Entries for the 2023 Prime Minister’s Literary Awards have opened, with a shared prize pool of $600,000 up for grabs. Honouring excellence in Australian literature, works published in 2022 are eligible to enter. Since its inception in 2008, the Awards have grown to six categories, covering fiction, non-fiction, children’s literature, young adult literature, poetry, and Australian history.
Last year’s winners included Nicolas Rothwell’s Red Heaven, Sherryl Clark and Briony Stewart’s Mina and the Whole Wide World, Mark Willacy’s Rogue Forces, Leanne Hall’s The Gaps, Christine Helliwell’s Semut, and Andy Jackon’s Human Looking.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, said:
“Our creative sector is central to Australia’s soul and national identity – these awards recognise the significant contribution creators of the written word and illustrators make to the cultural life of Australia.
“Each year we hope to see a diverse pool of entries which captures the wide range of voices in Australian literature. I encourage anyone who is eligible, to submit their work to be considered by the independent judging panel for this prize.”
Creative Australia, the centrepiece of Labour’s National Cultural Policy Revive, will manage the Awards. As part of Revive, Creative Australia is working to establish Writers Australia, a literary focused sector that will support Australian writers and publishers, and eventually take over the Awards in 2025.
Minister for the Arts Tony Burke, said:
“Australia’s best writers make us laugh, cry, learn and escape – even if it’s just for a moment. They let us see our lives reflected on pages and in stories about the places we live.
“The Prime Minister’s Literary Awards celebrate the vast contribution literature, history, and poetry make to amplifying Australian stories.
“I’m also excited for the emergence of more Australian writing and writers with the coming establishment of Writer’s Australia, which will provide direct support to the literature sector.”
Entries for the Prime Minister’s Literary Awards close Tuesday 25 July 2023, 3.00pm (AEST). More information, including application guidelines, can be found HERE.
