Helen Anne Bell Poetry Bequest award shortlist announced

The shortlist for the 2021 Helen Anne Bell Poetry Bequest Award for a collection of poems by an Australian woman poet has been announced.

The seven shortlisted poets are:

• Michelle Cahill, ‘Dark’
• Joan Fleming, ‘Dirt’
• Jeanine Leane, ‘Gawimarra-Gathering’
• Claire Miranda Roberts, ‘Kangaroo Paw’
• Emma Simington, ‘Peculiar Times’
• Ella Skilbeck-Porter, ‘These Are Different Waters’
• Emily Stewart, ‘Running Time’. 

Over 300 book-length manuscripts were entered this year. Judges Kate Lilley, Pam Brown and Melinda Bufton said they were ‘amazed’ by the number of manuscripts submitted and ‘delighted by the quality and range’.

This year the biennial award increased its cash prize from $7000 to $40,000, making it the richest poetry prize in Australia. The winning poet also receives publication by Vagabond Press.

Presented by the Department of English at the University of Sydney, the Helen Anne Bell Poetry Bequest award is funded by the bequest of former student Helen Anne Bell.

The winner will be announced at an award ceremony on Friday 12 November. For more information, see the university’s website.

Category: Local news News