Prime Minister’s Literary Awards 2012 entry guidelines

The Prime Minister’s Literary Awards celebrate the contribution of Australian literature to the nation’s cultural and intellectual life. The Awards recognise the importance of literature to our national identity, community and economy.

The Prime Minister’s Prize for Australian History recognises outstanding work that contributes significantly to an understanding of Australian history.

In 2012, awards will be presented for excellence in fiction, non-fiction, young adult fiction, children’s fiction, poetry and Australian history. $100 000 will be awarded in each category—$80 000 for the winning entry and $5000 each for a maximum of four shortlisted entries. All prizes will be tax-free.

Download the guidelines:

• Prime Minister's Literary Awards 2012 Entry Guidelines (371 KB PDF)

Entries closed at 5pm AEDT on Wednesday 1 February 2012

• Entrants are encouraged to submit an online entry form.
• If you don’t have internet access, please phone 1800 707 889 to be sent a hard copy entry form.
• Ten (10) copies of your entered work must be sent to the following address by the closing date:
• Please note that we only require 10 copies of the work, even if it is entered in multiple categories.

1. Eligibility criteria

1.1 General eligibility criteria

The following criteria apply to all entries in the fiction, non-fiction, young adult fiction, children’s fiction and poetry categories, and to books entered for the Prize for Australian History.

• The book must have been first published and made available for general sale in Australia between 1 January 2011 and 31 December 2011.
• Books must be first published in the English language.
• Self-published books are not eligible. This includes any arrangement whereby an author pays a third party to publish a work.
• Books primarily published electronically are eligible as long as they are also available in some kind of hard copy format, for example, by print-on-demand.
• Internet-only books and books that are only available for free (that is, not for general sale) are not eligible.
• Electronic versions of previously published books will not be accepted. Similarly, published versions of books originally released electronically prior to 1 January 2011 will not be accepted.
• Except in the children’s fiction category, works consisting of illustrations only, with no text, are not eligible. Similarly, works consisting mainly of photographs or illustrations are excluded unless the accompanying text is judged to be of sufficient merit.
• An eligible verse novel may be entered in both the poetry category and in one fiction category (either fiction, young adult fiction or children’s fiction, based on the intended audience). A verse novel may be shortlisted in both a fiction category and the poetry category, but it cannot win more than one category.
• An eligible book may be entered in both the non-fiction category and for the Prize for Australian History. An eligible book may be shortlisted for both these awards. However, a book may not win more than one category.

1.2 Authors and eligibility

The following criteria apply to all entries in the fiction, non-fiction, young adult fiction, children’s fiction and poetry categories, and to books entered for the Prize for Australian History.

• Authors must be citizens or permanent residents of Australia.
• Authors must be living on the date of entry.
• Books of joint authorship are eligible. Joint authorship is defined as the joint responsibility of two authors, or one author and one illustrator or photographer, for the entire text. Eligible books shall have no more than two authors or one author with one illustrator or photographer.
• If a shortlisted or winning entry is a work of joint authorship, each author, illustrator or photographer must be identified on the entry form and will receive 50 per cent of the prize money.
• The work must be the work of the author/s.
• Works may not be entered in the name of a committee or corporation.
• For producer eligibility criteria for non-book entries for the Prize for Australian History, see Section 2.6: Prime Minister’s Prize for Australian History on page 4.
• The authors’ personal contact details must be included on the nomination form.

2. Category specific eligibility criteria

2.1 Fiction

• Awarded to the author/s of a fiction book first published between 1 January 2011 and 31 December 2011.

2.2 Non-fiction

• Awarded to the author/s of a literary non-fiction book first published between 1 January 2011 and 31 December 2011.
• Eligible non-fiction works include biographies, autobiographies, histories, philosophy, literary criticism and works dealing with contemporary issues.
• Ineligible non-fiction works include: film and television scripts; textbooks and other works created for primary, secondary and tertiary educational purposes; newsletters; books which are primarily works of interviews; local and oral histories; periodicals; instruction manuals; how-to books; bibliographies; dictionaries; encyclopaedias; guide books; catalogues; and self-help, lifestyle and hobby books.
• Works compiled by an editor are ineligible.

2.3 Young adult fiction

• Awarded to the author of a young adult fiction book first published between 1 January 2011 and 31 December 2011.
• To be eligible, works must be suitable for young adults aged 13 to 19 years old.

2.4 Children’s fiction

• Awarded to the author of a children’s fiction book first published between 1 January 2011 and 31 December 2011.
• To be eligible, works must be suitable for children up to 12 years old.
• Wordless picture books, or illustrated narratives, are eligible for entry in the children’s fiction category only.
• In illustrated works for children, the literary and artistic merit of the work as a whole will be considered by the judges.

2.5 Poetry

• Awarded to the author of a collection of poems first published in book form between 1 January 2011 and 31 December 2011.
• Single poems are not eligible, regardless of their length.
• Collected works of more than two poets are not eligible.

2.6 Prime Minister’s Prize for Australian History

• Awarded for an outstanding publication, production or body of work that contributes significantly to an understanding of Australian history (rather than literary merit, as per the non-fiction category).
• Eligible works include: a published book, journal or magazine; a website, CD-ROM or DVD; a documentary for any form of distribution (including radio, television, cinema, online, CD-ROM, DVD); or other form of multimedia; or a series of these.
• The subject of eligible works may include, but is not limited to, historical events, historical figures (including biographies) and works about a particular theme, concept or issue.
• Books entered for the Prize for Australian History must comply with all criteria under sections 1.1 (General eligibility criteria) and 1.2 (Authors and eligibility) of these guidelines.

2.6.1 Non-book entries for the Prize for Australian History

• If a non-book entry is the collective effort by a group of people or an organisation:
  • all members of the group must be Australian citizens or permanent residents
  • all members of the group must be listed on the entry form
  • all members of the group will receive an equal share of the prize money should the entry win or be shortlisted for the Prize for Australian History.
  • entrants should contact the Awards team on 1800 707 889 to obtain a hard copy entry form (as the online entry form only allows for two authors).
• Where a public sector organisation (such as an arm of the Australian Defence Force or a state or territory government department) wins or is shortlisted for the Prize for Australian History, no prize money will be paid.

Journals, websites, magazines

• Journal, website and magazine entries must have been first published between 1 January 2011 and 31 December 2011.

Other entries – Documentaries, CD-ROMs, television, radio or multimedia entries

• Non-publication entries must have been first broadcast or produced between 1 January 2011 and 31 December 2011.

Series of work entries

• If a series or group of works is entered, all components of the series must have been first published, broadcast or produced between 1 January 2011 and 31 December 2011.

3. Conditions of entry

The conditions and eligibility criteria governing the Awards may change without notice.

These conditions of entry apply to all entries in all categories.

3.1 Entries

• There is no entry fee for the Prime Minister’s Literary Awards or Prize for Australian History.
• A separate entry form must be completed for each entry.
• Works may only be entered in one category, excluding the following circumstances:
• a non-fiction book that is also a history book may be entered in both the non-fiction category and the Prize for Australian History
• a verse novel may be entered in the poetry category and ONE fiction category (either fiction, young adult fiction or children’s fiction, depending on the intended audience).
• Works may be entered by publishers, literary agents, authors, producers or broadcasters. People or organisations entering a work on behalf of an author or producer are assumed to be submitting the entry with the consent of the author or producer. It is the responsibility of the person submitting the entry to ensure that the author’s consent is obtained before entering the work.
• The submitted copies of works, whether deemed eligible or not, shall become the property of the Australian Government and shall not be returned to the entrant.
• While all reasonable care will be taken, no responsibility is accepted for loss or damage to submitted copies or for entries that are not received by the due time and date.
• Breach of these guidelines may render an entry invalid whether prospectively or retrospectively.
• Biographies of, or works by, current (at the time of entry) members of an Australian or foreign parliament or executive are not eligible for entry.
• The Office for the Arts may request supporting documentation in relation to any or all of the above eligibility criteria at any time.
• The Office for the Arts’ decision regarding the eligibility of an entry shall be final.

3.2 Closing date and time

• A completed online entry form OR a completed and signed hard copy entry form, AND ten (10) copies of the relevant work must be received by the Office for the Arts by 5pm AEDT on Wednesday 1 February 2012.
• Entrants are required to submit a brief summary of the relevant work, an image of the work (for example, the book cover artwork) along with an image and short biography (up to 100 words) of the authors/producers. If completing the online entry form, these must be submitted online. If completing a hard copy entry form, please provide these on a CD or USB.
• Entries that are primarily published as e-books must also be accompanied by ten (10) bound copies (for example, print-on-demand copies) of the work for judging purposes.
• Images must be at least 7.5cm by 11.5cm and 300dpi resolution.
• The Office for the Arts reserves the right, in its absolute discretion, not to accept incomplete or late entries.
• The Office for the Arts may request additional copies of an entered work at any time.

3.3 Confidentiality

• With the exception of personal information in Section 3 of the entry form, the Office for the Arts gives no undertaking to keep confidential any information provided with entries for the awards.

4. Judging and selection

• The Prime Minister’s Literary Awards will go to the entries deemed to possess the highest literary merit. The Prize for Australian History will be awarded for the most outstanding contribution to understanding Australian history.
• Three panels, each of up to four judges, will consider the six award categories. One panel will judge the fiction and poetry categories, a second will judge the non-fiction category and the Prize for Australian History, and a third panel will judge the young adult and children’s fiction awards.
• Judges reserve the right to move a work into another category if they deem a work more suitable for the other category, for example between the children’s and young adult fiction categories.
• The judges may at their discretion call for works which have not been entered in the Awards.
• The judges reserve the right not to recommend a particular Award in any year if they consider that the entered works are not of sufficient merit.
• It is important that the judging process is free from interference. In order to ensure a transparent process, any author, producer, publisher or literary agent who attempts to lobby, undertakes discussions or corresponds with a judge of these Awards in relation to an entry or entries may be permanently disqualified from these Awards.
• The Prime Minister will make the final decision on the awarding of the Awards, taking into account the recommendations of the judges.
• The decisions of the Prime Minister and the judges are final and no discussion or correspondence will be entered into concerning these decisions.

4.1 Winning entries and promotional activities

• Winning producers, authors, publishers and agents will not be notified of the outcome prior to the public announcement of the Award winners.
• On subsequent printings of shortlisted or winning works, publishers may print ‘2012 Prime Minister’s Literary Awards Shortlist’, ‘Winner of the 2012 Prime Minister’s Literary Awards’, ‘2012 Prime Minister’s Prize for Australian History Shortlist’ or ‘Winner of the 2012 Prime Minister’s Prize for Australian History’ as relevant.
• The Australian Government expects that the recipients of the Prime Minister’s Literary Awards and the Prize for Australian History will occasionally assist in publicly promoting Australian literature, Australian history and these Awards. For this reason recipients should be prepared to participate in a small number of local public engagements and media opportunities at the time of, and in the year following, their award.