John Llewellyn Rhys Prize

じょん・るうぇりん・りーすしょう

Annual literary award given to works by Commonwealth writers aged 35 or under, written in English and published in the UK. Established 1942, last awarded 2010, suspended since 2011 due to funding issues.

FictionNonfictionPoetryDramaFor young writersEnglish literature

Established: 1942
Organizer: BookTrust (2003–2010). Previously The Mail on Sunday (1987–2002). Founded: Jane Oliver (1942)
Category: Poetry and Contemporary Poetry
Selection Method: Open call
Target: Open
Frequency: 1 per year
Status: Ended

Description

The John Llewellyn Rhys Prize was an annual literary award given to the best works (fiction, non-fiction, poetry, drama) by Commonwealth writers aged 35 or under, written in English and published in the UK. Established in 1942 by Jane Oliver in commemoration. Sponsored by The Mail on Sunday from 1987 to 2003, and by BookTrust thereafter, but suspended in 2011 due to funding shortages (final award in 2010). In 2002, a shortlisted winner withdrew their acceptance citing issues with the sponsor.

Prize

Main Prize: £5,000 to the winner (as of 2010). £500 each to runners-up (as of 2010).
Cash Prize: 5,000 GBP

Runner-up prize £500 (each, as of 2010)
Exposure and prestige for the book and author from winning

Selection

Selection Process

Stage	Judges	Pass Rate	Announcement
Applications/Nominations	Organizer accepts submissions from publishers or agents (details per organizer's rules)	—	Collect annual submissions and proceed to preliminary judging
Shortlist selection	Annually appointed judging panel (writers, critics, editors, etc.) narrows down candidates	—	Shortlist (final nominees) is officially announced
Final judging/Winner decision	Judging panel decides the winner	—	Winning work announced through organizer and press (mainly late November)

Applications/Nominations

Judges Organizer accepts submissions from publishers or agents (details per organizer's rules)

Announcement Collect annual submissions and proceed to preliminary judging

Shortlist selection

Judges Annually appointed judging panel (writers, critics, editors, etc.) narrows down candidates

Announcement Shortlist (final nominees) is officially announced

Final judging/Winner decision

Judges Judging panel decides the winner

Announcement Winning work announced through organizer and press (mainly late November)

Criteria

Literary quality (style, structure, expressiveness)
Originality and novelty
Work's completeness and impact
Author aged 35 or under
Work written in English and published in the UK
Author from the Commonwealth

Application Tips

Dos

Before applying, confirm author is 35 or under, and work is written in English and published in UK
Confirm official submission method and deadline via publisher or agent
Accurately attach application materials (publication info, ISBN, publication date, etc.)
Polish the work's style and structure, and thoroughly go through editing process

Don''ts

Do not misdeclare age or publication information
Do not submit works not meeting requirements (publication place, language, author's origin, etc.)
Do not submit after deadline or with incomplete materials