Call to writers everywhere
Eligibility criteria
The Tom Grass Prize is open to all writers from all over the world who are over the age of 25 and writing in the English language.
Entrants must not be represented by a Literary Agent and must not have any previous or new book under contract with a mainstream publisher for the duration of the prize.
The word count is between 1,500 and 3,000 words.
The entry can be either fiction or non-fiction and must be a stand-alone piece of prose.
Entrants are invited to reflect the spirit of adventure in subject matter and/or style in whichever way and in however broad a sense the writer interprets this.
Prizes
1st prize: £1,000
Two runners-up prizes: £500 each
All three finalists will be offered a meeting with a Literary Agent.
Judges
Laetitia Rutherford Erskine
Laetitia is a literary agent at Watson, Little representing a diverse list of Fiction and Non-Fiction. She regularly gives writing workshops, collaborating with Kingston University, Indie Novella, and the London Writers’ Cafe. In 2024, Laetitia received the University of West London’s Vice-Chancellor’s Award to begin a part-time Phd exploring the print to digital transformation. Laetitia is researching this alongside working closely with her authors.
Justin Wateridge
An avid traveller and lover of books, Justin has worked in travel for over thirty years. He does so with a curiosity for people, places and planet. And in particular, arbitrary lines.
Luigi Bonomi
Highly accomplished literary agent and Managing Director of LBA Books in London. With a background in English Literature from University College London and Dartmouth College, he has over 35 years of experience in the publishing industry. Bonomi has launched the careers of numerous bestselling authors and was named Literary Agent of the Year in 2010.
Deok Joo Rhee KC
Deok Joo met Tom at Oxford University where she studied and taught Law. She is now a practising barrister, with a strong interest in all things European, international and comparative. Deok Joo loves writing in all its forms - and is particularly drawn to themes of memory, place and belonging, and the interplay between substance and form.
David Clifton
David studied History at Oxford University with Tom. A big fan of travel and adventure, he has lived for over 20 years in Mexico and worked and travelled across Latin America, the US and Caribbean, including many wonderful adventures of all kinds with Tom.
Adele Grass
Mother to Tom Grass, avid reader and lover of literature.
Praise Ukpai
Praise is a passionate and dynamic writer whose work bridges feminism, cultural identity, and personal storytelling. Her work has been featured in notable publications such as Fourth Wave and Modern Women on Medium, Writers Space Africa, and many others. With her piece ‘Where the Sky Ends’, she won the inaugural Tom Grass Prize. She is the Founder of Africa Writers Connect (AWC), a gathering of African writers and creatives who tell authentic African stories for social impact.
Judging process
The Tom Grass Spirit of Adventure Literary Prize opens for submissions on 1 November 2025 and closes on 31 March 2026.
All entries will be logged and verified to ensure they meet the eligibility criteria.
A group of volunteer readers and supporters of the Prize will review all submissions blind (without seeing author names). Through discussion and a democratic selection process, this team will create a long list of standout entries.
The final judging panel will then read the longlisted works and select three prize-winning pieces - one overall winner and two runners-up. They will be announced at a ceremony in London on 11th June 2025, and simultaneously in a press release.
The judging panel is chaired by literary agent Laetitia Rutherford and includes leading figures from publishing, travel, and the arts.
How to enter
To enter the Tom Grass Literary Prize, please submit your piece of between 1,500 and 3,000 words maximum using the website entry form below..
Material should be submitted as a PDF document (or in Word format), in a clear font, point size 12. Please include with the piece a brief one paragraph outline to introduce or give context to it, including reference to your personal background if you consider this relevant.
Filenames should be the ‘Title of Work.’ All pages should be numbered and include the ‘Title of Work’ as a footer or header.
The entry must be written in the English Language, in prose, in any genre of Fiction or Non Fiction as long as it reflects, in whichever way the writer interprets, the sensibility of the Tom Grass Prize.
Entrants are permitted only one entry each and entries on behalf of another person will not be accepted. Joint submissions are permitted but should be sent only once, on behalf of both authors, subject to both authors consenting to entering and being eligible.
Entries should be uploaded to the website portal any time between 1st November 2025 and March 31st 2025, with the deadline closing at midnight, UK time, on March 31st 2025. All entries will be read by the Tom Grass Prize team of supporters, who will create a longlist to be submitted to the Jury.
The Tom Grass Prize is free to enter before 28th February 2026 and £15 to enter in March 2026.
Entrants must be over the age of 25 as of 1st November 2025 when submissions open.
Entrants can live anywhere in the world, and we encourage entrants from all backgrounds.
Entries must be written in the English Language.
Entrants will not be eligible if they have a previous or new book under contract with a mainstream publisher, but are eligible if they have a book self-published or by an academic or specialist publisher.
Entrants must not be represented by a literary agent for the duration of the prize.
Entries must be original to the author and must not violate the copyright or other rights of any third party.
Any use of AI in the text is not permittted and entrants may be required to sign additional documents to attest to this.
Entrants must comply with these terms and conditions to be eligible. If there is any reason to believe that there has been a breach of these terms and conditions, the Tom Grass Prize may, at their sole discretion, reserve the right to exclude you from participating in the competition.
No further correspondence will be entered into other than for the receipt of submissions and the judges’ decision.
The meeting offered with the Literary Agent will be 30mins, in-person or on a video-conference call.
Terms & Conditions
Submit your entry
The Tom Grass Prize adheres to the principles of GDPR, and the data you give as part of the application will be used solely for the purposes of the Prize itself, unless you give permission otherwise. Our privacy notice can be found here.