The Victorian Premier's Literary Awards were created by the Victorian Government with the aim of raising the profile of contemporary creative writing and Australia's publishing industry. As of 2013, it is reportedly Australia's richest literary prize with the top winner receiving A$125,000 and category winners A$25,000 each.
The awards were established in 1985 by John Cain, Premier of Victoria, to mark the centenary of the births of Vance and Nettie Palmer, two of Australia's best-known writers and critics who made significant contributions to Victorian and Australian literary culture.
From 1986 till 1997, the awards were presented as part of the Melbourne Writers Festival. In 1997 their administration was transferred to the State Library of Victoria. By 2004, the total prize money was A$180,000. In 2011, stewardship was taken over by the Wheeler Centre.
Winners 2011–present
Beginning in 2011, the awards were restructured into five categories: Fiction, Nonfiction, Poetry, Drama and Young People's. The winner of each receives $25,000. Of those five winners, one is chosen as the overall winner of the Victorian Prize for Literature and receives an additional $100,000. There are two other categories with different prize amounts: an honorary People's Choice Award voted on by readers, and an Unpublished Manuscript Award with a prize amount of $15,000. In 2022 an Award for Children's Literature valued at $25,000 was added, with entries being accepted in 2023. Another category was added in 2024, the John Clarke Prize for Humour Writing, honouring satirist John Clarke, for fiction, nonfiction and poetry.
Shortlists are maintained in the main article for each category.
Victorian Prize for Literature
| Year | Author | Title | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Kim Scott | That Deadman Dance | |
| 2012 | Bill Gammage | The Biggest Estate on Earth | |
| 2013 | Presented in January 2014 (see 2014 entry) for books published in 2013.
Previous awards were based on the year of publication. | ||
| 2014 | Jennifer Maiden | Liquid Nitrogen | |
| 2015 | Alan Atkinson | The Europeans in Australia: Volume Three: Nation | |
| 2016 | Mary Anne Butler | Broken | |
| 2017 | Leah Purcell | The Drover's Wife | |
| 2018 | Sarah Krasnostein | The Trauma Cleaner: One Woman's Extraordinary Life in Death, Decay & Disaster | |
| 2019 | Behrouz Boochani | No Friend But the Mountains: Writing from Manus Prison | |
| 2020 | S. Shakthidharan with Eamon Flack | Counting and Cracking | |
| 2021 | Laura Jean McKay | The Animals in That Country | |
| 2022 | Veronica Gorrie | Black and Blue: A Memoir of Racism and Resilience | |
| 2023 | Jessica Au | Cold Enough for Snow | |
| 2024 | Grace Yee | Chinese Fish | |
Fiction
Main article: Victorian Premier's Prize for FictionFor winners from 1985 to 2010, see Vance Palmer Prize for Fiction.
| Year | Author | Title | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Kim Scott | That Deadman Dance | |
| 2012 | Gillian Mears | Foal's Bread | |
| 2013 | Presented in January 2014 (see 2014 entry) for books published in 2013.
Previous awards were based on the year of publication. | ||
| 2014 | Alex Miller | Coal Creek | |
| 2015 | Rohan Wilson | To Name Those Lost | |
| 2016 | Mireille Juchau | The World Without Us | |
| 2017 | Georgia Blain | Between a Wolf and a Dog | |
| 2018 | Melanie Cheng | Australia Day | |
| 2019 | Elise Valmorbida | The Madonna of the Mountains | |
| 2020 | Christos Tsiolkas | Damascus | |
| 2021 | Laura Jean McKay | The Animals in That Country | |
| 2022 | Melissa Manning | Smokehouse | |
| 2023 | Jessica Au | Cold Enough for Snow | |
| 2024 | Melissa Lucashenko | Edenglassie | |
Nonfiction
Main article: Victorian Premier's Prize for NonfictionFor winners from 1985 to 2010, see the Nettie Palmer Prize for Non-fiction.
| Year | Author | Title | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Mark McKenna | An Eye for Eternity: The Life Of Manning Clark | |
| 2012 | Bill Gammage | The Biggest Estate on Earth | |
| 2013 | Presented in January 2014 (see 2014 entry) for books published in 2013.
Previous awards were based on the year of publication. | ||
| 2014 | Henry Reynolds | Forgotten War | |
| 2015 | Alan Atkinson | The Europeans in Australia: Volume Three: Nation | |
| 2016 | Gerald Murnane | Something for the Pain | |
| 2017 | Madeline Gleeson | Offshore: Behind the Wire on Manus | |
| 2018 | Sarah Krasnostein | The Trauma Cleaner: One Woman's Extraordinary Life in Death, Decay & Disaster | |
| 2019 | Behrouz Boochani | No Friend But the Mountains: Writing from Manus Prison | |
| 2020 | Christina Thompson | Sea People: The Puzzle of Polynesia | |
| 2021 | Paddy Manning | Body Count: How Climate Change Is Killing Us | |
| 2022 | Amani Haydar | The Mother Wound | |
| 2023 | Eda Gunaydin | Root & Branch: Essays on Inheritance | |
| 2024 | Ellen van Neerven | Personal Score: Sport, Culture, Identity | |
Poetry
Main article: Victorian Premier's Prize for PoetryFor winners from 1985 to 2010, see the C. J. Dennis Prize for Poetry.
| Year | Author | Title | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Cate Kennedy | The Taste of River Water | |
| 2012 | John Kinsella | Armour | |
| 2013 | Presented in January 2014 (see 2014 entry) for books published in 2013.
Previous awards were based on the year of publication. | ||
| 2014 | Jennifer Maiden | Liquid Nitrogen | |
| 2015 | Jill Jones | The Beautiful Anxiety | |
| 2016 | Alan Loney | Crankhandle | |
| 2017 | Maxine Beneba Clarke | Carrying the World | |
| 2018 | Bella Li | Argosy | |
| 2019 | Kate Lilley | Tilt | |
| 2020 | Charmaine Papertalk Green | Nganajungu Yagu | |
| 2021 | David Stavanger | Case Notes | |
| 2022 | Maria Takolander | Trigger Warning | |
| 2023 | Gavin Yuan Gao | At the Altar of Touch | |
| 2024 | Grace Yee | Chinese Fish | |
Writing for Young Adults
Main article: Victorian Premier's Prize for Writing for Young AdultsFor winners from 1985 to 2010, see the Victorian Premier's Prize for Young Adult Fiction.
| Year | Author | Title | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Cassandra Golds | The Three Loves of Persimmon | |
| 2012 | John Larkin | The Shadow Girl | |
| 2013 | Presented in January 2014 (see 2014 entry) for books published in 2013.
Previous awards were based on the year of publication. | ||
| 2014 | Barry Jonsberg | My Life as an Alphabet | |
| 2015 | Claire Zorn | The Protected | |
| 2016 | Marlee Jane Ward | Welcome to Orphancorp | |
| 2017 | Randa Abdel-Fattah | When Michael met Mina | |
| 2018 | Demet Divaroren | Living on Hope Street | |
| 2019 | Ambelin Kwaymullina and Ezekiel Kwaymullina | Catching Teller Crow | |
| 2020 | Helena Fox | How It Feels to Float | |
| 2021 | Cath Moore | Metal Fish, Falling Snow | |
| 2022 | Felicity Castagna | Girls in Boys' Cars | |
| 2023 | Kate Murray | We Who Hunt the Hollow | |
| 2024 | Lili Wilkinson | A Hunger of Thorns | |
Drama
Main article: Victorian Premier's Prize for DramaFor winners from 1985 to 2010, see the Louis Esson Prize for Drama.
| Year | Author | Title | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Patricia Cornelius | Do not go gentle… | |
| 2012 | Lally Katz | A Golem Story | |
| 2013 | Presented in January 2014 (see 2014 entry) for books published in 2013.
Previous awards were based on the year of publication. | ||
| 2014 | Patricia Cornelius | Savages | |
| 2015 | Angus Cerini | Resplendence | |
| 2016 | Mary Anne Butler | Broken | |
| 2017 | Leah Purcell | The Drover's Wife | |
| 2018 | Michele Lee | Rice | |
| 2019 | Kendall Feaver | The Almighty Sometimes | |
| 2020 | S. Shakthidharan with Eamon Flack | Counting and Cracking | |
| 2021 | Angus Cerini | Wonnangatta | |
| 2022 | Dylan Van Den Berg | Milk | |
| 2023 | John Harvey | The Return | |
| 2024 | S. Shakthidharan and Eamon Flack | The Jungle and the Sea | |
People's Choice Award
| Year | Author | Title | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Anna Krien | Into The Woods: The Battle for Tasmania's Forests | |
| 2012 | Aidan Fennessy | National Interest | |
| 2013 | Presented in January 2014 (see 2014 entry) for books published in 2013.
Previous awards were based on the year of publication. | ||
| 2014 | Hannah Kent | Burial Rites | |
| 2015 | Tim Low | Where Song Began | |
| 2016 | Miles Allinson | Fever of Animals | |
| 2017 | Randa Abdel-Fattah | When Michael met Mina | |
| 2018 | Alison Evans | Ida | |
| 2019 | Bri Lee | Eggshell Skull | |
| 2020 | Chloe Higgins | The Girls | |
| 2021 | Louise Milligan | Witness: An Investigation into the Brutal Cost of Seeking Justice | |
| 2022 | Rebecca Lim | Tiger Daughter | |
| 2023 | Karlie Noon and Krystal De Napoli | Astronomy: Sky Country | |
| 2024 | Antony Loewenstein | The Palestine Laboratory: How Israel Exports the Technology of Occupation Around the World | |
Unpublished Manuscript
Main article: Victorian Premier's Unpublished Manuscript AwardFor winners from 2003 to 2010, see the main article. No award was presented in 2011.
| Year | Author | Title | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Graeme Simsion | The Rosie Project | |
| 2013 | Maxine Beneba Clarke | Foreign Soil | |
| 2014 | Miles Allinson | Fever of Animals | |
| 2015 | Jane Harper | The Dry | |
| 2016 | Melanie Cheng | Australia Day | |
| 2017 | Christian White | Decay Theory | |
| 2019 | Victoria Hannan | Kokomo | |
| 2020 | Rhett David | Hovering | |
| 2021 | André Dao | Anam | |
| 2022 | Keshe Chow | Fauna of Mirrors | |
| 2023 | Mick Cummins | One Divine Night | |
| 2024 | Rachel Morton | Panajachel |
Indigenous Writing
Main article: Victorian Premier's Literary Award for Indigenous Writing| Year | Author | Title | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Vivienne Cleven | Her Sister's Eye | |
| 2006 | Tara June Winch | Swallow the Air | |
| 2008 | Yvette Holt | Anonymous Premonition | |
| 2010 | Larissa Behrendt | Legacy | |
| 2012 | Anita Heiss | Am I Black Enough For You? | |
| 2014 | Melissa Lucashenko | Mullumbimby | |
| 2016 | Tony Birch | Ghost River | |
| 2019 | Kim Scott | Taboo | |
| 2021 | Archie Roach | Tell Me Why: The Story of My Life and My Music | |
| 2022 | Veronica Gorrie | Black and Blue: A Memoir of Racism and Resilience | |
| 2023 | Lystra Rose | The Upwelling | |
| 2024 | Daniel Browning | Close to the Subject: Selected Works |
Children's Literature
| Year | Author | Title | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Remy Lai | Ghost Book |
Defunct award categories (1985–2010)
From 1985 to 2010 prizes were offered in some or all of the below categories.
- Vance Palmer Prize for Fiction
- Nettie Palmer Prize for Non-fiction
- Prize for Young Adult Fiction
- C. J. Dennis Prize for Poetry
- Louis Esson Prize for Drama
- Alfred Deakin Prize for an Essay Advancing Public Debate (after Alfred Deakin)
- Prize for Science Writing (biennial)
- Village Roadshow Prize for Screen Writing
- Grollo Ruzzene Foundation Prize for Writing about Italians in Australia
- John Curtin Prize for Journalism
- Prize for Best Music Theatre Script
- Prize for Indigenous Writing (Biennial)
- Prize for a First Book of History (Biennial)
- Dinny O'Hearn Prize for Literary Translation (Triennial)
- A.A. Phillips Prize for Australian Studies
- Alan Marshall Prize for Children's Literature
- Prize for First Fiction
See also
Notes
- ^ Steger, Jason (28 January 2014). "Liquid Nitrogen poet Jennifer Maiden wins Australia's richest literature prize". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 28 January 2014.
- "State Library Victoria".
- Sanders, Zora (21 April 2011). "Victorian Premier's Literary Awards to be the Richest in Australia". Meanjin. Retrieved 29 January 2014.
- "VPLAs add children's award". Books+Publishing. 24 October 2022. Retrieved 28 October 2022.
- "New prize for humour writing added to VPLAs". Books+Publishing. 16 September 2024. Retrieved 19 September 2024.
- ^ ""Victorian Premier's Literary Awards 2011"". The Wheeler Centre. Retrieved 26 May 2024.
- ^ ""Victorian Premier's Literary Awards 2012"". The Wheeler Centre. Retrieved 26 May 2024.
- ^ "Victorian Premier's Literary Awards 2014". Victorian Premier's Literary Awards. 2014. Retrieved 26 May 2024.
- ^ "Victorian Premier's Literary Awards 2015". Victorian Premier's Literary Awards. 2015. Retrieved 26 May 2024.
- ^ "Victorian Premier's Literary Awards 2016". Victorian Premier's Literary Awards. 2016. Retrieved 26 May 2024.
- ^ "Victorian Premier's Literary Awards 2017". Victorian Premier's Literary Awards. 2017. Retrieved 26 May 2024.
- ^ "Victorian Premier's Literary Awards 2018". Victorian Premier's Literary Awards. 2018. Retrieved 26 May 2024.
- ^ "Victorian Premier's Literary Awards 2019". Victorian Premier's Literary Awards. 2019. Retrieved 26 May 2024.
- ^ "Victorian Premier's Literary Awards 2020". Victorian Premier's Literary Awards. 2020. Retrieved 26 May 2024.
- ^ "Victorian Premier's Literary Awards 2021". Victorian Premier's Literary Awards. 2021. Retrieved 26 May 2024.
- ^ "Victorian Premier's Literary Awards 2022". Victorian Premier's Literary Awards. 2022. Retrieved 26 May 2024.
- ^ "Victorian Premier's Literary Awards 2023". Victorian Premier's Literary Awards. 2023. Retrieved 26 May 2024.
- ^ "Victorian Premier's Literary Awards 2024". Wheeler Centre. Retrieved 2 February 2024.
- "The Rosie Project". Shelf Awareness. 12 June 2013. Retrieved 31 July 2022.
- ^ "Victorian Premier's Literary Awards – Prize for Indigenous Writing". AustLit: Discover Australian Stories. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
- "Victorian Premier's Literary Award for Indigenous Writing: Winner and Shortlist Announced". Wheeler Centre. 5 September 2012. Archived from the original on 23 February 2014. Retrieved 14 February 2014.
- Hornbeck, Susan (4 September 2014). "Congratulations to Melissa Lucashenko: Victorian Premier's Literary Awards". Griffith Review. Retrieved 10 March 2019.
- "Victorian Premier's Literary Awards 2017". The Wheeler Centre. Retrieved 1 May 2018.
External links
| Victorian Premier's Literary Awards | |
|---|---|