The love of a local church combined with writing creative non-fiction has paid dividends for writer Sharon Bonthuys of Narromine.

She was recently awarded a prize in the Regional NSW category of the walk.listen.create Neighbourhood Narrative competition which offers a prize for creatives living and working in Regional NSW and writing about Regional NSW.

"This particular competition was a maximum 350 words and anyone in the world could enter," Ms Bonthuys said. "I was really excited to be told that I was shortlisted and then I received the Orana Arts Prize for the Australian entry which was great."

A journalist, Ms Bonthuys said she wrote a non-fiction piece that was of journalistic in style.

"I've done a few stories on Dandaloo Church," Ms Bonthuys said. "It's about 57 kilometres west of Narromine. There used be a town there but now the church is pretty much all there is. It was actually immortalised in two poems by Banjo Patterson."

Dandaloo Church. IMAGE: Michael McKenzie on Australia247

Orana Arts' Executive Director, Alicia Leggett congratulated Ms Bonthuys on her win, saying her story captures the history of a place in the heart of the state that could very easily be lost over time.

"Partnering with walk · listen · create on Neighbourhood Narratives was a wonderful initiative to not only capture and share some of the wonderful place-based stories we know exist across Regional NSW but an opportunity for regional writers from Australia to test their storytelling skills in an international arena," she said.

"Supported by some of our regional writing groups, the format of flash, creative non-fiction was a great starting point for many who may not have tried writing in this style or entered a competition before. We were pleased to see Regional NSW so well represented amongst the entries."

Ms Bonthuys said Dandaloo was a thriving place back in the late 19th century but when the railway moved away, it died off.

The church is still used for monthly non-denominational church services thanks to local caretakers. IMAGE: Michael McKenzie on Australia 247

"My story is called Still Standing because the church was built back in the 1880s and survived floods and other things," she said.

"It's right on the banks of Bogan River so when the river floods, it floods as well, but it's still there after136 years. The most recent flood was back in 2022 when a metre of water went through."

"A local family, the McKinnon's are the caretakers, they're the ones how keep it going and they still have a monthly church service."

Ms Bonthuys said she has already picked out her subject for the next competition.

" I'm not telling anyone what it is but it's another part of the central west that interests me," she said.