2026 Boroondara Literary Awards

Entries will open on Monday 16 February

Held annually by the Boroondara Library Service since 1999, the Awards celebrate the creativity of writers and poets within the City of Boroondara and Victoria.

The 2 categories are:

Winning stories from each category will be published in the Boroondara Literary Awards Anthology.

The anthology can be found at your local Boroondara library to purchase or borrow, the State Library of Victoria or the National Library of Australia.


Terms and conditions
When you submit your writing, you need to accept the terms and conditions (PDF 335KB) of this competition.


2026 award categories and prizes

1. Young Writers Competition

This is a prose and poetry competition for young people who live, work or study in Boroondara.

Criteria Prize
Junior category
  • Open to young people in school Years 5 and 6
  • Prose length between 300 and 500 words
  • Poetry length must be less than 100 lines
  • One entry per category is permitted: one for prose and one for poetry
Prose
  • First place: $300
  • Second place: $200
  • Third place: $100
Poetry
  • First place: $300
  • Second place: $300
  • Third place: $150
Highly commended
  • Up to 3 vouchers, $30 each
Middle category
  • Open to young people in school Years 7, 8 and 9
  • Prose length between 500 and 900 words
  • Poetry length must be less than 200 lines
  • One entry per category is permitted: one for prose and one for poetry
 Prose
  • First place: $450
  • Second place: $300
  • Third place: $150
Poetry
  • First place: $450
  • Second place: $300
  • Third place: $150
Highly commended
  • Up to 3 vouchers, $30 each
Senior category
  • Open to young people in school Years 10, 11 and 12
  • Prose length between 900 and 1,300 words
  • Poetry length must be less than 200 lines
  • One entry per category is permitted: one for prose and one for poetry
 Prose
  • First place: $600
  • Second place: $400
  • Third place: $200
Poetry
  • First place: $600
  • Second place: $400
  • Third place: $200
Highly commended
  • Up to 3 vouchers, $30 each


2. Open Short Story Competition

This is a prose and poetry competition for young people who live, work or study in Boroondara.

Criteria Prize
Word length between 1,500 and 3,000 words

One entry per person

Entrants must live in Victoria to be eligible
  • First place: $1500
  • Second place: $1000
  • Third place: $500
The Keith Carroll Award of $500 is given to the best entry from a Boroondara resident.
Highly commended
  • Up to 3 vouchers, $50 each


The 2026 Literary Awards will open for entries on Monday 16 February.