The Commonword Diversity Prize exists to try to redress the lack of diversity in children’s fiction publishing. It is awarded by Commonword, a writers’ development agency in the north of England, and is open for entries to the 2016 competition.
The prize, which offers the winner £500, professional mentoring from Marjacq Scripts Ltd and £100-worth of Puffin books, is for unpublished fiction by debut children’s fiction writers. Runners up will receive detailed feedback from Commonword.
To enter, send up to 4,000 words, which should be the first 4,000 words of a finished novel. Type submissions in 11pt Times New Roman, and send as double-spaced Word documents with numbered pages and the title in a header on each page. Include a 500-word synopsis which includes the target age group (7-8, 9-11 or YA), and an author biography up to 200 words which notes any previously published works. Note the full word count of the finished novel. All submissions must include an entry form, which can be downloaded from the website.