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Grants and Prizes

The Sunday Times Young Writer of the Year Award

£5,000 for a full-length published work of fiction, non-fiction or poetry by an author under the age of 35.

The 2009 Prize

The winner of the The 2009 Sunday Times Young Writer of the Year Award, which is administered by the Society of Authors, was announced at the Sunday Times Oxford Literary Festival on Sunday 5th April.

Ross Raisin was chosen as the winner of the £5,000 prize, which is open to writers under 35 of fiction, non-fiction or poetry. His prize-winning novel, God’s Own Country was also given a Betty Trask Award in 2008.

Adam Foulds, who won the Sunday Times award last year, was shortlisted, this time for his narrative poem, The Broken Word.

The Sunday Times Young Writer of the Year shortlist:

Adam Foulds for The Broken Word (Cape)

Edward Hogan for Blackmoor (Pocket)

Ross Raisin for God’s Own Country (Penguin)

Henry Hitchings for The Secret Life of Words (J Murray)



Each of the writers on the shortlist were awarded £500.

The two judges for this year’s award are Andrew Holgate, the Sunday Times literary editor, and Peter Kemp, the fiction editor.

The 2010 Prize

Criteria for entry

  • The author must be a British citizen ordinarily resident in Britain
  • The author must be under the age of 35 on 31st December 2009
  • The work submitted must be by one author in the English language
  • The work submitted must have been first published in Britain in 2009

How to enter

Entry forms for the 2010 prize are available to download here. The deadline for entries is 31st October 2009.

For each entry, complete an entry form and return it with four copies of the book (non-returnable) to:

Paula Johnson, Awards Secretary, The Society of Authors, 84 Drayton Gardens, London SW10 9SB.

Conditions of entry

There will be three judges who may call in books if they so wish. The decision of the judges (both as to eligibility and the winning entry) shall be final.



For further information about this prize, please contact Paula Johnson