The 2026 Victorian Premier’s Literary Awards have been announced, celebrating outstanding work by both established and emerging Australian writers. Exceptional literature was recognised across the Awards’ diverse categories, with the winning titles collectively exploring themes of family, culture, Country, identity and belonging. The awards affirm Victoria’s commitment to championing literary excellence and amplifying voices that shape and challenge our national narrative.
Check below for a selection of winning titles.
Victorian Prize for Literature
The Rot by Evelyn Araluen
University of Queensland Press
Fiction
Fierceland by Omar Musa
Penguin Random House Australia
Non-Fiction
Find Me at the Jaffa Gate: An encyclopaedia of a Palestinian family by Micaela Sahhar
NewSouth
Indigenous Writing
The Rot by Evelyn Araluen
University of Queensland Press
John Marsden Prize for Writing for Young Adults
This Stays Between Us by Margot McGovern
Penguin Random House Australia
Children's Literature
Once I Was a Giant by Zeno Sworder
Thames and Hudson Australia
People’s Choice Award
Discipline by Randa Abdel-Fattah
University of Queensland Press
View all the winners of the Victorian Premier’s Literary Awards.
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Books
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