City of Fremantle Hungerford Award 2026: A Major Opportunity for Emerging WA Writers
Western Australian writers will have a major opportunity in 2026, with entries soon to open for the 35th City of Fremantle Hungerford Award, the state’s most prestigious prize for an unpublished manuscript.
Run biennially by Fremantle Press, the award offers a $15,000 cash prize from the City of Fremantle, a publishing contract with Fremantle Press and a fellowship at the Centre for Stories, making it a significant launchpad for emerging authors.
Open to unpublished writers working in adult fiction, narrative non-fiction, young adult fiction or verse novels, the award will accept entries submitted exclusively via Fremantle Press’s Submittable page between 6 February 2026 and 11.59 pm AWST on 15 March 2026. Prospective entrants are encouraged to set up a Submittable account, follow the Fremantle Press page for updates, and subscribe to the publisher’s enewsletter for alerts, as well as to review the detailed terms and conditions online before submitting.
The Hungerford Award has a strong track record of identifying distinctive new voices, with past recipients including Molly Schmidt, Holden Sheppard, Madelaine Dickie, Gail Jones, Natasha Lester, Maria Papas, Simone Lazaroo and Alice Nelson, whose winning and shortlisted books now form a dedicated Hungerford list with Fremantle Press. The most recent winner, Ethiopian-born Perth writer, researcher and poet Yirga Gelaw Woldeyes, was recognised in 2024 for his memoir Trials of Hope (የተስፋ ፈተና), a bilingual exploration of Ethiopian culture, colonial disruption and the human condition structured around four elemental stages of experience.
Named in honour of acclaimed Western Australian author T.A.G. Hungerford (1915–2011), the award reflects his long-standing commitment to championing new and emerging writers and to telling local stories that help define a sense of place. Fremantle Press also continues to welcome unsolicited manuscripts from authors of Western Australian origin or residence, or from elsewhere when the work has a strong Western Australian focus, across all genres it publishes, giving prospective Hungerford entrants additional avenues to build an ongoing relationship with the press.
The winner of the 35th City of Fremantle Hungerford Award will be announced at a special event in October 2026, with further news, resources for writers and a dedicated Hungerford news stream available via the Fremantle Press website. For more information, visit Fremantle Press's website. For assistance with electronic submissions or queries about the award, writers can contact Fremantle Press directly on (08) 9430 6331.
