12 authors longlisted for the 2021 Richell Prize are from the AWC community!

The longlist for the 2021 Richell Prize for Emerging Writers has been released and we were so excited to see that 12 of the 16 longlistees are from the AWC community!

The Richell Prize aims to support emerging writers with a cash prize and a mentorship with Hachette Australia to fully develop a manuscript.

Among the talented writers to make the longlist are Zachary Pryor and Brigita Ozolins, who have both completed our Write Your Novel program. Zachary is particularly thankful for the advice from his tutor Cathie Tasker in helping to shape his manuscript.

“I wouldn’t have been able to get it over the line without Cathie’s guidance and keen eye for plot development,” Zachary says. “Her feedback has ensured my characters are believable and compelling to read!”

The Richell Prize is unique in that it aims to develop writers at the beginning of their journey. According to their website:

The writers on the longlist will be judged on the first three chapters of the submitted work, along with a synopsis outlining the direction of the proposed work and details about how the author’s writing career would benefit from winning the Prize.

The winner will receive $10,000 in prize money, to be donated by Hachette Australia, along with a 12-month mentorship with one of Hachette Australia’s publishers. Hachette Australia will work with the winning writer to develop their manuscript with first option to consider the finished work and shortlisted entries for publication.

Other writers from the AWC community include Ben Randall, Danae Sweetapple, Emma Di Bernardo, Kate James, Kay Harrison, Odette Des Forges, Rebecca Howden, Sarah Fiddelaers, Jessica Kirkness and Paul Marshall. With such a high calibre of writers (if we do say so ourselves), we’re sure it’s going to be difficult for the judges to narrow it down to one winner!

The Richell Prize is named in honour of Matt Richell, former CEO of Hachette Australia, who was a staunch supporter of emerging writers. 

As the Emerging Writers Festival site says, there would be no prize if there weren’t any writers brave enough to submit. So congratulations also to the 850 brave new writers who entered the competition.

The shortlist will be announced on 8 October 2021 and the winner will be revealed on 4 November 2021.