The Warwick Prize for Writing was an international literary prize, worth £25,000, that was given biennially for writing excellence in the English language, in any genre or form, on a theme that changes with every award. It was launched by the

University of Warwick The University of Warwick ( ; abbreviated as ''Warw.'' in post-nominal letters) is a public research university on the outskirts of Coventry between the West Midlands (county), West Midlands and Warwickshire, England. The university was founded i ...

in July 2008. Past nominations included scientific research, novels, poems, e-books and plays."Comparing apples and pears, a new writing prize is the first to accept entries across all genres, from novels to scientific research", ''

New Scientist ''New Scientist'' is a magazine covering all aspects of science and technology. Based in London, it publishes weekly English-language editions in the United Kingdom, the United States and Australia. An editorially separate organisation publishe ...

'', 21 March 2009, p. 45. Article quote: "Complexity was the theme of the first Warwick prize for writing, the only cross-disciplinary writing competition in any format." Works were open to be nominated by staff, students and alumni of Warwick University, and since 2014, the publishing industry.

The Prize Management Group

The Prize Management Group of the Warwick Prize for Writing was made up of senior professors and administrative staff drawn from across the faculties and included the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Warwick. The Prize Management Group was responsible for the administration of the prize, including agreeing the rules, the guidelines for the judges and the arrangements for the award of the prize. The Prize Management Group was also responsible for choosing the judging panel.

2015

The 2015 judging panel was chaired by A. L. Kennedy, accompanied by author and academic Robert Macfarlane, actress and director Fiona Shaw, physician and writer

Gavin Francis Gavin Francis (born 1975) is a Scottish physician and a writer on travel and medical matters. He was raised in Fife, Scotland and now lives in Edinburgh as a GP. His books have won many prestigious prizes. Biography Born in Fife in 1975, Franci ...

, and Lonely Planet founder

Tony Wheeler Tony Wheeler (born 20 December 1946) is an English-born Australian publishing entrepreneur, businessman and travel writer, co-founder of the Lonely Planet guidebook company with his wife Maureen Wheeler. Born in England, his father worked for ...

. The theme for the 2015 prize was 'Instinct'. The winner is in bold.

2013

The judges for the Warwick Prize for Writing 2013 were

Ian Sansom Ian Edward Sansom (born 3 December 1966 in Essex, England) is the author of the Mobile Library Mystery Series. As of 2016, he has written four books in a series that will comprise a projected forty-four novels. He is a frequent contributor to, a ...

of the Department of English and Comparative Literary Studies at the University of Warwick (Chair),

Marina Warner Dame Marina Sarah Warner, (born 9 November 1946) is an English historian, mythographer, art critic, novelist and short story writer. She is known for her many non-fiction books relating to feminism and myth. She has written for many publicat ...

CBE and Ed Byrne, Vice-Chancellor and President of

Monash University Monash University () is a public research university based in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Named for prominent World War I general Sir John Monash, it was founded in 1958 and is the second oldest university in the state. The university has a ...

Melbourne, Australia Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a metropol ...

. 2013 was the first time the prize was won by a poet. Winner is in bold.

2011

The theme for the 2011 award was "colour".About the prize
official website.

Michael Rosen Michael Wayne Rosen (born 7 May 1946) is a British children's author, poet, presenter, political columnist, broadcaster and activist who has written 140 books. He served as Children's Laureate from 2007 to 2009. Early life Michael Wayne Ro ...

chaired the panel of five judges for the 2011 Warwick Prize for Writing, and was joined by the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Warwick, Professor

Nigel Thrift Sir Nigel John Thrift (born 12 October 1949 in Bath) is a British academic and geographer. In 2018 he was appointed as Chair of the Committee on Radioactive Waste Management, a committee that gives independent scientific and technical advice ...

, award-winning author

Jenny Uglow Jennifer Sheila Uglow (, (accessed 5 February 2008).
(accessed 19 August 2022). born 1947) is an English biographer, hi ...

, ''

Times Time is the continued sequence of existence and events, and a fundamental quantity of measuring systems. Time or times may also refer to: Temporal measurement * Time in physics, defined by its measurement * Time standard, civil time speci ...

'' Literary Editor

Erica Wagner Erica Wagner is an American author and critic, living in London, England. She is former literary editor of ''The Times''. Biography Erica Wagner was born in New York City in 1967. She grew up on the Upper West Side and went to the Brearley Sc ...

and writer, cultural critic, public speaker and broadcaster Baroness

Lola Young Margaret Omolola Young, Baroness Young of Hornsey (born 1 June 1951) is a British actress, author, crossbench peer, and Chancellor of the University of Nottingham. Education and career Born in Kensington, Lola Young was educated at the Parlia ...

. Winner is in bold.

2009

The theme for the inaugural Warwick Prize for Writing was ''

complexity Complexity characterises the behaviour of a system or model whose components interaction, interact in multiple ways and follow local rules, leading to nonlinearity, randomness, collective dynamics, hierarchy, and emergence. The term is generall ...

''. A longlist of 20 candidate titles was announced in November 2008, followed by the shortlist of six titles announced on 22 January 2009. The winner,

Naomi Klein Naomi A. Klein (born May 8, 1970) is a Canadian author, social activist, and filmmaker known for her political analyses, support of ecofeminism, organized labour, left-wing politics and criticism of corporate globalization, fascism, ecofascism ...

's ''

The Shock Doctrine ''The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism'' is a 2007 book by the Canadian author and social activist Naomi Klein. In the book, Klein argues that neoliberal free market policies (as advocated by the economist Milton Friedman) have ri ...

'', was announced on 24 February 2009.

China Miéville China Tom Miéville ( ; born 6 September 1972) is a British speculative fiction writer and literary critic. He often describes his work as '' weird fiction'' and is allied to the loosely associated movement of writers called '' New Weird''. M ...

, award-winning writer of

weird fiction Weird fiction is a subgenre of speculative fiction originating in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Weird fiction either eschews or radically reinterprets ghosts, vampires, werewolves, and other traditional antagonists of supernatural horr ...

, chaired the panel of five judges. Professor Ian Stewart, Professor of Mathematics at the University of Warwick, provided a vital link between the Prize Management Group and the Judging Panel. The journalist

Maya Jaggi Maya Jaggi is a British writer, literary critic , editor and cultural journalist.Maya Jaggi profi ...

, the author and translator

Maureen Freely Maureen Deidre Freely FRSL (born July 1952) is an American journalist, novelist, professor, and translator. She has worked on the Warwick Writing Programme since 1996. Biography Born in Neptune, New Jersey, she is the daughter of author John ...

and the literary blogger Stephen Mitchelmore completed the Judging Panel. Winner is in bold.

Notes

References

* {{University of Warwick English-language literary awards English literary awards Awards established in 2009 University of Warwick 2009 establishments in England