Braithwaite and Diamond Kahn to judge Joffe Books Prize 2022

Award-winning author Oyinkan Braithwaite and literary agent Ella Diamond Kahn are on the panel to judge the Joffe Books Prize for under-represented crime fiction authors.

Launched last year, the prize aims to find and publish crime fiction authors and support them in building a sustainable career. The second year of the prize will launch on Sunday 1st May and invites submissions from unagented authors from Black, Asian, Indigenous and minority ethnic backgrounds. The winner will receive a two-book publishing deal and a £1,000 cash prize.

Northumberland-based Christie J Newport won the inaugural prize last year, and received a two-book publishing deal with Joffe Books. Her debut is set to launch in the autumn.

From the 2021 shortlist, three authors have gone on to receive agency representation and a fourth will also be published by Joffe Books in 2022.

Braithwaite, bestselling author of My Sister, the Serial Killer (Atlantic Books), said: “It is great that Joffe Prize is dedicating resources to fulfil its commitment to diversify crime fiction. I am thrilled to be a part of the movement to help authors from minority groups achieve their dreams.”

Diamond Kahn, co-founder of the Diamond Kahn & Woods Literary Agency, added: “It’s really important to highlight and celebrate diverse voices in all genres of books in order to truly create a more inclusive publishing industry. The Joffe Books Prize is already proving to be a fantastic way of doing exactly that by discovering thrilling new crime writers. I’m so thrilled to have been invited to be one of the judges.”

Emma Grundy Haigh, who spearheaded the prize and is editorial director at Joffe Books, said: “I was overwhelmed by the outcomes of the first prize cycle—it’s been truly wonderful to see how the careers of the shortlistees are already starting to take shape. I’m elated that the Joffe Books Prize is entering its second year. The prize represents a small but vital step towards welcoming a far greater diversity of talent into crime fiction, amplifying under-represented voices and continuing our commitment to widen access to publishing.

“This year, I am delighted to be joined by Oyinkan Braithwaite and Ella Diamond Kahn. Oyinkan hardly needs introducing: her breakout novel My Sister, the Serial Killer not only took the crime fiction world by storm, it shook the genre to its core. Ella is a brilliant advocate both for making publishing more accessible and for creating commercial fiction at its finest."