The State Library of NSW has announced the winning works for the 2026 NSW Literary Awards. This year, a total of $320,000 was awarded across 12 categories.
“Congratulations to all the shortlisted and winning writers recognised in the 2026 NSW Literary Awards.m Through your work, we are reminded of the vital role literature plays in helping us listen, learn and connect with one another,” said Minister for the Arts the Hon John Graham MLC.
“Thanks to the support of the NSW Government, the NSW Literary Awards bring readers into conversation with some of the most compelling writing in Australia. This year’s winners present enduring explorations into what defines our world today,” said State Librarian Dr Caroline Butler-Bowdon.
The winners of the 2026 NSW Literary Awards are:
Christina Stead Prize for Fiction ($40,000)
The Immigrants by Moreno Giovannoni (Black Inc)
Douglas Stewart Prize for Non-fiction ($40,000)
Näku Dhäruk The Bark Petitions by Clare Wright (Text Publishing)
Kenneth Slessor Prize for Poetry ($30,000)
How To Emerge by Jill Jones (Vagabond Press)
Patricia Wrightson Prize for Children’s Literature ($30,000)
Gone by Michel Streich (Thames & Hudson Australia)
Ethel Turner Prize for Young People’s Literature ($30,000)
Desert Tracks by Marly Wells and Linda Wells (Magabala Books)
Nick Enright Prize for Playwriting ($30,000)
The Black Woman of Gippsland by Andrea James (Melbourne Theatre Company/Currency Press)
Betty Roland Prize for Scriptwriting ($30,000)
The Narrow Road to the Deep North, Episode 4 by Shaun Grant (Curio Pictures, Screen Australia, Amazon MGM Studios)
Indigenous Writers’ Prize ($30,000)
Apron-Sorrow / Sovereign-Tea by Natalie Harkin (Wakefield Press)
Multicultural NSW Award ($30,000)
Gather Up Your World in One Long Breath by S. Shakthidharan (Powerhouse Publishing)
UTS Glenda Adams Award for New Writing ($10,000 – sponsored by UTS)
Find Me at the Jaffa Gate: An encyclopaedia of a Palestinian family by Micaela Sahhar (NewSouth Publishing)
The University of Sydney People’s Choice Award ($10,000)
Rapture by Emily Maguire (Allen & Unwin)
Book of the Year ($10,000)
Näku Dhäruk The Bark Petitions by Clare Wright (Text Publishing)
“The judges of this year’s awards were deeply impressed by the strength and variety of the work submitted,” said Senior Judge James Bradley OAM. “This year’s winners, chosen from 783 entries across twelve categories, are a thrilling testament to that breadth.”
“Their works explore topics ranging from Indigenous history and the often-painful legacies of Australia’s past to migration and displacement, love, ageing and mortality.”
“Time and again the winning authors demonstrate not just the power and vitality of Australian writing, but also the capacity of great literature to help us understand the past and think differently about the future.”
The 2026 NSW Literary Awards are administered by the State Library of NSW in association with Create NSW. The State Library acknowledges the sponsorship of Multicultural NSW, the University of Technology Sydney and the University of Sydney.
Past winners have included such notable writers as Peter Carey, David Malouf AO, Elizabeth Jolley, Thomas Keneally AO, Tony Birch, Helen Garner, Ellen Van Neerven and Michelle de Kretzer.
For more information about the NSW Literary Awards, visit: www.sl.nsw.gov.au for details.
Image: 2026 NSW Literary Awards Winners – photo by Annie Tong