Mascara Literary Review & Varuna 2023 Winners Announced

Congratulations to the four winning writers of the Mascara Literary Review & Varuna Editors’ and Writer’s Residency;

Timmah Ball with Blue Print for Another World

Alison J. Barton with Not Telling

Maria van Neerven with To Give Them a Voice

Vivienne Cleven with Beautiful Monsters

The call-out was open to First Nations and Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CaLD) writers who have a manuscript in fiction, poetry, or creative nonfiction. The chosen works resonate with a contemporary edge and vividly foreshadow new futures in Australian writing.

During their Residency commencing on January 30 2023; the four winning writers are given the opportunity to partake in consultations with the Mascara Literary Review senior editor Michelle Cahill , and mentored emerging editors Anthea Yang and Monique Nair, to develop the submitted works in an editorial capacity in preparation for publication.  The residency also includes travel costs for interstate participants.

The judging panel for the 2023 iteration, made up of multi-award-winning Bundjalung author Melissa Lucashenko and poet and critic Lucy Van, were highly impressed by the outstanding quality of many of the submissions.

They said, “A dominant theme running through these works is the complexity of place, whether encountered as a recent arrival to these shores, or as a writer holding deep ancestral ties to the land.

“The range and breadth of voices, styles and genres on display throughout the 78 entries to the call-out is an indicative sign of the innovation pursued at the desks of First Nations and CALD writers across Australia, and the courage and ambition propelling these undertakings are to be commended in the highest possible terms.”

We are thrilled to partner with Mascara Literary Review to program a space for these outstanding works to be developed and are looking forward to welcoming Timmah, Alison, Vivienne and Maria for their Residency at Varuna.

View the full longlist of submissions here with the official announcement and judges’ comments on the Mascara Literary Review website.

This project is supported by the Copyright Agency’s Cultural Fund. Mascara also acknowledges generous support from the  Adès Family Foundation.