Inky Awards shortlist announced at Text Marks the Spot at Bendigo Writers Festival

The shortlist for the 2018 Inky Awards for young adult literature – chosen by a teen judging panel – was announced today at the opening event of the Text Marks the Spot schools program at Bendigo Writers Festival.

The 2018 Inky Awards shortlist, selected by a panel of nine teen judges from around Australia, includes 10 titles across two categories: the Gold Inky for Australian fiction and the Silver Inky for international fiction. The Gold Inky winner takes home a $2000 prize.

The announcement of this year’s shortlist was made by the Centre for Youth Literature at State Library Victoria, in partnership with Bendigo Writers Festival, City of Greater Bendigo and La Trobe University.

Centre for Youth Literature Reading and Literacy Development Manager Rebecca Henson said the shortlist was selected from a longlist of 20 novels which skilfully covered a range of themesincluding mental health, racism, LGBTI and family dysfunction.

“With a longlist of such a high calibre it was a difficult challenge for the judges to select a shortlist for the Gold and Silver Inky Awards. The nine teens took the weight of this responsibility very seriously, debating their selection over many hours and showing an admirable dedication to the task,” Ms Henson said.

Teen judge Sylvia said agreeing on a shortlist wasn’t easy, but she relished the opportunity for young adults to have their say on the books that mattered to them.

“Being part of the Inky Awards was one of the craziest yet most rewarding experiences of my life. Not only did I get to read the 20 longlisted books, which is a book lover’s dream come true, but I made so many friends from all around Australia,” Sylvia said.

Text Marks the Spot Program Coordinator Sarah Mayor Cox said it was exciting to host the Inky Awards shortlist announcement at the festival for the first time.

“We are delighted that the Inky shortlist has been announced during Text Marks the Spot. The Inky Awards are a natural fit for us, and enhance the program's appeal to budding writers and young readers,” Ms Mayor Cox said.

2018 Inky Awards Shortlist

Gold Inky Award Shortlist
Begin, End, Begin: A #LoveOzYA Anthology edited by Danielle Binks (HarperCollins Publishers)
Beautiful Mess by Claire Christian (Text Publishing)
Take Three Girls by Cath Crowley, Simmone Howell & Fiona Wood (Pan Macmillan)
Paper Cranes Don't Fly by Peter Vu (Ford Street Publishing)
In the Dark Spaces by Cally Black (Hardie Grant Egmont)

Silver Inky Award Shortlist
Still Life with Tornado by A.S. King (Text Publishing)
The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzi Lee (HarperCollins)
Warcross by Marie Lu (Penguin Random House)
Release by Patrick Ness (Walker Books)
The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas (Walker Books)

Public voting is now open to teen readers on the State Library’s youth literature website insideadog.com.au. Voting closes on 16 September at 5.30pm EST and the winners will be announced at State Library Victoria on October 2.

The Inky Awards were established in 2007 as Australia’s first national teen choice awards for young adult literature.

The Centre for Youth Literature at State Library Victoria connects Australia’s young people with literature, inspiring young adults to engage with books, stories, writing and ideas.

insideadog.com.au is Australia’s best-loved website for books and reading for young people and a project of the Centre for Youth Literature at State Library Victoria.