The Bookseller launches the New Adult Book Prize to celebrate one of the fastest growing areas of fiction

Today The Bookseller announces the launch of the New Adult Book Prize, an award which celebrates one of the fastest growing areas of fiction publishing that is powered by one of the most enthusiastic cohort of readers.

Launched in association with the Cheltenham Literature Festival, the award recognises the boom in new adult fiction. Frankfurt Book Fair formally recognised the growing new adult fiction landscape last year with a dedicated space for the “successful New Adult genre”. The New Adult Book Prize aims to set the UK industry standard for this burgeoning area of fiction and celebrate authentic, diverse storytelling in this space.

Whereas young adult is about coming-of-age, new adult fiction concerns the transitional years afterward, sometimes candidly referred to as “quarter-life”. Across different types of writing and genres, new adult fiction looks to address the issues and events that arise from the move from adolescence to early adulthood.

Editor of The Bookseller Philip Jones said: “I am delighted to have founded this new award that recognises one of the most exciting areas of publishing today, driven by some of the most imaginative and carefully judged writing around, hoovered up by a committed group of receptive, generous and extremely vociferous readers. Building on the YA Book Prize, The Bookseller is perfectly positioned to frame and amplify this writing, with new partner Cheltenham Literature Festival the ideal landing spot for the inaugural winner ceremony.”

The award is open to any genre of new adult fiction published between 1st March 2024 and 28th February 2025. Submissions will be open for a five-week period from Wednesday 30th April. Full terms and conditions can be found on the prize website. 

The inaugural 10-strong shortlist will be selected by a team at The Bookseller and a panel of expert judges. The shortlist will be announced later this year and the winner will be presented with a £2,000 cash prize at Cheltenham Literature Festival in October as part of its VOICEBOX programme.

Emma Whittle, programming strategic lead and VOICEBOX producer at Cheltenham Literature Festival, said: “We’re delighted to be partnering with The Bookseller to host the first New Adult Book Prize in VOICEBOX at Cheltenham Literature Festival 2025, in a partnership that will celebrate a community of readers and champion talented writers who are amplifying the issues and stories that matter.”

Katie Fraser, chair of the New Adult Book Prize and The Bookseller’s staff writer, commented: “We have been working on the New Adult Book Prize for a long time and it is wonderful to finally announce this fantastic award and see it out in the world. The prize began with the ambition to establish an industry standard and create new opportunities for discussions around stories that recognise the difficulty, turbulence and wonder of early adulthood, and I hope the prize will resonate with many readers and hopefully non-readers alike.

“I am delighted to be partnering with Cheltenham Literature Festival; its VOICEBOX programme is the perfect home for the award. I can’t thank the team both at The Bookseller and the festival enough for their hard work and dedication to get the New Adult Book Prize off the ground.”

For prize updates, follow @NewAdultPrize on Instagram and X.