Key Facts:
- Six authors shortlisted for the 2025 Mark and Evette Moran Nib Literary Award worth $40,000, with each finalist receiving a $1,500 Alex Buzo Shortlist Prize
- The award, in its 24th year, celebrates research-based literature and is judged on literary merit, research quality, readability, and community value
- Selected from 174 submissions across various genres, the shortlisted works were chosen by judges Lliane Clarke, Julia Carlomagno, and Angela Meyer
- Public voting for the $4,000 Nib People's Choice Prize runs from 9th September to 9th October 2025
- Winners will be announced at Bondi Pavilion on 6th November 2025, with total prize money awarded since the award's inception reaching nearly half a million dollars
Waverley Council is thrilled to announce the 2025 $40,000 Mark and Evette Moran Nib Literary Award finalists.
The six shortlisted books for 2025 are Max Dupain by Helen Ennis (ACT), Black Witness by Amy McQuire (QLD), Mean Streak by Rick Morton (NSW), Cactus Pear for My Beloved by Samah Sabawi (VIC), Clever Men by Martin Thomas (ACT), and I Am Nannertgarrook by Tasma Walton (WA).
Each of the six finalists will receive the $1500 Alex Buzo Shortlist Prize and are eligible for the $4,000 Nib People's Choice Prize, awarded by popular vote.
Now in its 24th year, the Nib Literary Award is one of Australia's most high-profile and valuable book prizes, celebrating the most compelling research-based literature published annually. Once the 2025 winners are announced in November, the total prize money presented to Australian authors since the Nib's inception will reach almost half a million dollars. Nominations are judged on literary merit, quality research, readability, and value to the community.
This year's award judges, Sydney based writer, editor and arts producer Lliane Clarke, publisher and award-winning editor Julia Carlomagno, and author and publishing professional Angela Meyer said, "In reading the nominations this year, we noted the effort, dedication and often bravery required to delve with such depths into topics of personal, political and cultural significance. The shortlisted books display great passion and commitment on the part of the authors and publishers, often years and decades of work, and they are all thoughtfully constructed, absorbing, moving works of literature with great value to the community".
This year's finalists were chosen from 174 submissions with a vibrant variety of works on display across non-fiction, fiction, drama and poetry.
Voting for the Nib People's Choice Awards opens on 9th September, 2025 at 10am and must close on 9th October via Waverley.nsw.gov.au/nib
Recipients of the People's Choice Prize and the $40,000 Mark & Evette Nib Literary Award will be announced at a public event on Thursday 6th November 2025 at Bondi Pavilion.
Previous winners include biologist Tim Low, novelists Helen Garner and Delia Falconer, journalist Gideon Haigh, and historian Claire Wright.
The 2024 Award was won by Melissa Lucashenko for her novel Edenglassie.
