List of Australian literary awards
Encyclopedia
Literature
- ABC Fiction AwardABC Fiction AwardThe ABC Fiction Award was an Australian literary award presented annually to the best, original, unpublished, adult fiction manuscript, written by an Australian resident over the age of 18. It was launched in 2005...
- ACT Writing and Publishing AwardsACT Writing and Publishing AwardsThe ACT Writing and Publishing Awards are an Australian literary award presented by the ACT Writers Centre for the best books in the categories of non-fiction, fiction, poetry and children's literature written in the Canberra region. They have been awarded since 2004...
- The Age Book of the YearThe Age Book of the YearThe Age Book of the Year Awards are annual literary awards presented by Melbourne's The Age newspaper. The awards were first presented in 1974. Since 1998 they have been presented as part of the Melbourne Writers Festival...
- Ada Cambridge Prize
- Australian Literature Society Gold Medal
- The Australian/Vogel Literary AwardThe Australian/Vogel Literary AwardThe Australian/Vogel Literary Award is an Australian literary award for unpublished manuscripts by writers under the age of 35. The prize money, currently A$20,000, is the richest and most prestigious award for an unpublished manuscript in Australia...
- Banjo Awards See also Sally MorrisonSally MorrisonSally MorrisonSally Morrison is an Australian writer of fiction and biography. She was born in Sydney NSW in 1946 but her family moved to Canberra when her father moved there for a position in the federal public service....
- Barbara Jefferis AwardBarbara Jefferis AwardThe Barbara Jefferis Award is an Australian Literary award prize. The award was created in 2007 after being endowed by John Hinde upon his death to commemorate his late wife, author Barbara Jefferis. It is funded by his $1 million bequest....
- Colin Roderick AwardColin Roderick AwardThe Colin Roderick Award is presented annually by the Foundation for Australian Literary Studies at Queensland's James Cook University for "the best book published in Australia which deals with any aspect of Australian life". It was first presented in 1967 and currently has a prize of A$10,000....
- David Unaipon Award
- Henry Lawson Literary Awards
- Miles Franklin AwardMiles Franklin AwardThe Miles Franklin Literary Award is an annual literary prize for the best Australian ‘published novel or play portraying Australian life in any of its phases’. The award was set up according to the will of Miles Franklin , who is best known for writing the Australian classic My Brilliant Career ...
- New South Wales Premier's Literary AwardsNew South Wales Premier's Literary AwardsThe New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards were established in 1979 by the New South Wales Premier Neville Wran. Commenting on its purpose, Wran said: "We want the arts to take, and be seen to take, their proper place in our social priorities...
- Nita Kibble Literary AwardNita Kibble Literary AwardThe Kibble Literary Awards comprise two awards which are presented annually: the Nita B Kibble Literary Award, which recognises the work of an established Australian female writer, and the Dobbie Literary Award, which is for a first published work by a female writer. The Awards recognise the works...
- Patricia Weickhardt Award
- Patrick White AwardPatrick White AwardThe Patrick White Award is an annual literary prize established by Patrick White. White used his 1973 Nobel Prize in Literature award to establish a trust for this prize....
- Prime Minister's Literary AwardsPrime Minister's Literary AwardsThe Australian Prime Minister's Literary Awards were announced at the end of 2007 by the incoming Rudd Ministry following the 2007 election. They are administered by the Minister for the Arts....
- Queensland Premier's Literary AwardsQueensland Premier's Literary AwardsThe Queensland Premier's Literary Awards were inaugurated in 1999 and have grown to become a leading literary awards program within Australia, with $225,000 in prizemoney over 14 categories. One of Australia's richest prizes, top categories offer up to $25,000 for 1st prize.-Fiction Book...
- S. H. Prior Memorial Prize (1935 - 1956)
- South Australian Premier's Awards
- T. A. G. Hungerford AwardT. A. G. Hungerford AwardThe T. A. G. Hungerford Award is a biennial Australian literary award, first established in 1998. The award is to encourage new writers from Western Australia who have not previously been published in book form....
- TDK Australian Audio Book AwardsTDK Australian Audio Book AwardsThe TDK Australian Audio Book Awards were established by the National Library of Australia in 1988 and sponsored by TDK from 1991. They were the leading audio book awards in Australia between 1989 and 1999, and were open to both commercial and non-commercial publishers.The aims were: to improve the...
(1989-1999) - Vance Palmer Prize for FictionVance Palmer Prize for FictionThe Vance Palmer Prize for Fiction is a component of the annual Victorian Premier's Literary Award and is valued at A$30,000. Most Australian state premiers present annual Australian literary awards to promote Australian writing in all its forms. The award is named after Vance Palmer...
- Victorian Premier's Literary AwardVictorian Premier's Literary AwardThe Victorian Premier's Literary Awards were created by the Victorian Governmentwith the aim of raising the profile of contemporary creative writing and Australia's publishing industry....
- Western Australian Premier’s Australia-Asia Literary Award
- Western Australian Premier's Book AwardsWestern Australian Premier's Book AwardsThe Western Australian Premier's Book Awards is an award for books, scripts, digital narrative and a People's Choice. Awards are provided by the Government of Western Australia, and the awards process is managed by the State Library of Western Australia...
Short stories
- The Age Short Story AwardThe Age Short Story AwardThe Age Short Story Award is a competition that is run in conjunction with International PEN, the international writers' association. It was established in 1979. From 1979 to 1984 it was run in conjunction with Tabloid Story and was known as The Age-Tabloid Story Awards. The inaugural award was won...
- Elizabeth Jolley Short Story PrizeAustralian Book ReviewAustralian Book Review is Australia's leading literary review. Created in 1961 the ABR is an independent non-profit organisation that publishes articles, reviews, commentaries, essays, and new writing...
Poetry
- ACT Writing and Publishing AwardsACT Writing and Publishing AwardsThe ACT Writing and Publishing Awards are an Australian literary award presented by the ACT Writers Centre for the best books in the categories of non-fiction, fiction, poetry and children's literature written in the Canberra region. They have been awarded since 2004...
- Anne Elder AwardAnne Elder AwardThe Anne Elder Trust Fund Award for poetry is administered by the Victorian branch of the Fellowship of Australian Writers and is awarded annually, as the Anne Elder Award, for the best first book of poetry published in Australia. It was established in 1976 and currently has a prize of A$1000 for...
- Bruce Dawe National Poetry PrizeBruce Dawe National Poetry PrizeThe Bruce Dawe National Poetry Prize is an annual poetry prize endowed by Australian poet Bruce Dawe in 1999. It is awarded to "an original, unpublished poem not exceeding 50 lines" by an Australian citizen or resident. The award comes with a $1500 cash prize....
- The Blake Poetry PrizeThe Blake Poetry PrizeThe Blake Poetry Prize is an Australian poetry prize, presented annually by The Blake Society and the New South Wales Writers' Centre. Established in 2008 the Prize offers a $5,000 prize for a new poem that best explores the religious or spiritual...
- Christopher Brennan AwardChristopher Brennan AwardThe Christopher Brennan Award is an Australian award given for lifetime achievement in poetry. The award, established circa 1976, takes the form of a bronze plaque; it recognizes a poet who produces work of "sustained quality and distinction"...
- C. J. Dennis Prize for PoetryC. J. Dennis Prize for PoetryThe C. J. Dennis Prize for Poetry is awarded annually as part of the Victorian Premier's Literary Awards, for a significant selection of new work by a poet published in a book. It is named after the early twentieth century vernacular poet C. J...
- Grace Leven Prize for PoetryGrace Leven Prize for PoetryThe Grace Leven Prize for Poetry is an annual award given in the name of Grace Leven who died in 1922. It was established by William Baylebridge who "made a provision for an annual poetry prize in memory of 'my benefactress Grace Leven' and for the publication of his own work"...
- Gwen Harwood Poetry PrizeGwen Harwood Poetry PrizeThe Gwen Harwood Poetry Prize was created in 1996 in memory of the Tasmanian poet, Gwen Harwood. The prize is run by Island Magazine and is awarded to a single poem or a linked suite of poems not longer than 100 lines...
- Harri Jones Memorial Prize for Poetry
- Judith Wright Calanthe AwardJudith Wright Calanthe AwardThe Arts Queensland Judith Wright Calanthe Award is awarded annually as part of the Queensland Premier's Literary Awards for a book of collected poems or for a single poem of substantial length published in book form.-2009:...
- Judith Wright PrizeJudith Wright PrizeThe Judith Wright Prize is awarded annually as part of the Arts ACT Poetry Prize for a book of poems published the previous year in book form by an Australian author.The prize currently comes with a $10,000 cash award.-2009:...
- Kenneth Slessor Prize for PoetryKenneth Slessor Prize for PoetryThe Kenneth Slessor Prize for Poetry is awarded annually as part of the New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards for a book of collected poems or for a single poem of substantial length published in book form...
- Mary Gilmore PrizeMary Gilmore PrizeThe Mary Gilmore Prize for the best first book of poetry is given to a first book of poetry from the previous two years; prior to 1998 it was awarded annually...
- Newcastle Poetry PrizeNewcastle Poetry PrizeThe Newcastle Poetry Prize is an annual Australian award for poetry. It was established in 1981 as the Mattara Poetry Prize.The Prize began from humble beginnings in September 1980, when Peter Goldman stood in the middle of Civic Park during the Mattara Festival and handed out an anthology of...
- Peter Porter Poetry PrizeAustralian Book ReviewAustralian Book Review is Australia's leading literary review. Created in 1961 the ABR is an independent non-profit organisation that publishes articles, reviews, commentaries, essays, and new writing...
- Philip Hodgins Memorial MedalPhilip HodginsPhilip Ian Hodgins was a prize-winning Australian poet whose work appeared in such major publications as The New Yorker. Peter Rose called him 'probably the most loved [Australian] poet of his generation', noting that 'his admirers ranged from... Alan Hollinghurst to Ron Barassi and Peter Porter...
- The Roland Robinson Literary Award
- Thomas Shapcott Poetry PrizeThomas Shapcott Poetry PrizeThe Thomas Shapcott Poetry Prize, named in honour of a distinguished Queensland poet, is a literary award for an unpublished poetry manuscript by a Queensland author...
- The Val Vallis Award
- The Vincent Buckley Poetry PrizeThe Vincent Buckley Poetry PrizeThe Vincent Buckley Poetry Prize is a biennial award that is offered alternately to enable an Australian poet to visit Ireland and to facilitate the visit of an Irish poet to Melbourne...
Children's books
- Bilby AwardsBilby Award WinnersThe Bilby Award is awarded annually by the Queensland's Branch of the Children's Book Council Awards.The name of the award, The Bilby, is an acronym of "Books I Love Best Yearly". The award is a children's choice award. Each year Queensland students are asked to nominate their favourite book, and...
(CBCA) - Canberra’s Own Outstanding List (COOL) AwardsCOOL Award WinnersThe COOL awards is an annual children's choice award voted on by students in Canberra, the Australian Capital Territory, Australia. Children are encouraged to read and vote for their favourite books...
- Children's Book Council of Australia Awards
- Crichton Award for Children's Book IllustrationCrichton Award for Children's Book IllustrationThe Crichton Award for Children's Book Illustration is one of several awards presented annually by the Children's Book Council of Australia ....
(CBCA) - Dame Annabelle Rankin AwardDame Annabelle Rankin AwardThe Dame Annabelle Rankin Award is an annual award presented in the Children' Book Council Awards by the Victorian Branch.In 1977, Dame Annabelle Rankin was one of the first people to be made a Life Member of the Queensland Branch of Children’s Book Council of Australia.To see the history of the...
(CBCA) - Leila St John AwardLeila St John AwardThe Leila St John Award is an annual award presented in the Children' Book Council Awards by the Victorian Branch. The award was first made in 1999....
(CBCA) - Multi-Cultural Children's Literature Award
- Nan Chauncy AwardNan Chauncy AwardThe Nan Chauncy Award was initially established as a quinquennial awards and is now presented biennially in the Children's Book Council Awards.The award was established to honour Nan Chauncy, who is recognised as a significant Tasmanian author....
(CBCA)
Science fiction, horror, and other speculative fiction
- Aurealis AwardAurealis AwardAurealis Award for Excellence in Speculative Fiction is an annual literary award for Australian science fiction, fantasy and horror fiction. Only Australians are eligible for the award.-History:...
- Australian Shadows AwardAustralian Shadows AwardThe Australian Shadows Award is an annual literary award established by the Australian Horror Writers Association in 2005 to honour the best published work of horror fiction written or edited by an Australian...
- Chandler AwardChandler AwardThe Chandler Award is presented by the Australian Science Fiction Foundation for "Outstanding Achievement in Australian Science Fiction".It is named in recognition of the contribution that science fiction writer A...
- Ditmar AwardDitmar AwardThe Ditmar Award has been awarded annually since 1969 at the Australian National Science Fiction Convention to recognise achievement in Australian science fiction and science fiction fandom...
Crime writing
- Davitt AwardDavitt AwardThe Davitt Awards are presented by the Sisters in Crime Australia association. The awards are presented for Australian crime fiction, by women, for both adults and young adults. They were established in 2001.-Previous winners:...
- CWA Duncan Laurie Dagger AwardsGold DaggerThe Gold Dagger Award was an award given annually by the Crime Writers' Association for the best crime novel of the year.For its first five years, the organization's top honor was known as the Crossed Red Herring Award....
- Ned Kelly AwardsNed Kelly AwardsThe Ned Kelly Awards are Australia's leading literary awards for crime writing in both the crime fiction and true crime genres...
Nonfiction
- A.D. Hope Prize, Association for the Study of Australian LiteratureAssociation for the Study of Australian LiteratureThe Association for the Study of Australian Literature is an Australian organisation which promotes the creation and study of Australian literature and literary culture especially through the interaction of Australian writers with teachers and students...
- ACT Writing and Publishing AwardsACT Writing and Publishing AwardsThe ACT Writing and Publishing Awards are an Australian literary award presented by the ACT Writers Centre for the best books in the categories of non-fiction, fiction, poetry and children's literature written in the Canberra region. They have been awarded since 2004...
- Australian History AwardsAustralian History Awards-The Allan Martin Award:This biennial award has been named for A. W. Martin and is administered jointly by the Australian National University and The Australian Historical Association. The award is to encourage "early career historians" for work relating to Australian History...
- Calibre Prize for an Outstanding EssayAustralian Book ReviewAustralian Book Review is Australia's leading literary review. Created in 1961 the ABR is an independent non-profit organisation that publishes articles, reviews, commentaries, essays, and new writing...
- Magarey Medal for biography, Association for the Study of Australian LiteratureAssociation for the Study of Australian LiteratureThe Association for the Study of Australian Literature is an Australian organisation which promotes the creation and study of Australian literature and literary culture especially through the interaction of Australian writers with teachers and students...
- National Biography AwardNational Biography AwardThe National Biography Award, established in Australia in 1996, is awarded for the best published work of biographical or autobiographical writing by an Australian. It aims "to encourage the highest standards of writing biography and autobiography and to promote public interest in those genres". It...
- New South Wales Premier's History AwardsNew South Wales Premier's History AwardsThe State Government of New South Wales, Australia established the Premier's History Awards in 1997. In 2005 the name of the awards was changed to NSW History Awards...
- Walter McRae Russell Award, Association for the Study of Australian LiteratureAssociation for the Study of Australian LiteratureThe Association for the Study of Australian Literature is an Australian organisation which promotes the creation and study of Australian literature and literary culture especially through the interaction of Australian writers with teachers and students...
- Walkley AwardsWalkley AwardsThe annual Walkley Awards, under the administration of the Walkley Foundation for Journalism, are presented in Australia to recognise and reward excellence in journalism. Finalists are chosen by an independent board of eminent journalists and photographers. The awards cover all media including...
- Whitley Awards (Australia)Whitley Awards (Australia)The Whitley Awards have been awarded annually since 1979 by the Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales . They commemorate Gilbert Whitley, an eminent Australian ichthyologist, and are presented for outstanding publications, either printed or electronic, that contain new information about the...
See also
- Australian literatureAustralian literatureAustralian literature is the written or literary work produced in the area or by the people of the Commonwealth of Australia and its preceding colonies. During its early western history, Australia was a collection of British colonies, therefore, its literary tradition begins with and is linked to...
- The Commonwealth Writers Prize
- List of literary awards