Entries are now open for Australia’s foremost literary competition for young writers, The 2012 John Marsden Prize for Young Australian Writers. It’s an auspicious year, because 25 years ago John Marsden’s career began with So Much to Tell You, a book less known now than then in the wake of the many successes that followed, especially Tomorrow When the War Began, the book that started the Tomorrow series in 1993. In 1996, his books took the top six places on the Teenage Fiction best-seller lists for Australia, a bit like The Beatles when they swept America. The point being everyone starts somewhere, and for young writers this is a good place to start.
The prizes are divided into age groups, under 18 and from 18-24. The literary forms in both categories are the same: poetry and short stories. The biggest prize is for the 18-24 short story winner, who wins $3,000. The poetry prize for the same age group is worth $1,500. Under 18s win $500 each for the short story and poetry. Prize winners and place getters are decided by Express Media, who facilitate the prize, and John Marsden, who is the patron of Express Media and donates the prize money. Selected works will be published online and in the December issue of Voiceworks, the printed quarterly published by Express Media.
