The 2022 Queen Mary Wasafiri New Writing Prize is open until June 30, 2022 to emerging writers who have not yet published a book-length work, with no limits on age, gender, nationality, or background.
It is open for entries in three categories: Fiction, Life Writing, and Poetry. It offers one winner in each category, a £1,000 cash prize, and print publication in Wasafiri. Shortlisted writers will have their work published on Wasafiri‘s website.
All 15 shortlistees and the winners will also be offered the Chapter and Verse or Free Reads mentoring scheme in partnership with The Literary Consultancy (dependent on eligibility), and a conversation with Nikesh Shukla of The Good Literary Agency to discuss their career progression.
Previous winners of the prize have scored deals for their debuts with Virago, Verso, Bloomsbury, Peepal Tree Press, and many more publishers. They have goneon to win or be shortlisted for prizes including the Poetry London competition, the T.S. Eliot Prize, the Galley Beggar Press Short Story Prize, The White Review Short Story Prize, Ambit Short Fiction, OCM Bocas Poetry Prize, the Edge Hill Prize, and the Guyana Prize for Literature.
The 2022 Prize is chaired by the critic and activist Marina Salandy-Brown, and judged by Mary Jean Chan (Poetry), Preti Taneja (Fiction), and Francesca Wade (Life Writing).
Enter HERE.
