Shortlist Announced
We are delighted to announce the shortlisted works for the 2026 ACT Literary Awards in poetry, fiction, nonfiction and children's literature.
MARION is delighted to announce the shortlist for the 2026 ACT Literary Awards. Held annually, the awards recognise and celebrate the achievements of writers from the ACT and surrounding regions. We gratefully acknowledge the generous support of the Anderson Pender Foundation, whose contribution once again enables monetary prizes across the categories.
The 2026 ACT Literary Awards recognise works published in 2025 across four categories: children’s literature, fiction, nonfiction and poetry. Both self-published and traditionally published works are eligible for consideration.
We are sincerely grateful to every author, illustrator and publisher who submitted work and helped make this year's Awards such a rich reflection of our literary community.
Poetry shortlist
Wita Witalana by Paul Collis (Recent Work Press)
The Dingo’s Noctuary by Judith Nangala Crispin (Puncher & Wattman)
Arsenic Flower by Dakota Feirer (Hachette Australia)
Fruits of Exile by Maggie Shapley (Recent Work Press)
Children’s Literature shortlist
Washpool by Lisa Fuller (Hachette Australia)
The Drought Kangaroo by Jackie French, illustrated by Danny Snell (HarperCollins)
Luna’s World – Library Dreams by Hayley Gannon, iIllustrated by Michelle Conn (Affirm Kids)
Poppy’s Monster by Shelly Higgs, illustrated by Francesca Costa (Starfish Bay Publishing)
Peculiar Parents by Stephanie Owen Reeder, illustrated by Ingrid Bartkowiak (National Library of Australia Publishing)
Creature Corridors by Billie Rooney, illustrated by Anke Noack (CSIRO Publishing)
Fiction shortlist
In the Name of the Trees by Merlinda Bobis (Spinifex Press)
Legacy by Chris Hammer (Allen & Unwin)
To Heal a Lyrebird by Kate Liston-Mills (self-published)
When Sleeping Women Wake by Emma Pei Yin (Hachette Australia)
Nonfiction shortlist
Politics Pride and Perversion: The rise and fall of Frank Arkell by Erik Eklund, (ANU Press)
Playtime: A history of Australian childhood by Emily Gallagher, (Black Inc., imprint: La Trobe University Press)
The Man Who Planted Canberra: Charles Weston & His Three Million Trees by Robert Macklin with Dr John Gray, (National Library of Australia Publishing)
Versailles Mirrored: The Power of Luxury, Louis XIV to Donald Trump by Robert Wellington, (Bloomsbury Visual Arts)
The winners will be announced at the 2026 ACT Literary Awards ceremony at Verity Lane ACT on 2 July. In addition to the category awards, one of the shortlisted works will be selected to receive the Marion Halligan Award, which will be announced on the night.
Tickets to attend the ACT Literary Awards will be available very soon. Please be aware there are a limited number of tickets available due to venue constraints.
2026 MARION Book Award Judges
Children’s - Ambelin Kwaymullina, Gabrielle Tozer
Fiction - Eugen Bacon, Lucy Neave
Nonfiction - Frank Bongiorno, Helen Ennis
Poetry - Dan Hogan, Jen Webb
We thank our judges for their consideration of all works entered.
