2022 Chief Minister’s NT Book Awards

Submissions to the 2022 Chief Minister’s NT Book Awards are now open.

Northern Territory authors with books published in 2020 & 2021 are invited to enter.

Since 2009, the awards have celebrated excellence amongst published authors residing in the NT. They draw national attention to NT writers and in the past have served to raise the profile of remote, regional and Indigenous voices. The awards take place biennially and in 2022, thanks to the generosity of Chief Minister Michael Gunner and the Copyright Agency’s Cultural Fund, we are again pleased to open three categories.

Submissions are sought for the following awards:

Best Fiction

For a work of fiction in any form or genre (prose or poetry) by an NT resident.

Best Non-Fiction

For a prose work other than fiction. Includes biography, auto-biography, creative non-fiction, history, philosophy and literary criticism by an NT resident.

Best Children’s or Young Adult

For a published book in either genre by an NT resident. In the case of picture books, prize money will be split between the author and the illustrator.

Submissions open December 2021.

Entries must be received by 5pm ACST on 4 February, 2022.

The awards ceremony will be held as part of the NT Writers Festival in Darwin, 23-26 July, 2022.

Prize money still to be announced.

 Entry Conditions

• Categories will be awarded at judge’s discretion. If insufficient entries are received, judges may elect not to award a category.
• The panel of judges is independent from NT Writers’ Centre staff, Board and any award funders or sponsors.
• The judges’ decision is final, and no correspondence will be entered into about the judgements or the judging process.
• We are unable to provide feedback about individual entries.
• Awards may be offered posthumously if other eligibility criteria is met.
• Copyright is retained by the author of the work.

Eligibility Criteria

We unfortunately cannot consider your entry if it does not satisfy all of the eligibility criteria.

• All entries must have been first published between 01 Jan 2020 and 31 Dec 2021.
• Entries must have been made available for general sale, broadcast or distribution in Australia between these dates and be available to the general public via more than one distribution outlet.
• All entrants must either be current residents of, or residents at the time of publication, or have been born in the Northern Territory. In the case of a children’s picture book one out of two, or at least half of the authors, co-authors and/or illustrators, need to be from the Northern Territory. In the case of co-authored or group authored books at least half of the authors need to be current residents of, or residents at the time of publication, or have been born in the Northern Territory.
• The entry must be published or produced in the English language. 
• Books must have an International Standard Book Number (ISBN).
• 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.
• Books must be edited by a professional editor.

Non-Eligible Entries

• Second edition books.
• We unfortunately don’t accept anthologies, however, short story or poetry collections by one author only are eligible.
• Published or electronic versions of books originally released in a previous calendar year.
• Works consisting primarily of photographs or illustrations that include only limited descriptive text or captions. However, works in the children’s literature category consisting of images or pictures only, with no text, are eligible.
• Books that are collections of essays or stories by multiple contributors, compiled by an editor, that acknowledge the work of the authors in their own right.

How to Enter

• Please complete the entry form below.
• Payment of $50 entry fee per book may be made via our website ntwriters.com.au/product/2022-book-award-entry/ Please note, one free submission can be made by current NTWC members. For further submissions, the entry fee applies. 
• Three copies of the book must be mailed to  GPO Box 2255, Darwin NT 0801. Alternatively, copies may be dropped to our office at Level 2 Harbour View Plaza, 8 McMinn St, Darwin. We also accept digital PDF copies. These may be emailed to executive@ntwriters.com.au Unfortunately we cannot accept other digital formats. 

If you are ensure about the eligibility of your book, please feel free to contact our Darwin office during business hours on 08 8941 265