A prestigious new writing prize exclusively for writers from refugee and migrant backgrounds has been announced by independent publishers Footnote Press.
The £15,000 award, which includes an advance of £5,000 and a publication agreement with Footnote Press, is for narrative non-fiction centred around themes of displacement, identity and/or resistance. Anyone resident in the United Kingdom or Republic of Ireland from a refugee or migrant background can enter. The deadline for entries is 1st October.
The judging panel, revealed this week, will comprise award-winning British/Turkish novelist Elif Shakaf, author and Professor of Public Understanding of Law at University College London, Phillipe Sands, and author and playwright Dina Nayeri, who is currently writing a children’s book about life in a refugee camp.
Footnote, which launched just a year ago in partnership with Bonnier Books, has a focussed commitment to highlighting marginalised stories and perspectives. They say “We welcome eclectic and expansive interpretations of displacement, identity and/or resistance. We very much see migration as an ongoing human condition, and the history of humanity as a history of migration.”
The publisher will also be working with London’s literature development agency Spread the Word to host an e-workshop on developing a career as a writer and promises one to one meetings to provide ongoing support with the winning writers.
For more details on the refugee and migrant writers award see footnotepress.com.
