The State Library of NSW has opened entries for two significant national literary awards — the 2024 National Biography Award and the Mona Brand Award for Women Stage and Screen Writers, with a total of $82,000 in prize money on offer.
“Writers have a remarkable ability to transform real and imagined stories into immersive experiences that resonate with readers on a profound level,” says State Librarian Dr Caroline Butler-Bowdon.
“Thanks to the support of the State Library Foundation and private benefactors, we’re able to offer these two unique prizes that recognise and celebrate the invaluable contribution of writers to our cultural life.”
The National Biography Award, Australia’s richest prize for biographical writing and memoir, awards $25,000 to the overall winner, with $5,000 presented to the best debut biography or memoir. In addition, each of the six shortlisted authors receive $2,000.
The 2024 award is supported by the Graham & Charlene Bradley Foundation, Sarah Crouch and the John Lamble Foundation. The winners will be selected by a judging panel comprising critic Melinda Harvey (Chair) and writers Eda Gunaydin and Jason Om.
The biennial Mona Brand Award, established at the bequest of trailblazing Australian playwright Mona Brand (who also wrote under the name Alexis Fox), is the only award of its kind in Australia available to women writers for stage and screen.
The main prize of $30,000 is nominated by a judging panel chaired by producer Helen Bowden, Carissa Lee and Anchuli Felicia King. However, the State Library is calling for nominations for the $5,000 Early Career Writer Award.
There will be an extended nomination period to allow for the Christmas and New Year break, with entries for the 2024 Awards closing Monday 5 February 2024.
Guidelines for each award and the online nomination forms are available on the State Library’s website.
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