Nero New Writers Prize Returns

Following a very successful first year, the Nero New Writers Prize in association with Brunel University of London returns, with submissions opening today to find a new winner.

Launched in 2025 to celebrate the very best unpublished writers in the UK and Ireland, the Nero New Writers Prize aims to discover the writing stars of the future and support their development. Entrants are asked to submit a previously unpublished short story (a piece of fiction or narrative non-fiction) of max 5,000 words. It can be written for children or for adult audiences and should be a self-contained piece of work. The winner of the Nero New Writers Prize will receive a cash prize of £3,000, alongside a scholarship to study for an MA in Creative Writing at Brunel, and an introductory meeting with a literary agent, facilitated by the university.

Alongside the New Writers Prize will be a new award dedicated solely to students who are currently studying at or have graduated from Brunel in the last two years. The winner of the Brunel Prize will also receive a scholarship for an MA in Creative Writing at Brunel, plus a cash prize of £1,000.

Both prizes will be judged by bestselling author and Nero Gold Prize winner Paul Murray. He is joined on the Nero New Writing Prize panel by Bernardine Evaristo, Booker Prize-winning author and Professor of Creative Writing at Brunel, and Helen Cullen, Reader in Creative Writing at Brunel. He will separately choose an overall winner for the Brunel Prize from a selection of entries.

To read the full article on brunel.ac.uk, click here