Russell Prize for Humour Writing adds children’s category

The State Library of New South Wales (SLNSW) has announced a new category in the 2021 Russell Prize for Humour Writing, aimed at a younger audience.

The new $5000 Humour Writing for Young People award is offered for a published work intended for readers aged 5–12 years, alongside the existing biennial Russell Prize, which awards $10,000 for the best work of literary humour by an Australian author published in the last two years. Previous winners of the prize include David Cohen and Steve Toltz.

State librarian John Vallance said: ‘We all need a good laugh now more than ever and the State Library is thrilled to administer not one but two prizes which celebrate the value and importance of humour writing. Someone far wiser than I once noticed that if you can’t laugh, you can’t be serious.’

The judges for this year’s prize are television producer and the Betoota Advocate publisher Piers Grove and writer and literary critic Joy Lawn. Entries are now open and the winner will be announced in June 2021. For more information see the SLNSW website.

Category: Awards Junior Local news