The Queen Mary Small Press Fiction Prize Winner Event - Wednesday March 25th 2026
The winner of this year’s prize will be announced on Wednesday March 25th, 17.30-21.00 at a live event at Queen Mary University, London. The event with consist of a panel chaired by our director with representatives of all the shortlisted presses to talk about their prize journey. This will be followed by the winner announcement and refreshments. Both parts of the event are free but you’ll still need to follow the links above and reserve your spots to ensure a place. We look forward to seeing you there!
Shortlist announced for The Queen Mary Small Press Fiction Prize 2026
We’re happy and proud to finally share the five books and presses on this year’s shortlist—the first year of the prize with our new name and partner, Queen Mary University, London.
The shortlisted titles and presses can be found here, while the longlistees can be found here.
Republic of Consciousness Foundation finds new partner and rebrands as the Queen Mary Small Press Fiction Prize
From 2026 the Republic of Consciousness is partnering with Queen Mary University, London to rebrand our Prize for Small Presses as the Queen Mary Small Press Fiction Prize. For nine years, the Republic of Consciousness has pioneered an approach to book prizes, focussing on small presses for their conservation of bold and innovative literature, and awarding all titles on our long-list and short-list with money that’s split between authors, translators and their publishers. Now in our tenth year of bolstering fiction from the UK and Republic of Ireland, we’ve secured a new partner and the next step of our future with Queen Mary University. Their shared commitment to nurturing fiction from the margins - having already sponsored the Queen Mary Wasafiri New Writing Prize - makes it a perfect partner for us as we rebrand and further our support of small presses.
Who are we?
The Republic of Consciousness Foundation supports, promotes and celebrates small presses in the UK and Ireland. Over nine years, the prize has awarded over £120,000 to publishers and authors.
subscribe to our substack to stay up to date with the prize.
Book of the Month
We run a monthly Book of the Month subscription to raise funds for the prize, with books generously donated by a different small press every month. It’s a truly eclectic, high-quality list, and a great taste of what the small press scene is producing.
click here to see our 12 titles for 2024
We’re passionate about the small press community. That’s why we run this book club for interested readers, with books donated generously by the publishers themselves. While we rely on funding from our sponsors for the prize’s life and longevity, we are grateful for the additional support of our book club members. Subscribers are integral to our success and that of our beloved small presses - regular income allows us to guarantee and grow the prize every year.