The shortlist for the Sunday Times Charlotte Aitken Young Writer Award has been released, with four authors being shortlisted.
They include Tom Benn for his novel, Oxblood, about domesticity and violence, and Lucy Burns for her intimate memoir, Larger Than An Orange, about abortion.
The award comes with a £10,000 award, with each shortlisted author receiving £1000.
Sunday Times Young Writer Award shortlist
Previous winners of the award include Sally Rooney, Cal Flyn and Jay Bernard.
Stockport-born author and screenwriter Benn, who was born in 1985, had his first novel, The Doll Princess, shortlisted for the Dylan Thomas Prize and the Portico Prize.
We are delighted to announce the shortlist for the 2022 Sunday Times Charlotte Aitken Young Writer of the Year Award!https://t.co/FXtsEFD8QO#YoungWriterAward pic.twitter.com/WNtRfF1haL
— Young Writer Award (@YoungWriterYear) February 12, 2023
The debut novel from Burns, who was born in 1991 and lives in Manchester, explores the emotional aftermath of abortion and the gap between politics and personal experience.
The other shortlisted authors are debut novelist Maddie Mortimer, for Maps Of Our Spectacular Bodies, and Katherine Rundell, for Super-Infinite, a non-fiction book about the poet John Donne.
Mortimer, who was born in London in 1996, is the youngest on the list and her book is a heart-breaking and darkly funny tale about coming of age at the end of a life.
Rundell, from Oxford, who was born in 1987 and is a fellow of All Souls College, is also the author of adult book Why You Should Read Children’s Books, Even Though You Are So Old And Wise.
The winner of the award will be announced on March 14.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here