Announcing the 2023 Stella Prize Shortlist

Stella is thrilled to announce the six outstanding books shortlisted for the 2023 Stella Prize.

In alphabetical order by author’s surname, the 2023 Stella Prize shortlist is:

• We Come With This Place by Debra Dank (Echo Publishing)
• big beautiful female theory by Eloise Grills (Affirm Press)
• The Jaguar by Sarah Holland-Batt (University of Queensland Press)
• Hydra by Adriane Howell (Transit Lounge)
• Indelible City by Louisa Lim (Text Publishing)
• Bad Art Mother by Edwina Preston (Wakefield Press)

This year’s shortlist features two works of nonfiction, a graphic memoir, one book of poetry, and two novels, and celebrates established and debut Australian women writers.

The 2023 shortlist was announced by longstanding Stella supporter and leading Australian journalist Patricia Karvelas live on ABC Radio National’s Breakfast program.

Chair of the 2023 Stella Prize Judging Panel, Alice Pung OAM, says of the shortlist:

“Although all the books on our shortlist are very different, common themes emerge about a woman’s relationship to her art and to the world around her. All our shortlisted books also explore with moving complexity some of the most pivotal relationships in a woman’s life, and their roles as daughters, partners, wives, and mothers.”

Jaclyn Booton, Creative Director and Co-CEO of Stella, says of the shortlist:              

“I’m absolutely delighted by the 2023 Stella Prize shortlist, which showcases exciting and innovative work across a range of forms. These six books deftly interrogate balance: of hope and grief, the creative and the domestic, the life-altering and the mundane. These are powerful works of literature, and they embody the strength of women’s writing in Australia. Congratulations to all of the shortlisted authors on their achievement!”

Each of the shortlisted authors receives $4,000 in prize money. The winner – to be announced at a ceremony in Sydney on Thursday 27 April – will be awarded $60,000 thanks to the generous support of the Wilson Foundation.

In the meantime, be sure to pick up your copy of the 2023 shortlist at your local bookstore or library, and join the conversation using the hashtag #2023StellaPrize.