The Virginia Prize for Fiction
Aurora Metro launched the biennial competition to find and promote new women fiction writers from around the world in 2009. The Virginia Prize for Fiction (2023) is open for submissions in January 2023.
The competition is run every two years and the prize is open to any woman (over 18) from around the world, writing in English. The shortlisted writers will receive editorial help to develop their novels for publication by Aurora Metro Books.
Entries can be of any genre but cannot have been published or self-published before.
Deadlines:
Entry fee £15 early bird until June 1st
£20 standard until August 1st
£25 late entry until October 31st
If unable to pay by PayPal please send cheque (payable to Aurora Metro Publications Ltd) to AURORA METRO, 80 HILL RISE, RICHMOND TW10 6UB UK or email vp@aurorametro.com if you wish to pay via BACs.
You can enter the competition here from January 2023:
https://aurorametro.com/virginia-prize-for-fiction/
Recent winners include Natalie Bayley for her novel Bone Rites coming out in October 2023. You can pre-order it here.
Previous winners include Nikki Dudley for her novel Volta published in 2021 and Dipika Mukherjee for her novel Shambala Junction, which was published by in 2016. Other shortlisted novels published were: The Dragonfly by Kate Dunn in 2017 and The Walls Came Down by Ewa Dodd in 2018. You can pre-order any of the books now at: www.aurorametro.com
See below some of the books which have won or been shortlisted to date.
read them all
Natalie Bayley the
2022 winner
Nikki Dudley the 2020 winner
Dipika Mukherjee the 2016 winner
The Virginia Prize for Fiction
The competition is open to women of any nationality from any country, aged 18 and over. We are looking for entries of completed, unpublished novels for adults or YA readers, of at least 45,000 words in length.
Final closing date: October 31st
Each entry fee allows you to submit one novel manuscript. You can enter more than one novel, but an entry fee is payable for each novel submitted. Longlisted writers will be contacted in January of the following year. A shortlist will be announced a month or so later.
The Entry Fee:
Early bird £15 by June 1st / Standard entry £20 by August 1st / £25 Late entry by October 31st (in 2021 this was extended to December 1st due to pandemic).
The Prize:
Finalists will receive editorial guidance and a conditional publishing deal from Aurora Metro Books with an agreed advance payment and royalty.
Please ensure you’ve read the rules and FAQs before entering.
For any further information, call us on 02089481427 or email vp@aurorametro.com
