The 2023 Society of Authors’ Awards have opened for entries. Nine prizes are now open, searching for outstanding works of fiction, poetry, non-fiction and children’s books.

Among them is the new ADCI (Authors with Disabilities and Chronic Illnesses) Literary Prize, which will be awarded for the first time next year. The prize was announced during this year’s awards ceremony and seeks to encourage greater disability representation in literature. Open to authors with a disability and/or chronic illness, it is calling for entries of novels that include a disabled or chronically ill character or characters.

The winners of the 2023 SoA Awards will be announced in a ceremony next year, supported by the Authors’ Licensing and Collecting Society (ALCS).

The SoA Awards are free to enter. Read the FAQs here and click on a prize below to find out more.

The awards now open for entries are:

ALCS Tom-Gallon Trust Award

An annual award for a short story, financed by a bequest made by Miss Nellie Tom-Gallon in memory of her brother and supported by ALCS and Hawthornden Literary Retreat.

The deadline for entries is 31 October 2022.

ADCI Literary Prize

For a work by an author who self-identifies as disabled or chronically ill. It must be fiction and must contain one or more characters that are disabled and/or living with chronic illness.

The deadline for entries is 31 October 2022.

Betty Trask Prize

Betty Trask left a bequest to the Society of Authors in 1983 to fund prizes for first novels written by authors under the age of 35 in a traditional or romantic, but not experimental, style.

The deadline for entries is 30 November 2022.

Eric Gregory Awards

The Eric Gregory Awards, for a collection by poets under the age of 30, were founded in 1960 by the late Dr Eric Gregory for the encouragement of young poets.

The deadline for entries is 31 October 2022.

McKitterick Prize

The McKitterick Prize is given annually to an author over the age of 40 for a first novel, published or unpublished, and endowed by Tom McKitterick – the former editor of Political Quarterly and author of an unpublished novel.

The deadline for entries is 31 October 2022.

Paul Torday Memorial Prize

The Paul Torday Memorial Prize celebrates a debut novel by authors aged 60 or over, set up in honour of Paul Torday by his family and generously supported by the Hawthornden Literary Retreat.

The deadline for entries is 30 November 2022.

Queen’s Knickers Award

This annual prize, generously funded by Nicholas Allan, author of The Queen’s Knickers, is awarded to an outstanding and quirky children’s original illustrated book for ages 0-7.

The deadline for entries is 30 November 2022.

Somerset Maugham Awards

Somerset Maugham set up a fund in 1947 to enable young writers to enrich their work by gaining experience of foreign countries. The awards are given for a published work of fiction, non-fiction or poetry.

The deadline for entries is 30 November 2022

Gordon Bowker Volcano Prize

A prize awarded to a UK or Irish writer, or a writer currently resident in those countries, for a novel focusing on the experience of travel away from home. In memory of Malcolm Lowry and endowed by Gordon Bowker, his biographer, and Ramdei Bowker.

The deadline for entries is 31 October 2022.

About the Society of Authors

The Society of Authors is the UK trade union for all types of writers, scriptwriters, illustrators and literary translators, at all stages of their careers. It has more than 11,000 members and has been advising individuals and speaking out for the profession for more than a century. societyofauthors.org