On this page Content components The Boroondara Literary Awards are hosted by the City of Boroondara, in partnership with the Rotary Club of Balwyn.Held annually by the Boroondara Library Service since 1999, the Awards celebrate the creativity of writers and poets within the City of Boroondara and Victoria.2026 awardsCongratulations to our finalists and winners of the 2026 Boroondara Literary Awards! The awards were held on Wednesday 7 October and celebrated its 28th year in partnership with the Rotary Club of Balwyn.This year we received 732 entries across the Open Short Story and Young Writers Competition.Find out about the 2026 Boroondara Literary Award winners.PrizesPrizes include:more than $5,000 in prize money across various age groups in the Young Writers categorymore than $3,500 in prize money in the Open Short Story category.Winning storiesWinning stories from each category will be published in the Boroondara Literary Awards Anthology. The anthology can be found at:your local Boroondara library to purchase or borrowthe State Library of Victoriathe National Library of Australia.Word countYoung Writers Competition: Junior CategoryOpen to young people in school year levels 5 and 6.Prose length: between 300 and 500 words.Poetry length: less than 100 lines.Young Writers Competition: Middle CategoryOpen to young people in school year levels 7, 8 and 9.Prose length: between 500 and 900 words.Poetry length: less than 200 lines.Young Writers Competition: Senior CategoryOpen to young people in Years 10, 11 and 12.Prose length: between 900 and 1,300 words.Poetry length: less than 200 lines.Open Short Story CompetitionOpen to all Victorian residents.Between 1,500 and 3,000 words.Writers in Schools programThe City of Boroondara and Rotary Club of Balwyn are offering selected schools in Boroondara the chance to have professional writers present workshops in their school.The Writers in Schools program is conducted with the understanding that schools will encourage their students to enter the Boroondara Literary Awards Young Writers Competition.Information will be provided to schools in January 2026.More information For details about the award categories, visit our 2026 Boroondara Literary Awards Your Say page.If you have further questions, email [email protected] or call (03) 9278 4036.
