The Waterstones Debut Fiction Prize, established in 2022,[1] is an annual literary award presented by British bookseller Waterstones to the best debut fiction published in the previous 12 months. The award is intended to "celebrate[] the very best fresh voices in fiction and share[] the joy and magic of discovering new authors."[1] Fictional books of all genres are considered, "including genre fiction such as crime, sci-fi and fantasy as well as fiction in translation."[2][3]
| The Waterstones Debut Fiction Prize | |
|---|---|
| Awarded for | Exceptional first novels |
| Date | 25 July 2024 |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Presented by | Waterstones |
| First awarded | 2022 |
| Website | www |
Award winners receive £5,000[3] and "the backing of all Waterstones shops."[2]
Recipients
edit| Year | Author | Title | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Tess Gunty | The Rabbit Hutch | Winner | [4] |
| Sequoia Nagamatsu | How High We Go in the Dark | Shortlist | [5][6][7] | |
| Eloghosa Osunde | Vagabonds! | |||
| Tara M. Stringfellow | Memphis | |||
| Bonnie Garmus | Lessons in Chemistry | |||
| Louise Kennedy | Trespasses | |||
| 2023 | Alice Winn | In Memoriam | Winner | [8] |
| Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah | Chain-Gang All-Stars | Shortlist | [9] | |
| Jacqueline Crooks | Fire Rush | |||
| Michael Magee | Close to Home | |||
| Cecile Pin | Wandering Souls | |||
| Colin Walsh | Kala | |||
| 2024 | Kaveh Akbar | Martyr! | Shortlist | [10][11][12] |
| Kaliane Bradley | The Ministry of Time | |||
| Josie Ferguson | The Silence in Between | |||
| Hanako Footman | Mongrel | |||
| Ferdia Lennon | Glorious Exploits | |||
| Rebecca K Reilly | Greta and Valdin |
References
edit- ^ a b Orhanen, Anna (21 July 2022). "Why Debuts Matter: Bea Carvalho on the Ethos Behind the Waterstones Debut Fiction Prize". Waterstones. Retrieved 23 July 2022.
- ^ a b Bayley, Sian (4 April 2022). "Waterstones launches £5,000 debut fiction prize". The Bookseller. Retrieved 23 July 2022.
- ^ a b "Waterstones Debut Fiction Prize". Locus Online. 5 April 2022. Retrieved 23 July 2022.
- ^ Zodgekar, Yash; Niva, Yadav (25 August 2022). "Tess Gunty's 'fiercely original' The Rabbit Hutch wins inaugural Waterstones debut fiction prize". The Guardian. Retrieved 16 November 2022.
- ^ "Awards: Waterstones Debut Fiction Shortlist". Shelf Awareness. 22 July 2022. Retrieved 23 July 2022.
- ^ Doyle, Martin (21 July 2022). "Louise Kennedy on Waterstones Debut Fiction Prize shortlist; Margaret Atwood at Clifden festival". The Irish Times. Retrieved 23 July 2022.
- ^ Shaffi, Sarah (20 July 2022). "Shortlist announced for Waterstones debut fiction prize". the Guardian. Retrieved 23 July 2022.
- ^ "Alice Winn wins 2023 Waterstones debut fiction prize for In Memoriam". The Guardian. 24 August 2023. Retrieved 25 August 2023.
- ^ "Waterstones debut fiction prize shortlist announced". Books+Publishing. 17 July 2023. Retrieved 23 July 2023.
- ^ Cooper-Fiske, Casey (18 June 2024). "'Eye-opening' time travel story shortlisted for debut fiction prize". Evening Standard. Retrieved 19 June 2024.
- ^ Waterstones (10 June 2024). Waterstones Debut Fiction Prize 2024 Shortlist. Retrieved 19 June 2024 – via YouTube.
- ^ "'Eye-opening' time travel story shortlisted for debut fiction prize". www.corklive.ie. 18 June 2024. Retrieved 19 June 2024.