The judges of the 11 prizes and scholarships that make up our Society of Authors’ (SoA) Awards have been announced today, 28 April, including returning judges and some new faces.
The announcement comes ahead of our shortlist announcement on 21 May, and the awards ceremony, which will take place on 18 June, returning again to Southwark Cathedral.
The ADCI Literary Prize
The ADCI Literary Prize was founded in 2022 by thriller writer and judge Penny Batchelor and publisher Clare Christian to encourage greater positive representation of disability in literature. Awarded for a novel which includes a disabled or chronically ill character or characters.
Joining Penny Batchelor on this year’s judging panel are widely acclaimed author of (M)otherhood, Dr. Pragya Agarwal; literary agent and children’s author, James Catchpole; award-winning journalist, activist and author, Rachel Charlton-Dailey; author of contemporary romance, Linda Corbett; award-winning writer and broadcaster, Selina Mills; and author and Betty Trask Award winner, Okechukwu Nzelu.
Total prize fund: £2,000
Judging panel: Dr. Pragya Agarwal, Penny Batchelor, James Catchpole, Rachel Charlton-Dailey, Linda Corbett, Selina Mills and Okechukwu Nzelu
Telling ‘complicated truths in small spaces’
The ALCS Tom-Gallon Trust Award
The ALCS Tom-Gallon Trust Award is given for a short story of up to 5,000 words.
Judge Peter Hobbs said: ‘The short story is an unforgiving form, but is full of possibilities, and one of the great pleasures of judging this prize is seeing the many ways in which writers are making it their own, and are finding ways to build whole worlds and tell complicated truths in small spaces.’
Writer, poet and journalist, Andre Bagoo, and actress and writer Louise Brealey join this year’s judging panel alongside award-winning novelist, Yan Ge, and novelist and short story writer, Peter Hobbs.
Total prize fund: £5,000
Judging panel: Andre Bagoo, Louise Brealey, Peter Hobbs and Yan Ge
‘Inspiring, intimidating and inviting in equal measure’
The Betty Trask Prize
Running since 1983, the Betty Trask Prize celebrates first novels by authors under 35.
Writer, critic, printmaker, and judge of this year’s Betty Trask Prize, Stephanie Sy-Quia said ‘As a poet who has recently jumped the fence into writing fiction, it is a delight to immerse myself in the varieties of ways one can build a novel. It has been inspiring, intimidating and inviting in equal measure: like the perfect lesson.’
Joining Stephanie on this year’s judging panel will be previous Betty Trask Prize winners, Andew Cowan and Daisy Lafarge.
Total prize fund: £26,200
Judging panel: Andrew Cowan, Daisy Lafarge and Stephanie Sy-Quia
Cholmondeley Awards
The Cholmondeley Awards, which recognise the achievement and distinction of individual poets, were founded in 1966.
The judges this year are acclaimed poet, Malika Booker; poet, novelist and playwright, Fred D’Aguiar; poet and memoirist, Hannah Lowe; and poet, critic and non-fiction writer, Lachlan McKinnon.
Total prize fund: £8,400
Judging panel: Malika Booker, Fred D’Aguiar, Hannah Lowe and Lachlan Mackinnon.
The Eric Gregory Awards
The Eric Gregory Awards recognise the works of poets under the age of 30, and many previous winners have gone on to become Cholmondeley Award winners later in their career.
Caroline Bird, who was one of the five official poets for the 2012 Olympics, will be joined on this year’s judging panel by previous Birmingham Poet Laureate, Jasmine Gardosi; award winning poet, Harry Josephine Giles; poet and writer, Roy McFarlane; poet, writer and educator, Rosie Miles; and writer, poet and playwright, Eric Ngalle Charles.
Total prize fund: £28,350
Judging panel: Caroline Bird, Jasmine Gardosi, Harry Josephine Giles, Roy McFarlane, Rosie Miles and Eric Ngalle Charles
A prize that ‘embraces diverse genres, writing styles and voices’
The McKitterick Prize
Tom McKitterick, the former editor of Political Quarterly and author of an unpublished novel, endowed the McKitterick Prize which was first awarded in 1990 and is generously supported by Hawthornden Literary Retreat. It is given annually to an author over the age of 40 for a first novel, published or unpublished.
Two former McKitterick Prize winners will be on this year’s panel, with 2018 prize winner, Anietie Isong, and 2024 prize winner, Wenyan Lu, who won the prize for their novels Radio Sunrise and The Funeral Cryer respectively. Joining them will be editor and freelance writer, Nick Rennison; former Paul Torday Prize-winning novelist, Kathy O’Shaughnessy; freelance book reviewer and blogger, Rebecca Foster; and novelist, Gonzalo C Garcia.
Wenyan Lu said: ‘The McKitterick Prize is an important and valuable literary award for new authors, both unpublished and published; it is recognition from your peers and embraces diverse genres, writing styles and voices. The prize supports and promotes upcoming literary talent and provides a platform for authors to connect with readers and other authors.’
Total prize fund: £10,000 The judging panel: Rebecca Foster, Gonzalo C Garcia, Anietie Isong, Wenyan Lu, Kathy O’Shaughnessy and Nick Rennison
The Queen’s Knickers Award
Funded by Nicholas Allan, author of The Queen’s Knickers, the Queen’s Knickers Award recognises an outstanding children’s original illustrated book for ages 0-7. It is awarded to a book that strikes a quirky, new note and grabs the attention of a child, whether in the form of curiosity, amusement, horror or excitement.
The judges this year are illustrator, author and 2022 Illustrator of the Year at the British Book Awards, Dapo Adeola; rhyming children’s author and journalist, Davina Hamilton; and designer, illustrator and lecturer, Soofiya.
Total prize fund: £6,000 The judging panel: Dapo Adeola, Davina Hamilton, and Soofiya
‘Young authors who are comparatively at the top of their game’
The Somerset Maugham Awards
Founded in 1947, the Somerset Maugham Awards are for published works of fiction, non-fiction or poetry by writers under 30, to enable them to enrich their work by gaining experience of foreign countries.
Judge on this year’s panel, Akeem Balogun, said: ‘Like the writing of the author it’s named after, the Somerset Maugham Award continues to feature work that attracts interest and admiration. Reading the writing of young authors who are comparatively at the top of their game is a rewarding opportunity to see what fresh ideas are being explored by a new cohort and which thoughts and topics remain a staple in literature’
Joining Akeem on the panel are English Literature professor and co-director of Liverpool’s Centre for New and International Writing, Sandeep Parmar, and novelist, sound artist, and academic, Ellen Wiles.
Total prize fund: £16,000
The judging panel: Akeem Balogun, Sandeep Parmar and Ellen Wiles
The Travelling Scholarships
Established in 1944, the Travelling Scholarships are awarded to British writers to enable engagement with writers abroad.
The judges are travel writer and novelist Emily Barr; writer, Louise Jury; poet and editor, Alvin Pang; presenter, writer, and photographer Johny Pitts; and poet, translator and fiction writer, Philip Terry.
Total prize fund: £8,000
The judging panel: Emily Barr, Louise Jury, Alvin Pang, Johny Pitts, and Philip Terry.
The Gordon Bowker Volcano Prize
The Gordon Bowker Volcano Prize is awarded for a novel focusing on the experience of travel away from home.
Choosing the shortlist and winner this year will be writer and academic, Dr Elizabeth-Jane Burnett; award-winning writer and poet, Derek Owusu; and author and travel writer, Jini Reddy.
Total prize fund: £2,750
The judging panel: Dr. Elizabeth-Jane Burnett, Derek Owusu and Jini Reddy.
