Competitions, Awards & Opportunities
Named in honour of an avid Henry Lawson follower and the Society’s former patron. Award is for a recorded reading of an Australian poem by a poet of entrant’s choice. Submit a tape or CD of the performance poem. Up to 10 finalists are chosen and must perform at annual Literary Dinner (Saturday of June long weekend) in Gulgong to be eligible for award. Proudly supported by Essential Energy.
For previously unpublished memoirists, 5,000 words full-length memoir. Judging panel to be confirmed. First prize is £5,000.
This biennial competition is organised by The Neil Gunn Trust in partnership with High Life Highland. Writers worldwide are invited to choose one of the themes and interpret it in any way they wish – the entries do not have to be set in Scotland or during the time when Neil Gunn himself was writing. Stories up to 2500 words, written in English, Scots or a combination of both.
Poets are invited to respond to artworks selected from the Council Visual Art Collection. Each poem must be no longer than twelve lines, and may be in any genre of poetry. The artworks will be exhibited in the Council Office foyer and on the Council website.
The NSW Writers’ Centre Varuna Fellowship is open to writers in any genre who have a manuscript that is ready for the next stage of development. The winning writer receives a one-week residential fellowship at Varuna, the Writers’ House. Entrants must be members of the NSW Writers’ Centre.
For the best article of the year that appears in ‘Australiana’.
Poetry entries must be unpublished, and not entered in any other competition. Maximum 40 lines, typed on A4 paper with pen name only. Contact the Society for details about competitions and to confirm closing dates.
Humour – maximum 1500 words
Poems of any length, type or theme. Must be neatly written, typed, or lodged online. Winning poems will be published online every year. All other rights remain with the author.
Open to Australian journalists or writers whose work was published in the year from 1 September in the preceding year to 31 August. Entries can encompass subject matter including true crime and biographies through to political analysis, business writing, war reporting, investigative journalism and foreign correspondence.
Whitley Awards are presented for outstanding publications (print or electronic) containing a significant amount of information on the Australasian region fauna. More than one medal may be given each year. The prize may be withheld if submissions are of insufficient standard. Certificates of commendation (to author and to publisher) are given within a series of categories.
No prescribed qualifications required. Award is based on merit and past achievements or demonstrated ability for future achievement in any walk of life. Benefit to Australia is a significant factor. Fellowships are awarded for periods of four to eight weeks duration. Overseas travel only.
The World Nomads Travel Writing Scholarship gives three aspiring writers the opportunity to attend a travel writing workshop with a professional and widely-published travel writer (a different tutor each year). After completing the workshop, they will then put their writing skills to the test on a 10-day all-expenses-paid trip where they will document their adventures. This is a global opportunity. 2019 dates are to be confirmed.
Entries are now open for the Write Around the Murray short story competition. The competition is open to writers from all over Australia who can enter in two categories: Open Short Story (3,000 words) or the Nano Story (50 words) using images from the Albury Art Gallery as inspiration.
Poems are to be no less than 50 lines and a maximum of 500 lines and must be published works within the last 12 months (from the closing date) and in book or journal form (hard or electronic). Open only to Australian citizens as specified by the donor in the original trust.
The Wollongong Writers Festival Short Story Prize is awarded for a story up to 2500 words on the theme ‘World-Changing Words’. The theme can be interpreted as broadly and playfully as you like. Feel free to experiment with form and content, but please keep submissions within the word count.
Submit maximum 10,000 words of manuscript, plus maximum 1,000 word synopsis, of unpublished romance manuscript. For details, see website. Maximum of two entries per person.
A Varuna Focus Week offers a residential masterclass to writers with a shared interest in a particular area. Each week is limited to only five participants and includes a creative and stimulating mix of individual work-time, facilitated sessions, one-on-one mentorship as well as social time for unstructured conversation. Participation in this program is through written application.
Short stories, essays and prose of any type. Maximum length: 6,000 words. Must be neatly written, typed, or lodged online. Winning stories will be published on the Winning Writers website. All other rights remain with the author.
The Tom Howard and Margaret Reid poetry contests are open to all poems written in English. There are no restrictions on age or country. TOM HOWARD PRIZE: $1,500 for a poem in any style or genre MARGARET REID PRIZE: $1,500 for a poem that rhymes or has a traditional style Length limit: 250 lines per poem.
The fellowship will support an established Australian writer to create new work within Australia’s leading interdisciplinary centre dedicated to easing the global burden of obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and related conditions through innovative research and teaching. Expressions of Interest for the 2019/2020 Writer in Residence Fellowship will open late 2018.
Betty Trask left a bequest to the Society of Authors in 1983 to fund prizes for first novels written by authors under the age of 35 in a traditional or romantic, but not experimental, style.
Annual short story competition, up to 1,000 words. See website for this year’s theme. Winner receives financial prize and anthology cover based on their story. Top 40 stories are published and all those published receive a free copy of the anthology.
The Young Australian Christian Writer Award is given annually for the best unpublished manuscript by an Australian citizen under 30 years of age. With the Young Australian Christian Writer Award Sparklit discovers and nurtures writers of the future.
The Rodney Seaborn Playwrights Award encourages the development of new Australian plays or performing arts projects emphasizing positive values. The Award is offered each year for the development of a play or other approved performing arts project. The Award provides financial assistance for playwrights during the writing or development of a play or a project. It is not intended as a prize for a finished work.