Winning entries

2012 Literature Prize
First Prize ($20,000) ‘Long Grass Over Home’ by Matthew Lamb, Tasmania.
The Judges said: ‘The winning story is quietly traditional – “Lawsonian”, one judge called it. It is set in the country – it is about the ways of rural folk. Calling it “Lawsonian” is something of a compliment, but also something of an expression of surprise that such a relaxed, traditional story could have captivated us both. Of course, it ends with high drama but again, done in that low-keyed way of the Australian story. It is a very accomplished piece.’

2012 Poetry Prize
First Prize ($20,000) ‘S.O.S’ by Maria Zajkowski, Victoria.
The Judges said: ‘These fine poems are open, they prod but don't preach, they're full of the unexpected, they carry a sense of human vulnerability, they come from the heart or better the whole self and not just the intellect or the level of cleverness... They have mystery – perhaps something of Paul Celan in them – which is extremely unusual in Australian poetry... They are willing to take risks in order to stay true to how life is experienced and would rather tread this tightrope than sit comfortably on a pedestal... This writing has that kind of imaginative rightness that tells us something essential about ourselves and at the same time is in no way a cliché, [it] reads like something no one has ever said before.’

2011 Poetry Prize
First Prize ($10,000) ‘The loophole or how the sky ignores us’ by Maria Zajkowski, Victoria
Second Prize ($5,000) ‘And then when the’ by Dan Disney, Victoria
Commended ($2,500) ‘Please’ by Kristen Lang, Tasmania
Commended ($2,500) ‘Philosophy in a Ghosting Universe’ by Rhyll McMaster, New South Wales
Judges’ comments

2011 Literature Prize
First Prize ($10,000) ‘Tryst’ by Rachael S Morgan, Queensland - published in Griffith Review No 34 'The Annual Fiction Edition' http://griffithreview.com/next-edition/next-edition
Second Prize ($5,000) ‘Forgetting’ by Maya Linden, Victoria - published in Griffith Review No 34 'The Annual Fiction Edition' http://griffithreview.com/next-edition/next-edition
Commended ($2,500) ‘Into the Deep’ by Sarah Klenbort, New South Wales
Commended ($2,500) ‘How to make custard’ by Campbell Mattinson, Victoria
Judges’ comments

2010 Poetry Prize
First Prize ($10,000) ‘endtime’ by Nathan Curnow, Victoria
Second Prize ($5,000) ‘Always Sometimes Never’ by Andrew Slattery, New South Wales
Commended ($2,500) ‘One Broken Knife’ by Carmen Leigh Keates, Queensland
Commended ($2,500) ‘Dead Sea Psalms’ by Jill Pattinson, Victoria
Judges' comments

2010 Literature Prize
First Prize ($10,000) ‘The Geometry Lesson’ by Jewelene Barrile, Victoria
Second Prize ($5,000) ‘Steeple Chase’ by Krissy Kneen, Queensland
Commended ($2,500) ‘The Early Hours of the Morning’ by Bronwyn Lea, Queensland
Commended ($2,500) ‘Ruined Girls’ by Felicity Plunkett, Queensland
Judges' comments

2009 Poetry Prize
First Prize ($10,000) ‘The Ministry of Going In’ by Christine Paice, New South Wales
Second Prize ($5,000) ‘Red Tulips’ by Mark Tredinnick, New South Wales
Commended ($2,500) ‘Economy’ by Oliver Driscoll, Victoria
Commended ($2,500) ‘Wrotisserie’ by Nathan Shepherdson, Queensland
Judges' comments

2009 Literature Prize
First Prize ($10,000) ‘The Real Thing’ by Catherine Harris, Victoria
Second Prize ($5,000) ‘Next’ by Felicity Castagna, New South Wales
Commended ($2,500) ‘Clay’ by Erica Woolgar, New South Wales
Commended ($2,500) ‘Lucy’ by Hilary McDowell, New South Wales
Judges' comments