The Australian War Memorial is inviting entries for the third biennial Les Carlyon Literary Prize, which awards the author of the winning work a prize of $10,000.
The prize will be awarded for a major publication published between 2022 and 2024. The work may be fiction or nonfiction, but must relate to Australian military history, social military history or war history.
Judges assess entries on literary merit, contribution to the understanding of Australia’s experience of war in its military and/or social aspects, and bearing in mind authenticity and credibility in telling the story.
Australian War Memorial Director Matt Anderson said the Memorial is proud to present this prestigious prize, and encouraged authors to enter their works.
“The Les Carlyon Literary Prize is an important way for the Memorial to support writers and to find and encourage the best storytellers in Australia,” he said. “Stories of Australia in conflict are some of the most important we can tell: They tell us who we are, and what we are willing to fight for.”
The biennial prize is dedicated to the memory of long-serving member of the Council of the Australian War Memorial, Les Carlyon AC, who passed away on 4 March 2019. An author, journalist and historian, Mr Carlyon wrote works of Australian history, including the critically acclaimed Gallipoli (2001) and The Great War (2006).
