The Australian/Vogel Literary Award

For the New Zealand fantasy and science fiction award also known as the Vogel Award, see Sir Julius Vogel Award.

The Australian/Vogel Literary Award is an Australian literary award for unpublished manuscripts by writers under the age of 35. The prize money, currently A$20,000, is the richest and most prestigious award for an unpublished manuscript in Australia. The rules of the competition include that the winner's work be published by Allen & Unwin.^[1]

The award was initiated in 1979 by Niels Stevns^[1] and is a collaboration between The Australian newspaper, the publisher Allen & Unwin, and Stevns & Company Pty Ltd. Stevns, founder of the company which makes Vogel bread, named the award in honour of Swiss naturopath Alfred Vogel.

Winners

• 2023 – Anna McGahan, Immaculate^[2]
• 2022 – Nell Pierce, A Place Near Eden^[3]
• 2021 – Emma Batchelor, Now That I See You^[4]
• 2020 – K. M. Kruimink, A Treacherous Country^[5]
• 2019 – No prize awarded^[6]
• 2018 – Emily O'Grady, The Yellow House^[7]
• 2017 – Marija Peričić, The Lost Pages^[8]
• 2016 – Katherine Brabon, The Memory Artist^[9]
• 2015 – Murray Middleton, When There’s Nowhere Else to Run^[10]
• 2014 – Christine Piper, After Darkness^[11]
• 2013 – No prize awarded^[12]
• 2012 – Paul D. Carter, Eleven Seasons^[12]
• 2011 – Rohan Wilson, The Roving Party^[12]
• 2010 – not awarded – Allen & Unwin Publishers decided to change the announcement of the winner to coincide with the publication of the book.^[13]
• 2009 – Kristel Thornell, Night Street and Lisa Lang, Utopian Man
• 2008 – Andrew Croome, Document Z
• 2007 – Stefan Laszczuk, I Dream of Magda
• 2006 – Belinda Castles, The River Baptists
• 2005 – Andrew O'Connor, Tuvalu
• 2004 – Julienne van Loon, Road Story
• 2003 – Nicholas Angel, Drown Them in the Sea and Ruth Balint, Troubled Waters
• 2002 – Danielle Wood, The Alphabet of Light and Dark
• 2001 – Sarah Hay, Skins
• 2000 – Stephen Gray, The Artist is a Thief
• 1999 – Hsu-Ming Teo, Love and Vertigo
• 1998 – Jennifer Kremmer, Pegasus in the Suburbs
• 1997 – Eva Sallis, Hiam
• 1996 – Bernard Cohen, The Blindman's Hat
• 1995 – Richard King, Kindling Does For Firewood
• 1994 – Darren Williams, Swimming in Silk
• 1993 – Helen Demidenko, The Hand That Signed the Paper
• 1992 – Fotini Epanomitis, The Mule's Foal
• 1991 – Andrew McGahan, Praise
• 1990 – Gillian Mears, The Mint Lawn
• 1989 – Mandy Sayer, Mood Indigo
• 1988 – Tom Flood, Oceana Fine
• 1987 – Jim Sakkas, Ilias
• 1986 – Robin Walton, Glace Fruits
• 1985 – No prize awarded
• 1984 – Kate Grenville, Lilian's Story
• 1983 – Jenny Summerville, Shields of Trell
• 1982 – Brian Castro, Birds of Passage and Nigel Krauth, Matilda, My Darling
• 1981 – Chris Matthews, Al Jazzar and Tim Winton, An Open Swimmer^[14]
• 1980 – Archie Weller, The Day of the Dog (Weller was initially runner-up to Paul Radley, who was disqualified after admitting that his manuscript was actually written by his uncle, who was also older than 35.^[15]

Notes

1. Goodwin (1986) p. 270
2. "'Immaculate' wins 2023 Vogel". Books+Publishing. 16 June 2023. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
3. "'A Place Near Eden' wins 2022 Vogel". Books+Publishing. 17 May 2022. Retrieved 17 May 2022.
4. Steger, Jason (30 April 2021). "How truth and fiction won Emma Batchelor this year's Vogel Award". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 30 April 2021.
5. "'A Treacherous Country' wins 2020 Vogel". Books+Publishing. 20 April 2020. Retrieved 20 April 2020.
6. "No Vogel to be awarded this year". Books+Publishing. 14 May 2019. Retrieved 14 May 2019.
7. "O'Grady wins Vogel for 'The Yellow House'". Books+Publishing. 24 April 2018. Retrieved 17 May 2022.
8. "Peričić wins Vogel for 'The Lost Pages'". Books+Publishing. 27 April 2017. Retrieved 17 May 2022.
9. "Brabon wins 2016 Vogel Award". Books+Publishing. 27 April 2016. Retrieved 17 May 2022.
10. "Middleton wins 2015 Vogel". Books+Publishing. 21 April 2015. Retrieved 17 May 2022.
11. "Piper wins Vogel for 'After Darkness'". Books+Publishing. 23 April 2014. Retrieved 17 May 2022.
12. "No Vogel Award to be presented in 2013". Books+Publishing. 30 April 2013. Retrieved 17 May 2022.
13. "A&U: Changes to the Vogel award". Books+Publishing. 8 June 2010. Retrieved 17 May 2022.
14. ""Austlit — The Australian/Vogel National Literary Award 1981"". Austlit. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
15. ""Austlit — The Australian/Vogel National Literary Award 1980"". Austlit. Retrieved 11 October 2023.

References

• Goodwin, Ken (1986) A History of Australian Literature, Basingstoke, Macmillan