For the best Australian women’s crime and mystery books of 2026
Entries for the 2027 Davitt Awards will open on 1 November 2026.
All enquiries should be sent to the judge co-ordinator Ruth Wykes.
ENTRY FEES
Save 33% with EarlyBird entries from 1-30 November 2026. Full fee entries from 1 December 2026 to 19 February 2027.
Entry fees are: $40 per book EarlyBird. $60 per book thereafter.
Entries closed at 11.30 pm Eastern Daylight Savings Time, Friday 19 February 2027.
Six Davitt Awards will be presented at a gala dinner and awards ceremony in Melbourne in August/September 2027.
CATEGORIES
Books will be judged in the following categories:
- Best Adult Novel
- Best Young Adult Novel
- Best Children’s Novel
- Best Non-Fiction Book
- Best Debut Book.
We’d love to see more young adult and children’s books submitted.
The Kerry Greenwood Readers’ Choice Award is chosen from the longlist through a vote by the members of Sisters in Crime Australia.
THE TIMELINE
Judging will take place from February to July in 2027 by a panel of seven judges. The judges are chosen for their experience and expertise in the industry and hail from Victoria, ACT, NSW, and Queensland.
These are the key dates for the 2027 Davitt Awards:
- 1 – 30 November 2026: early bird entries are open
- 1 December 2026 – 18 February 2027: full-price entries are open
- February – July 2027: Judging underway
- May 2027: longlist announced
- July 2027: shortlist announced, and Readers’ Choice voting gets underway
- August/September 2027: Davitt Awards Gala Ceremony
The winners are notified approximately a month before the awards ceremony and invited to attend as guests of Sisters in Crime Australia. The awards ceremony is always in Melbourne. Publisher will be required to supply 3 copies of the winning book(s) to be award as door prizes at the event.
With so many books now being published, we’d appreciate it if you entered as soon as possible, so the judges can start reading. That’s why we’ve introduced the Early Bird entry discount. Don’t leave it to the last minute!
WHY ENTER?
Previous winners say a coveted Davitt Award has added impetus to their career as well as a morale boosting recognition of the calibre of their work. It has encouraged them to continue to write and to further develop their craft.
It’s a wonderful showcase to the world of the depth of talent among Australian women writers.
For many readers and fellow authors, the annual Davitts shortlist becomes required reading.
Sisters in Crime engage in an extensive media and social media campaign around the Davitts each year and seek out opportunities for publicity for winning authors
HOW TO ENTER
- Confirm your book meets the conditions of entry. See below.
- Register and pay the entry fee per book by no later than 11.30 pm Eastern Daylight Savings Time, Friday 19 February 2027
- Note: if you are entering more than one book, you will need to enter each separately.
- Email to us a list of books you have entered asap. Make sure to specify the relevant categories in which the books are being entered, and note whether the entry is a debut book. Closing date is 19 February 2027, but please send the list once you’ve paid.
- If you are sending hard copies, then mail one to each of the judges. You will receive an email from Sisters in Crime with the details of where to send paper books shortly after payment is received.
- If you are sending eBooks, they must be in ePub format. Email them to the coordinator, and do not send them in packages with expiry dates. Sisters in Crime’s Davitt Awards Coordinator will only distribute the ebooks to the judges. Please note: PDFs and Advanced Reader Copies (ARCs) of books will not be accepted.
CONDITIONS OF ENTRY
- The author/s must be women, including intersex and transgender. Please note that books co-written with men or including chapters written by men, will not be eligible.
- The author does not need to live in Australia, but they must have Australian citizenship.
- The book must have been first published in 2026. This includes international releases.
- Self-published and hybrid authors are encouraged to submit their books.
- The book must have crime or mystery as its central theme. Davitt judges reserve the right to exclude books from consideration if they believe the books do not fall within the crime and mystery genre.
- Books will not be considered if the entry fee hasn’t been paid or if books haven’t been distributed to judges within 10 days of the closing date (19 February 2027).
- No book that has been created, either in full or partially by Artificial Intelligence (AI) will be eligible to win a Davitt Award. By submitting an entry, you consent to parts of your text being run through AI detection software.
- Books that are entered for the Best Debut Award must meet the following criteria: If the book is a work of fiction, it must be the author’s first published novel in any genre, or aimed at any age group. If the book is nonfiction, it must be the author’s first published nonfiction book about any subject. This rule does not include academic papers, research, or published long-form articles. It applies only to books.
- Conditions of Entry PDF
Any questions, please contact the Judges’ Coordinator Ruth Wykes.