THE TEXT PRIZE FOR YOUNG ADULT & CHILDREN’S WRITING

Submissions for the 2017 Text Prize will open Tuesday 3 January and close Friday 3 February.  Download the entry form for the 2017 Text Prize now.

The $10,000 Text Prize aims to discover incredible new books for young adults and children by Australian and New Zealand writers.

Awarded annually to the best manuscript written for young readers, the prize has unearthed extraordinary, multi-award-winning books and launched international publishing careers. 

Published and unpublished writers of all ages are eligible to enter with works of fiction or non-fiction.

The winner receives a publishing contract with Text and a $10,000 advance against royalties. 

‘I think the Text Prize is a great opportunity for any author, regardless of their publishing history. I entered it after being prompted by my third-year creative-writing students (when I was teaching at Curtin University). After raving about how great the prize is and how they should all enter, one of them said, ‘If it’s so good, why don’t you enter it?’ And the challenge was on! It was great to have the following year’s deadline to work towards.’ A. J. Betts, author of  Zac & Mia

Read the full Q&A with Prize alumni and check out the FAQ.

The 2016 Text Prize winner is Beautiful Mess by Claire Christian. Beautiful Mess tells the dual stories of Ava, lost and angry at the world, and trying to figure out how to live without her best friend by her side, and Gideon, awkward, anxious and trying to figure out how to get by without freaking out. Beautiful Mess is a fresh and relatable story of grief, getting out of your own way and finding your tribe.

Text will publish Beautiful Mess in September 2017.

Claire Christian is a writer, podcaster, youth arts faciliator and theatre maker from Brisbane. In 2013 she was named one of Queensland’s 125 Leading Women by YWCA Queensland. She has several plays available through Playlab Press, including her solo work Talking to Brick Walls, as well as Hedonism’s Second Album and The Landmine is Me, both co-written with the winner of the 2014 Text Prize, David Burton.

On winning the Text Prize, Claire said, ‘Creating work for young people is at the very core of my artistry so to work with Text, a company who wholeheartedly acknowledge the importance and value of creating work for this audience, is such an honour and a joy. I’m so excited to work with them on Beautiful Mess.’

Publisher Michael Heyward: ‘We are thrilled to offer our congratulations to this year’s winning book, Beautiful Mess by Claire Christian. Beautiful Mess is a moving novel about grief and love by an author who is intensely curious about her characters. Ava and Gideon will lodge themselves in readers’ hearts and minds. Their stories are witty, real, warm and raw. We are thrilled to be launching another promising literary career.’

Read Claire’s award speech here.