$20,000 prize for young writers

Fancy yourself an author but worried whether you can afford the time to write?

WA’s new writing prize could just be the kick-along you need — the winner will receive $20,000 cash and a publishing contract with Fremantle Press.

The Fogarty Literary Award is the first literary prize open exclusively to West Australians aged between 18 and 35, and is awarded for an unpublished work of fiction, narrative non-fiction or young adult fiction.

Crime writer Alan Carter describes the biennial prize, one of Australia’s richest for young authors, as a fantastic initiative. “With average author earnings amounting to peanuts — unless you’re one of the very few who get to be an overnight blockbuster bestselling success — it’s something you tend to do for love rather than money,” he says. “Anything that helps find new voices, gets them published, and helps make sure they keep on writing has to be a great thing.”

Carrie Cox, whose debut novel Afternoons With Harvey Beam was published by Fremantle Press last year, agrees. “I’d like to think such an award would have inspired me to give creative writing a crack much earlier than I did. No-one wants a literary landscape dominated by jaded middle-aged farts like me. The earlier we can uncover talented writers, the longer we’ll be able to enjoy their creative products.”

Fremantle Press publisher Georgia Richter, who will judge the award with children’s publisher Cate Sutherland, says she is looking for a great story, one that will stay with the reader for a long time. “A generous cash prize like this can be invaluable for a young writer, especially if it can buy them time to continue to write. Winning a major literary award is also very affirming.”

Underground Writers marketing and media manager Jess Gately, who is also studying writing at Curtin University, says you only have to look at the careers of household names like Tim Winton and Kate Grenville to see the impact an award can have on a young writer’s trajectory.

“It’s not just the prize money and the recognition that an award like this offers, it’s the opportunity to work with a publisher, to go through that process and to see your writing from different points of view,” she says. “It’s learning how the industry works as a whole, early on, which gives you the opportunity to develop and grow and shape your career.”

She also welcomes the support of local talent. “WA writers often get lost in the literary landscape of Australia. With so many opportunities, publications and events existing in Sydney and Melbourne, it can sometimes feel like people in those areas are more interesting to readers simply because they’re close and they have tight-knit communities,” Jess says. “But we have that here in WA too, and having an award that is WA specific reinforces that our stories are just as exciting, just as interesting and just as worthy of telling.”

The Fogarty Foundation, which is providing the cash prize, was founded in 2000 to support and provide educational and leadership opportunities for young people across WA. Executive chairperson Annie Fogarty says the foundation is committed to identifying the storytellers of tomorrow and is proud to play a part in supporting the State’s vibrant literary arts community.

The winning manuscript will be scheduled for publication in 2020 with an education tour planned to coincide with the book’s release. Previously published authors who fit the age criteria are welcome to enter.

Submissions are now open and will close on Monday, April 22. The winner will be announced at a special event in May.

For more details, see fremantlepress.com.au/fogarty-award.