8 September 2021

Peter Gutwein, Premier

Elise Archer, Minister for the Arts

Supporting the Tasmanian writing community

The Tasmanian Liberal Government is a strong supporter of our cultural and creatives industries which enrich the lives of all Tasmanians and support thousands of jobs around the State.

Tasmania’s unique and vibrant culture is one of our most treasured assets, and our State has its own story to tell.

That’s why we are pleased to announce the Government is rebranding the Premier’s Literary Prizes to become the ‘Tasmanian Literary Awards’, quadrupling our biennial prize money investment from $25,000 to $100,000, and expanding the entry categories to better recognise excellence in this important sector.

These significant changes will modernise our State’s showcase literary awards, which have been largely unchanged since 2007, allowing us to:

• focus on supporting the Tasmanian writing community;
• align with our ongoing commitment to promoting the Tasmanian Brand; and
• fulfil the objectives of our Creative and Cultural Industries Recovery Strategy, by fostering opportunities for growth and bringing this important industry to the forefront of Tasmanian culture.

The six new entry categories are:

• a prize for fiction ($25,000);
• a prize for non-fiction ($25,000);
• a prize for young readers and children ($25,000);
• a prize for Indigenous writing ($10,000);
• a prize for poetry and short stories ($10,000);
• a young writers fellowship ($5,000).

This is in addition to the prizes supported by the University of Tasmania.

The Tasmanian Literary Awards will open for entries later in 2021, with judging and the announcement of award winners to take place in 2022.

To highlight the many wonderful books written each year in this State, only writers living in Tasmania will be eligible.

Planning for the awards is currently underway, and more information about prize names and eligibility will be announced in the near future.

More Media Releases from Peter Gutwein

More Media Releases from the Premier