindle courtesy of Domayne @ Harvey Norman Kotara and a 12-week digital subscription to the Herald.

Ms Ayres said her approach in using a child's perspective to look at domestic violence was deliberate.

"It's often told from the perspective of the woman being a domestic violence victim, but it's not often told by the kids that have to witness it or get abused themselves," she said.

This year's highly commended story was Dakota Tait's eerie The Circle, turning a photograph of a farm scene into a vivid tale of the aftermath of a crop circle.

Mr Tait receives a 12-week digital subscription and $100 to spend at MacLean's.

Both winners, as well as the people's choice winner, will also receive double passes to the Newcastle Writers Festival 2022, which will run from April 1 to 3.

Judges for this year's competition included Miles Franklin shortlisted author and Prime Minister's Literary Award for Fiction winner Dr Ryan O'Neill, Hunter Writers Centre's director Karen Crofts, Australian Community Media head of dailies Chad Watson and Herald deputy editor Matt Carr.

They praised the attention to detail Mr Tait, of Shortland, wielded in telling his tale with a distinct and consistent voice.

"The whole piece is so well told, the author is in full command of the 'voice on the page' as we call it, it is as if we are at a bar hearing a yarn from a guy perched on a stool telling anyone who will listen," Hunter Writers Centre director Karen Crofts said.

"I really enjoyed the attention to detail. Many writers rush through their writing, but a good story is all in the detail."

The Hunter Writers Centre is a not-for-profit organisation devoted to engaging, employing and educating aspiring and established writers from the region. The centre helps develop authors through workshops and writing groups and seminars (hunterwriterscentre.org).

Mr Carr said the calibre of this year's entries made the decision a hard one, with some of the closest voting in several years to decide the judges' two picks.

"The competition is at its best when our writers deliver pieces of such a high calibre across the board, and it was a difficult field to separate," he said.

Voting for the people's choice is open now at newcastleherald.com.au, with the winner to be named next weekend.