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2025 Australasian Shadows Awards OPEN
The 2025 Australasian Shadows Awards are now OPEN! The Awards will close at midnight AEST on Jan 31. GUIDELINES Full Awards entry rules can be found HERE. Up to three works of horror/dark fiction may be entered per author in each of the following categories: Short Fiction: works up to 7,500 words. Paul Haines Award for […]
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2026 Ireland Wilson Sargeson Fellows Announced
New Zealand writers Laurence Fearnley and Bridget van der Zijpp have been awarded the prestigious 2026 Ireland Wilson Sargeson Fellowships. This national literary award, named in memory of New Zealand writers Frank Sargeson, Kevin Ireland and Phillip Wilson, offers an annual stipend of $30,000, shared between two fellows, for them to write fulltime on a […]
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2025 Graeme Lay Short Story Competition Winners
The 2025 Graeme Lay Short Story Competition winners were announced by the NZSA Auckland Branch at their 29 November meeting. This annual competition has once again celebrated the vitality of short story writing in New Zealand. In his judge’s report, Graeme Lay writes: “Writing a successful short story remains one of literature’s greatest challenges… ‘Many […]
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Apollo Awards 2025 Book Winner
Toi Te Mana: An Indigenous History of Māori Art Deidre Brown and Ngarino Ellis, with Jonathan Mane-Wheoki Auckland University Press/University of Chicago Press View the shortlist Oceanic art has inspired a vast literature. Since the early 20th century, hundreds of catalogues and monographs have highlighted the collections of museums, explored genres and traditions and, more […]
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Dr Terri Te Tau named as 2026 IIML Emerging Māori Writer in Residence
Fiction writer and artist Dr Terri Te Tau (Ngāti Kahungunu, Rangitāne ki Wairarapa) has been appointed as the Te Herenga Waka—Victoria University of Wellington International Institute of Modern Letters (IIML) and Creative New Zealand Emerging Māori Writer in Residence for 2026. Dr Te Tau is a member of the Mataaho Collective, a group of four artists whose […]
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WriteTime Competitions
WriteTime competitions are only open to older writers. Everyone is welcome, wherever in the world you live. If you want to join in, you need to be over 60 years old. There’s no upper age limit. Share your stories with us – entering a competition is a great way to keep up your writing. WriteTime […]
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Dublin Literary Award Nominations Announced
Dublin Literary Award nominated titles are out! 69 titles have been nominated by 80 libraries from 36 countries for the 2026 Award, reflecting the best in fiction from Africa, Europe, Asia, USA, Canada, South America, Australia – and New Zealand. Kia ora to the writers from Aotearoa New Zealand nominated: 1985 by Dominic Hoey Delirious […]
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Entries Open For 2026 NZCYA Awards
The 2026 New Zealand Book Awards for Children and Young Adults – which celebrate the best books for young readers published in Aotearoa – are now open for entries. Titles with release dates between 1 April 2025 and 31 March 2026 will be considered in six categories: Picture Book, Junior Fiction (the Wright Family Foundation […]
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Scottish writer gets Otago Fellowship
Scottish writer Donald S Murray says he is thrilled and honoured to be awarded a fellowship in Dunedin next year. “It offers a new perspective on seeing the world, a different view from any I would have imagined ever glimpsing before,” Donald says. Donald has received the 2026 Scottish Writing Fellowship with Mātai Airana, Mātai Kotirana – the Centre for Irish and Scottish Studies […]
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2026 Lucy Cavendish Fiction Prize Open
The Lucy Cavendish Fiction Prize opened on 13 October for entries, welcoming unpublished women and non-binary writers to submit their work. Generously sponsored by WME, the Prize continues its mission to amplify new voices in fiction. WME took on six authors from 2025’s shortlist and longlist, including Ciara Borderick, whose debut Catfish has just sold […]
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Call for applications for Māori and Pacific Publishing Scholarship
Applications are open for the 2026 Penguin Random House Māori and Pacific Publishing Scholarship. This scholarship was created in 2020, in collaboration with Whitireia and Weltec, with the aim of reducing barriers to equitable representation and encouraging diversity and inclusivity in publishing in Aotearoa. The scholarship offers funding for one Māori or Pacific student to […]
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2026 Next Generation Short Story Awards: Call For Entries
Enter by February 26, 2026 to be a part of the 2026 awards program If you would like to receive greater recognition, monetary prizes, awards and exposure for your short stories, here is an opportunity not to miss. Enter the 2026 Next Generation Short Story Awards. Calling all short story writers, even first time authors, in […]
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