The Bath Children’s Novel Award is a £3,000 international prize for emerging writers of children’s novels, YA novels, chapter books and picture book texts. Recipients include Struan Murray for the manuscript of Orphans of the Tide (published by Puffin in 2020), Lucy Van Smit for The Hurting (Chickenhouse, 2018) and Matthew Fox for The Sky Over Rebecca (Hachette, 2022). 

The award is judged by leading children’s literary agents from a shortlist chosen by Junior Judges aged seven to seventeen years. This year’s judge is Jessica Hare who runs the Children’s Books department at The Agency where she represents authors writing for every age and genre, as well as illustrators, and is one of The Bookseller’s Rising Stars for 2023. Read Jessica’s submission tips.

2023 submissions are invited from 1st June to 30th November with this year’s longlist announced mid December 2023. The author of 2023’s winning manuscript will receive £3,000 and our exclusive Minerva trophy. Shortlistees win a compilation of award readers’ comments on their full manuscript and all listees win feedback on their opening pages and synopsis from Cornerstones Literary Consultancy’s Editorial Director and Head of Scouting Monica Chakraverty.

One longlistee will also win a place worth £1,800 on acclaimed online course Edit Your Novel the Professional Way from longlist prize co-sponsors Professional Writing Academy and Cornerstones Literary Consultancy

Entry is £29 per novel with sponsored places available for writers on a low income

Initial submissions are up to the first 5,000 words plus one page synopsis of novel or chapter book manuscripts for children, novels for teens, or up to three entire picture book texts with summaries.