Katara Prize for Arabic Novel
かたらしょう（あらびあしょうせつ）
An Arabic literary prize established in 2014 by Katara Cultural Village in Qatar. It includes multiple categories for published novels, unpublished novels, literary criticism, young adult novels, and Qatari novels, with a total prize pool of over $650,000, making it one of the world's most generous literary awards.
- Established
- 2014
- Organizer
- General Institution of the Cultural District – Katara
- Category
- General Fiction and Popular Fiction
- Selection Method
- Open call
- Target
- Open
- Frequency
- 1 per year
- Announcement Period
- around October
- Status
- Active
Description
The Katara Prize for Arabic Novel was established in 2014 by Katara Cultural Village based in Doha and first awarded in 2015 as a literary award for Arabic novels. The total prize money is $650,000 USD, with multiple categories centered on published and unpublished divisions, as well as research/criticism and young adult categories. High prize money is awarded to winners in the published category and drama award winners, and drama award winners are guaranteed film adaptation, providing opportunities for translation and visualization after winning. Organized by Katara Cultural Village.
Prize
- Main Prize
- Total prize money: 650,000 USD. Drama Award (main prize) in the published category: 200,000 USD. Top published entrants: 60,000 USD each, unpublished category: 30,000 USD each, etc.
- Cash Prize
- 650,000 USD
- Published awards: approx. 60,000 USD (multiple)
- Unpublished novel awards: approx. 30,000 USD (multiple)
- Other categories exist such as research/criticism award and young adult category
- Drama award winners are guaranteed visualization (film adaptation) opportunities
- Winning works are arranged to be translated into about 5 languages
Selection
Selection Process
| Stage | Judges | Pass Rate | Announcement |
|---|---|---|---|
| Application reception | Reception managed by organizer (Katara). Detailed judge names are announced each time | Unknown | Application acceptance and selection results are announced on the official website |
| First selection (Longlist) | Selection committee (appointed by organizer) | Unknown | Longlist is announced officially (timing varies by edition) |
| Final selection (Shortlist) and winner determination | Judging committee (final round) | Unknown | Winners are announced through official announcements and media reports |
Criteria
- Literary quality (style, structure, expression quality)
- Originality and novelty
- Thematic, social, and cultural significance
- Story completion and character depth
- (For drama award) Potential for film adaptation and suitability for scripting
Application Tips
Dos
- 応募要項と部門（出版済／未発表／研究／ヤングアダルト等）を事前に確認する
- 指定フォーマット・期限に従って原稿を提出する
- 校正・編集を十分に行い文章の完成度を高める
- 未発表部門には未発表であることを必ず確認する
- 最新の応募情報はKataraの公式サイトで確認する
Don''ts
- 既に発表された作品を未発表枠で応募しない
- 応募規定に反するフォーマットや字数超過で提出しない
- 審査員名や基準を勝手に推測して過度に寄せ書き的な改変をしない
From Judges
- オリジナリティと物語の完成度を重視する傾向がある
- 登場人物の掘り下げと語りの一貫性が重要
- 文体の練磨と推敲を怠らないことが受賞の重要な要素
Related Awards
- Katara Prize for Arabic Short Story (short story category)
- Katara Poetry Prize (poetry category)
- International Prize for Arabic Fiction (aka Arabic Booker)
- Other Middle East/Arabic literature awards