CYA Writers & Illustrators Conference announces 2025 competition winners

Winners of a range of writing and illustrating competitions have been announced as part of the 2025 CYA Writers & Illustrators Conference.

Among the winners are:

Illustrations (published)

• ‘Janey Has a Sausage Dog’ (Louis Decrevel)

Writing for adults (published)

• ‘Wax and Feathers’ (AJ Lyndon)

Writing for children and young adults (published)

• The Hole Truth (Kristy Nita Brown, illus by Alison Mutton, Spritely Press)

Picture book (primary school, aspiring)

• ‘Rover and the Rocking Rebels’ (Seetha Dodd)

Picture book (primary school, nonfiction, aspiring)

• ‘Aussie Firefighter Calendar of Native Plants’ (Christine Pirrone)

Novel for young adults (aspiring)

• ‘Isabelle Gomez Is Innocent, She Swears’ (Jackie Yap)

Illustrations (aspiring)

• ‘Once Upon a Moonlit Night’ (Clare Yang).

These awards were announced as part of the 2025 CYA in-person conference dinner, which took place on 26 July in Brisbane. Several prize winners in an under-18s category were also announced (by first name and initial only). Staff from a range of trade publishers judged the awards.

The published category is for authors and illustrators who have self- or traditionally published two or more books within the same genre, while aspiring categories are for adult writers with fewer or no prior publications. A hatchling category is available for writers aged 8–18 years. Category winners each receive $100, with adult winners also receiving a 15-minute consultation with the category judge.

The 2025 CYA Conference marks the 20th year of the organisation, with in-person activities on 26 and 27 July concluding a series of 2025 events, which also included online bootcamps and assessments, as well as online conference sessions.

Full lists of winners and place holders can be found on the CYA website.

Category: Awards Local news