The $2,000 Guy Morrison Prize for Literary Journalism recognises excellence in Literary Journalism by an undergraduate or postgraduate student enrolled in a Journalism or Writing program at an Australian university.
The prize honours Sydney journalist and playwright Guy Morrison, former production editor of The Australian and features editor of The Sydney Morning Herald.
The prize is awarded for the best piece of Literary Journalism, which they define as: ‘a factually accurate, well-researched story that demonstrates the use of fiction techniques in a work of non-fiction; a work that is written with style, flair, detailed description and narrative flow; a work that demonstrates a journalistic and critical understanding of some of the finest reportage in the English language’. Any work submitted for the prize must demonstrate these qualities.
Only one award is presented each year and this will be at the discretion of the judges. The prize may not be given if there is not deemed to be a suitable candidate.
The winner of the prize will receive $2,000, and a travel allowance of up to $500 will be given if the student lives outside Sydney.
To qualify for consideration for the Guy Morrison Prize, the applicant must:
- Have been enrolled in a Writing or Journalism program as a part-time or full-time undergraduate or postgraduate in an Australian university.
- Have submitted a story of no less than 2,000 words and no more than 10,000 words that displays the required qualities of Literary Journalism as defined above.
- Have produced the work in the 2010 academic year.
Applicants must submit three copies of their story – on A4 paper and double-spaced – with full details of their name, institution, course and contact details. The piece of work must be authenticated by a supervising academic.
Applications must be sent to the Centre for New Writing, Faculty of Arts & Social Sciences, University of Technology, Sydney, PO Box 123 Broadway, NSW 2007. They must be received by 15 April 2011 and marked ‘Guy Morrison Prize’.
The winner will be announced at the launch of the UTS Writers’ Anthology during the 2011 Sydney Writers’ Festival on 16-22 May.
