Victorian Premier’s Literary Awards 2022
Winners of the 2022 Victorian Premier’s Literary Awards
Victorian Prize for Literature
Black and Blue: A Memoir of Racism and Resilience by Veronica Gorrie (Scribe Publications)
Fiction
Smokehouse by Melissa Manning (University of Queensland Press)
Non-Fiction
The Mother Wound by Amani Haydar (Pan Macmillan Australia)
Drama
Milk by Dylan Van Den Berg (Currency Press and The Street Theatre)
Poetry
Trigger Warning by Maria Takolander (University of Queensland Press)
Writing for Young Adults
Girls in Boys’ Cars by Felicity Castagna (Pan Macmillan Australia)
Indigenous Writing
Black and Blue: A Memoir of Racism and Resilience by Veronica Gorrie (Scribe Publications)
Unpublished Manuscript
Fauna of Mirrors by Keshe Chow
People’s Choice Award
Tiger Daughter by Rebecca Lim
The shortlist
Fiction
- After Story by Larissa Behrendt (University of Queensland Press)
- Bodies of Light by Jennifer Down (Text Publishing)
- Echolalia by Briohny Doyle (Penguin Random House)
- The Dogs by John Hughes (Upswell Publishing)
- Smokehouse by Melissa Manning (University of Queensland Press)
- Permafrost by S.J Norman (University of Queensland Press)
Non-Fiction
- Coming of Age in the War on Terror by Randa Abdel-Fattah (NewSouth)
- Summertime: Reflections on a Vanishing Future by Danielle Celermajer (Penguin Random House)
- Black and Blue: A Memoir of Racism and Resilience by Veronica Gorrie (Scribe Publications)
- The Mother Wound by Amani Haydar (Pan Macmillan Australia)
- Buried Not Dead by Fiona McGregor (Giramondo Publishing)
- Another Day in the Colony by Chelsea Watego (University of Queensland Press)
Drama
- Return to the Dirt by Steve Pirie (Queensland Theatre)
- Archimedes War by Melissa Reeves (Darebin Speakeasy)
- Milk by Dylan Van Den Berg (Currency Press and The Street Theatre)
Poetry
- How Decent Folk Behave by Maxine Beneba Clarke (Hachette Australia)
- Human Looking by Andy Jackson (Giramondo Publishing)
- Trigger Warning by Maria Takolander (University of Queensland Press)
Writing for Young Adults
- Girls in Boys’ Cars by Felicity Castagna (Pan Macmillan Australia)
- The Gaps by Leanne Hall (Text Publishing)
- Tiger Daughter by Rebecca Lim (Allen & Unwin)
Indigenous Writing
- Dropbear by Evelyn Araluen (University of Queensland Press)
- Black and Blue: A Memoir of Racism and Resilience by Veronica Gorrie (Scribe Publications)
- The Boy from the Mish by Gary Lonesborough (Allen & Unwin)
- Another Day in the Colony by Chelsea Watego (University of Queensland Press)
Unpublished Manuscript
- Fauna of Mirrors by Keshe Chow
- Lead Us Not by Abbey Lay
- The Albatross by Nina Wan
Highly commended
Fiction
- The Other Half of You by Michael Mohammed Ahmad (Hachette Australia)
- In Moonland by Miles Allinson (Scribe Publications)
- Bila Yarrudhanggalangdhuray by Anita Heiss (Simon & Schuster Australia)
Non-Fiction
- Currowan by Bronwyn Adcock (Black Inc. Books)
- The Shape of Sound by Fiona Murphy (Text Publishing)
- Design: Building on Country by Alison Page & Paul Memmott (Thames and Hudson Australia)
Indigenous Writing
- Permafrost by S.J Norman (University of Queensland Press)
- Homecoming by Elfie Shiosaki (Magabala Books)
Drama
- Dogged by Andrea James and Catherine Ryan (Currency Press and Griffin Theatre Company)
Poetry
- Gravidity and Parity by Eleanor Jackson (Vagabond Press)
- m//otherland by Asiel Adan Sanchez (Revarena)
- Homecoming by Elfie Shiosaki (Magabala Books)
Young Adult
- The Prison Healer by Lynette Noni (Penguin Random House Australia)
Unpublished Manuscript
- Orangutan Ballet by C.J. Garrow
- The Echoes of George Street by Elliot J Han
- Strange Intersections by Sonja Plitt
The judges
Fiction: Melanie Cheng, Bram Presser, Odette Kelada, Angela Meyer (convenor)
Non-fiction: Maddison Connaughton, Ghassan Hage, Rebecca Harkins-Cross, Daniel James, Quinn Eades (convenor)
Indigenous Writing: Timmah Ball, Tristen Harwood, Crystal McKinnon (convenor)
Drama: Sonya Suares, Angus Cerini, Rinske Ginsberg (convenor)
Poetry: Susie Anderson, Ren Alessandra, Thuy On (convenor)
Writing for Young Adults: Zana Fraillon, Cath Moore, Karys McEwen (convenor)
Unpublished Manuscript: R.W.R. McDonald, Tresa LeClerc, Ronnie Scott (convenor)
Submissions from publishers and writers are open in September each year for titles published between 1 January and 31 December of the same year.
Share your favourites and join the conversation about the shortlisted titles using the #vpla2022 hashtag.