THE POLARI PRIZE 2026
SUBMISSIONS OPEN
This year there are two awards – for a first book and for a book by an established writer (excluding debuts)
Writers must be born or based in the UK & Ireland and books published in the 12 months up to and including Feb 1, 2026.
The individual awards are sponsored by Hastings Crime Writing Festival and DHH Literary Agency.
The headline sponsor is easyJet Holidays.
We’re pleased to welcome five new judges for the 2026 awards, including three members of the trans and non-binary writing communities.
This year’s judges are – poet Alice Denny; literary critic Suzi Feay; poet and ‘Bard of Exeter’ Casey Garfield; literary agent David H Headley; writer Rachel Holmes; Gurmit Singh of Lancaster Literature Festival; Katy Jon Went of The Human Library; and Garry Wilson, CEO of easyJet Holidays.
The Polari Prize was founded in 2011 on values of inclusion and respect for the rights and dignity of all LGBTQ+ people. At a time of increased hostility towards our communities, not least our trans friends and family, books are a powerful way to raise awareness and celebrate our lived experiences. We encourage submissions from writers who share our core values, particularly those from marginalised communities.
The deadline for submissions is August 17.
For more details please email polariprize@gmail.com
Submissions open. Deadline for submissions is Monday August 17.
SPONSORS
Hastings Crime Writing Festival sponsors the Polari First Book Prize (£1,000).
DHH Literary Agency sponsors the book of the year Polari Prize (£2,000).
PRIZE JUDGES 2026
Polari Prize judges: literary critic Suzi Feay; Gurmit Singh of Lancaster Literature Festival; The Human Library’s Katy Jon Went (pictured); CEO of easyJet Holidays Garry Wilson.
Polari First Book Prize judges: poet Alice Denny (pictured); poet Casey Garfield; literary agent David H Headley; writer Rachel Holmes.
ABOUT THE POLARI PRIZE
The Polari Prize is the UK and Ireland’s only dedicated LGBTQ+ book prize, founded by author and activist, Paul Burston. The Polari First Book Prize was launched in 2011. Previous winners include Fiona Mozley, Saleem Haddad, Paul McVeigh, Kirsty Logan, Diriye Osman, John McCullough, Mari Hannah, James Maker, Angela Chadwick, Amrou Al-Kadhi, Mohsin Zaidi, Adam Zmith, Jon Ransom and Nicola Dinan.
The Polari Prize was founded in 2019 and awarded to Andrew McMillan in its inaugural year, to Kate Davies in 2020, Diana Souhami in 2021, Joelle Taylor in 2022, Julia Armfield in 2023 and Jon Ransom in 2024.
The Children’s & YA Book Prize was established in 2022 and won by Terry Eagleton and James Mayhew. In 2024, it was won by Sarah Hagger-Holt.
The awards have been covered in a wide range of publications including Metro, the Bookseller, Book Brunch, the Guardian, the i, Irish Independent, Press Association, Gay Times, Winq, BBC Radio 4, The London Magazine, Wasafiri and elsewhere. For further details on the prize, please visit: polarisalon.com.
ABOUT PAUL BURSTON
Paul Burston is an author, activist and founder of Polari Literary Salon and Polari Prizes. A founding editor of Attitude magazine, he has written for many publications including the Guardian, Time Out, the Times and Sunday Times. He is the author of six non-fiction books, the editor of two short story collections and the author of six novels.
His memoir We Can Be Heroes was published by Little A in June 2023 to rave reviews from across the industry including from Russell T. Davies and Bernardine Evaristo.
In 2026 he was made an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature.
For all media enquiries please contact polariprize@gmail.com