The New Zealand Society of Authors Te Puni Kaituhi O Aotearoa and Text Publishing are delighted to announce the longlist for the Michael Gifkins Prize for an Unpublished Novel 2022.

The longlisted writers are: Michaela Anchan, Tiffany Brown, Saige England, Jill Hadfield, Ruth Hanover, Maria B. Joseph, Sarah McDougall, Christopher McMaster, Susan Pearce, Paul Shannon, Emma Sidnam, Maria Wickens, and Anna Woods.

This year’s longlist of 13 high-quality manuscripts were selected by New Zealand writers Dr Paula Morris and Dr Vanda Symon. Sixty-seven applications were received for this prize and the judges commented: ‘This year’s longlist is diverse in style and subject, and includes both emerging and experienced writers. Our reading transported us from a wartime Pacific island to contemporary Hong Kong, from farms and baches to pirate vessels, from kidnappings to earthquakes and floods. We were impressed with the imagination, range and engagement with story of the submissions’.

Congratulations to the longlisted writers!

The shortlist for the Michael Gifkins Prize for an Unpublished Novel 2021/2 will be announced on 6 May.

Previous winners of the Gifkins Prize are Ruby Porter (Attraction), Tom Remiger (Soldiers), Gigi Fenster (A Good Winter) and Tom Baragwanath, with Paper Cage which is slated for publication  later in 2022.

The Gifkins Prize is made possible by a generous financial commitment from the Gifkins family and from Text Publishing. It is administered by the NZ Society of Authors Te Puni Kaituhi o Aotearoa (PEN NZ Inc). Entries for the 2023 prize will open in late July.