A retired teacher and philanthropist with a passion for young adult and children's literature has endowed a new literary prize.

Gail Spiers created the annual prize for an unpublished manuscript for middle primary and young adult fiction, which will be awarded by UWA Publishing.

“I taught for 34 years, mostly in early childhood, but I had contact with children across school years through organising the annual Children's Book Week program that included taking classes to the local library for sessions with Australian authors and illustrators,” Miss Spiers said.

Image: Gail Spiers has created a children's literature prize.

“I retired about 12 years ago and since then I've run a book club for people interested in young adult literature.”

Miss Spiers said she was inspired to create the prize because she wanted to support and promote talented, motivated creatives and typically there was not much money to be made in children’s literature.

Her passion for Australian children's literature developed when she completed a unit at Claremont Teachers College as part of a graduate diploma in Reading Education and continued through her decades-long volunteer service with the Children’s Book Council of Australia WA Branch.

“Australian children's literature has really taken off because it's about where we come from and, more and more these days, it centres on characters from all walks of life,” Miss Spiers said.

The Spiers Prize will be awarded annually to an unpublished manuscript, between 25,000 to 80,000 words, written for a readership of children aged eight and older and suitable for the formats of middle-grade fiction or young adult fiction.

The winner will be offered a publishing contract with UWA Publishing and a cash prize of $5,000.

Miss Spiers will be joined by judges Danielle Binks, a Melbourne-based writer and literary agent, Sally Murphy, a children’s author, poet and academic, and Kate Pickard, publishing manager of UWA Publishing, who will decide the winner.

“I really like good writing and strong characters,” Miss Spiers said. “I think you just know when a book's good because it engages you and makes you want to keep reading.”

Submissions for the prize will open at 10am AWST 1 May 2025 and will close at 11.59pm AWST 31 May 2025. More information, including the terms and conditions, can be found on the UWA Publishing website.