Bookouture has announced the eight writers longlisted for the Mo Siewcharran Prize 2026, which this year is focused on romance and psychological thriller submissions.
Launched in 2019, the prize is named in memory of NielsenIQ BookData’s former Director of Marketing and Communications, Mo Siewcharran, and aims to nurture talent from writers from a Black, Asian, minority ethnic and/or mixed heritage background. It runs as part of Hachette UK’s The Future Bookshelf initiative and is sponsored by John Seaton, Mo Siewcharran’s husband and co-founder of the prize, as well as NielsenIQ BookData.
The longlist has been chosen by members of the Bookouture team, employees of other divisions within Hachette UK, and members of THRIVE (Hachette UK’s network for Black Asian and Mixed Heritage employees and allies).
Jenny Geras, Managing Director of Bookouture said: “Hosting the Mo Siewcharran Prize has been a fantastic opportunity for Bookouture to combine our commercial fiction expertise with our commitment to nurturing talent from under-represented backgrounds. This year, we received a record number of entries and every writer on the longlist should be incredibly proud of their achievement. I wish them all the best of luck in this next stage of the prize.”
The longlist (in alphabetical order of first name):
- The Benefits of Marriage by Amara Ede
- The Other Woman by Claudia Amuah
- The Song Beneath the Snow by F.G. Liauw
- Scripted in the Stars by Ramya Julian
- The Eldest Daughter by Sara Anum
- The Bollywood Misfit Match by Sarah Gadhavi
- Unquiet Sleep by Shyama Kasinathan
- Connections by Sophie Thomas
A shortlist of up to five writers will be chosen by a panel of judges, including Ellen Gleeson, Publisher at Bookouture, Hennah Sandhu, former co-chair of THRIVE (Hachette UK’s network for Black Asian and Mixed Heritage employees and allies), Leodora Darlington, author of The Exes, Silé Edwards, award-winning literary agent, and Jenn Li, book influencer @bookmarkonthewall.
The shortlist announcement will take place on 8th September, and the winner and runners-up will be announced at the central London prize ceremony on 24th September 2026.
The winner of the prize will receive £2,500, a 1000-word piece of editorial feedback on their novel, and a follow-up online session with an editor. They will also be offered an introductory meeting with a literary agent and invited to an interactive session with the Bookouture team to learn about digital publishing. The winner’s entry will also be taken forward to Bookouture’s acquisitions meeting and considered for publication under their no advance 45% royalty model.
The second and third place runners-up will receive £1,500 and £750 prize money respectively, plus editorial feedback and a hamper of Bookouture books.