Irish writers Sheila Armstrong, Megan Nolan, Jamie O’Connell and Claire-Louise Bennett have been shortlisted for the 2022 Society of Authors awards.
ALCS Tom-Gallon Trust Award 2022
Sheila Armstrong’s short story Red Market was shortlisted for the ALCS Tom-Gallon Trust Award 2022, alongside writers Roland Watson-Grant, David Frankel, Dean Gessie, Ben Tufnell and Kanya D’Almeida.
Armstrong’s debut short story collection, How to Gut a Fish, was published earlier this year by Faber.
Betty Trask Prize & Awards
Megan Nolan’s Acts of Desperation was shortlisted for the Betty Trask Prize & Awards, which are presented for a first novel by a writer under 35.
Also shortlisted are Natasha Brown’s Assembly (Hamish Hamilton), Will McPhail for IN: The Graphic Novel (Hodder & Stoughton), Caleb Azumah Nelson for Open Water (Viking) and A.K. Blakemore for The Manningtree Witches (Granta Books).
Gordon Bowker Volcano Prize
In the first year of the Gordon Bowker Volcano Prize, Jamie O’Connell was shortlisted for his debut novel Diving for Pearls (Doubleday).
This prize is awarded to a UK or Irish writer, or a writer currently resident in those countries, for a novel focusing on the experience of travel away from home. He’s up against Olivia Sudjic for Asylum Road (Bloomsbury), Catherine Menon for Fragile Monsters (Viking), Tessa McWatt for The Snow Line (Scribe UK) and Sheila Llewellyn for Winter in Tabriz (Sceptre).
McKitterick Prize
Claire-Louise Bennett was shortlisted for the McKitterick Prize for her novel Checkout 19 (Jonathan Cape). This prize is awarded for a first novel by a writer over 40.
Also in the running are Lisa Taddeo for Animal(Bloomsbury Circus), Rachel Yoder for Nightbitch (Penguin Random House), David Annand for Peterdown(Corsair), Celeste Mohammed for Pleasantview (Jacaranda Books) and Oana Aristide for Under the Blue (Serpent’s Tail).
The Tom-Gallon Trust Award has a total prize fund of £1,575, while the Betty Trask Prize & Awards has a total fund of £26,200. The Gordon Bowker prize fund is £2,750, and the McKitterick Prize fund is £5,250.
The winners will be announced on June 1st 2022 at an in-venue ceremony in Southwark Cathedral, which will also be livestreamed.
