THE 2026 SOUTH AFRICAN LITERARY AWARDS (SALA)

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS

NOW OPEN

The 21^st  South African Literary Awards (SALA) proudly announce the Call for Submissions in the following 16 categories:

1. Children’s Literature Award
2. Youth Literature Award
3. First-time Published Author Award
4. k. Sello Duiker Memorial Literary Award
5. Poetry Award
6. Nadine Gordimer Short story Award
7. Creative Non-fiction Literary Award
8. Literary Translators Award
9. Literary Journalism Award
10. Novel Award
11. Posthumous Literary Award
12. Chairperson’s Literary Award (not open for submissions)
13. Lifetime Achievement Literary Award (not open for submissions)
14. National Poet Laureate Prize (not open for submissions) and
15. Regional/Provincial Poet Laureate Prize
16. Local Poet Laureate Prize

The wRite associates, in partnership with the National Department of Sport, Arts and Culture (DSAC), invite South African writers to submit qualifying works for the 21^st South African Literary Awards.

Submissions Opening date: 13^th March 2026

Submissions Closing Date: 30^th June 2026

CATEGORIES AND CRITERIA

1. Children’s Literature Award
2. Only fiction work is accepted, excluding works such as comic books, joke books, cartoon books, and non-fiction works that are not intended to be read from front to back, such as dictionaries, encyclopaedias and other reference materials.
3. No age restrictions
4. Only works published in 2024 and 2025 are accepted.
5. Youth Literature Award
6. Fiction written for readers from 12 to 18 years of age.
7. Only literary fiction work is accepted.
8. No age restriction.
9. Only works published in 2024 and 2025 are accepted.

• First-time Published Author Award
• The Award is open to all genres.
• The author must not have been published before in any genre.
• Only works published in 2024 and 2025 are accepted.
• No age restrictions.

• k. Sello Duiker Memorial Literary Award
• The award is open for novels and novellas only.
• Only writers aged 40 and below are eligible to enter.
• Only works published in 2024 and 2025 are accepted.

• Poetry Award
• Only collections by an individual author are accepted.
• Anthologies by multiple authors are not accepted.
• Only works published in 2024 and 2025 are accepted.
• No age restrictions.
• All the work must be in one official language: multiple languages in one book are not accepted.

• Nadine Gordimer Short Story Award
• The book should contain short stories by one author.
• A book by multiple authors will not be accepted.
• Only works published in 2024 and 2025 are accepted.
• No age restrictions.  

• Creative Non-Fiction Award
• The Award is open to creative nonfiction works, i.e. Biographies/Autobiographies, Letters, Speeches and Memoirs.
• In the case of Letters and Speeches, only a collection of work published by one author is accepted.
• Only works published in 2024 and 2025 are accepted.
• No age restrictions.

• Literary Translators Award
• Only literary work translated by a South African on South African work of literary art will be considered.
• All literary genres are accepted.
• Both the original and translated copies must be submitted and must be packaged together.
• Only work published in 2024 and 2025 are accepted.
• No age restrictions.

• Literary Journalism Award
• The entrant must have made a significant contribution to the promotion and development of South African literature through writing, presenting, commentating, advocating, reviewing and critiquing.
• The Award includes print, electronic, social and new media
• A sample of the author’s work must be submitted. This may include videos, articles, podcasts and any other evidence of work and these must be x 5 copies.
• No age restrictions.

1. Novel Award
2. Only literary fictional book-length work is accepted.
3. Only works published in 2024 and 2025 are accepted.
4. No age restriction.
5. Posthumous Literary Award
6. The author will be judged on his/her/their overall literary achievement, i.e. body of work.
7. The profile of the author and at least three (3) books (different titles by the author) must be submitted with the entry (please note 5 of each title should be submitted).

• Please note that profile alone will not be considered.
• No age restrictions.
• No restrictions on the books’ year of publication
• The contact details of the family member must be included in the nomination form.

NB: The Posthumous Literary Award does not carry any cash prize.

1. The Regional/Provincial Poet Laureate Prize
2. The author will be judged on his/her overall literary achievement, i.e. body of work.
3. The profile of the author and at least three (3) books (different titles by the author) must be submitted (please note 5 of each title should be submitted). Please note that profile alone (without books) will not be considered.
4. No age restrictions
5. No restrictions on the books’ year of publication.

The name of the province where the nominee lives must be clearly stated.

1. The Local Poet Laureate Prize
2. The author will be judged on his/her overall literary achievement, i.e. body of work.
3. The profile of the author and at least three (3) books (different titles by the author) must be submitted (please note 5 of each title should be submitted). Please note that profile alone (without books) will not be considered.
4. No age restrictions.
5. No restrictions on the book’s year of publication.

The name of the municipality where the nominee lives must be clearly stated.

Without discriminating against any official language, the devolution of the SALA Call for Submissions in this instance will give priority to works in the given area’s prominent, if preferred, language/s, especially African language/s.

SUBMISSION’S GUIDELINES

Submissions must follow the criteria as set out herein. Please ensure that you have read, understood and adhered to ALL the rules.

#NO	GUIDELINES
01	The work must demonstrate good linguistic presentation, the nation’s identity, societal values, universal truths, and cultural aesthetics. It must also contribute to social cohesion, nation building and transcendence of time.
02	All SALA categories accept work in all South African official languages
03	The work must be the author’s original work unless in Literary Translators Award where it can be another’s author’s work translated by another author into another language.
04	Each entry must be written in one official language. SALA doesn’t accept multiple language entries; except under Literary Translators Award, whereby the entered work will be in the benefiting language while the original in another language.
05	Five (5) copies of each entry must be submitted. Each copy must be accompanied by a nomination form.
06	An entry can only be made for one category. Should an entry be submitted for more than one category it will be disqualified.
07	Work that previously won a SALA award should not be re-entered for another category.
08	Work which was previously unsuccessful cannot be re-entered in future.
09	Set books are not accepted
10	SALA does not accept entries by email or fax
11	Nominations must be endorsed by the Author or Publisher.
12	Authors’ and Nominator’s full details must all be included in the Nomination Form.
13	Late submissions will not be accepted.
14	The judges’ decision is final, and no correspondence will be entered into.
15	All submitted entries, whether successful or not, will not be returned to the submitting party.

About the South African Literary Awards:

Founded by the wRite associates, in partnership with the then national Department of Sport, Arts and Culture (DSAC) in 2005, the main aim of the South African Literary Awards is to pay tribute to South African writers who have distinguished themselves as groundbreaking producers and creators of literature, while it celebrates literary excellence in the depiction and sharing of South Africa’s histories, value systems and philosophies and art as inscribed and preserved in all the languages of South Africa, particularly the official languages.

The SA Literary Awards continue to become the most prestigious and respected literary accolades in the South African literary landscape.

The main aim of the South African Literary Awards is to pay tribute to South African writers who have distinguished themselves as groundbreaking producers and creators of literature, while it celebrates literary excellence in the depiction and sharing of South Africa’s histories, value systems, philosophies and art as inscribed and preserved in all eleven official languages of South Africa. The Awards aim to become the most prestigious and respected accolades in the South African literary arena.

Having started with one (1) category – the South African National Poet Laureate Prize – in 2005, to date, SALA boasts sixteen (16) categories, with the newest additions being the Regional/Provincial Poet Laureate, and Local Poet Laureate Prize.

SALA accepts all eleven (11) SA’s official languages and has to date, honoured over three hundred (300) authors.

Selections are made from published authors whose primary input is in imaginative writing – fiction as well as creative non-fiction. The work must demonstrate good linguistic presentation, the nation’s identity, societal values, universal truths, and cultural aesthetics. It must also contribute to social cohesion, nation building and transcendence of time.

SUBMISSION INFORMATION

Please note that submission forms are submitted online. However, the hard copies of the books must be submitted by courier or self-delivery to:

The South African Literary Awards

74 Mimosa Road, Randpark Ridge, 2125

For inquiries:

Email: info@writeassociates.co.za

Tel: 011 791 9209

IMPORTANT DATES:

• Submissions opening date                  : 13^th March 2026
• Submissions closing date                   : 30^th June 2026
• Announcement of nominees                : 12^th October 2026
• Announcement of winners                   : 7^th November 2026

Ready to make a nomination? Please choose the appropriate category below:

Local Poet Laureate Prize (for municipalities).

Children’s Literature Award

Youth Literature Award

First-time Published Author Award

k. Sello Duiker Memorial Literary Award

Poetry Award

Nadine Gordimer Short story Award

Creative Non-fiction Literary Award

Literary Translators Award

Literary Journalism Award

Novel Award

Posthumous Literary Award

Provincial Poet Laureate Prize (for all the provinces except for Western Cape and Limpopo Province)