£15,000 prize launched for writers from refugee and migrant backgrounds | Books

Footnote Press and Counterpoint Arts have announced a new fiction prize honoring writers from refugee and migrant backgrounds, offering a £15,000 prize and a publishing deal for the winner.

The Footnotes x Counterpoint Prize for Fiction, launching on Thursday, marks the second time the two organizations have collaborated on a prize. In 2023, writers were invited to submit narrative nonfiction, but now the award will focus on fiction for the first time.

Open to writers living in the UK or Ireland, the award aims to highlight new literary voices whose work reflects experiences of migration. Footnote Press, an imprint of Bonnier Books UK, and Counterpoint Arts, a national organization focusing on art, migration and cultural change, say the award will highlight fiction “centered on themes of displacement, courage and belonging”.

The winner will receive a £7,500 cash prize and a further £7,500 advance as part of a publishing agreement with Footnote Press. The Southbank Center in London will support the prize by hosting a public event in May, where shortlisted authors will read and discuss their work.

This year’s judging panel includes Dina Nayeri, author of The Ungrateful Refugee, Bea Carvalho, head of books at Waterstones, Serena Arthur, commissioning editor at Footnote Press, and Almir Koldzik, director and co-founder of Counterpoint Arts.

“At a time of deep division and intolerance, the award feels especially necessary and urgent,” Koldzik said. “We hope it will help us amplify notable new literary voices and lived experiences of displacement, giving us new perspectives and questions about our society today and in the future.”

Submissions are open and close on 13 February. Entries should include a sample of 8,000-10,000 words and an abstract of at least 1,500 words. A shortlist will be announced in May, with the winner revealed during Refugee Week in June.

Arthur said, “The prize still focuses on the themes that are core to both the ethos of Footnotes and the list, but I’m particularly excited to turn to fiction this time.”

The first Footnote Published in May this year, it is a memoir of the love story between Hasboun’s Palestinian father and her Italian mother.

Full eligibility details and conditions are available on the Bonnier Books UK website.