2026 Ilsa Schwepcke Prize

#IlsaSchwepckePrize #indiebookaward

2026 Ilsa Schwepcke Prize : An annual award for women’s travel writing in English. An independent jury will select a shortlist and the winning book will be announced in autumn at the International Frankfurt Book Fair.

Deadline: March 31
Categories: Nonfiction, prose works of travel writing (not open to fiction or poetry)
Prizes: Winning author will receive £5,000
For More Info: The Ilsa Schwepcke Prize

The Ilse Schwepcke Prize is an annual award for women’s travel writing in English. An independent jury will select a shortlist and the winning book will be announced in autumn at the International Frankfurt Book Fair. This prize is for non-fiction, prose works of travel writing and not open to fiction or poetry. The winning author will receive £5,000.

To read more about the Ilse Schwepcke Prize and its sister prize in Germany, the Ilse-Schwepcke-Preis, visit IlseSchwepckePrize.co.uk.

‘I wish,’ Ilse said to a travel writer, ‘I wish I could go with you.’ But they both knew it was impossible. At the time of their meeting, she was already in her late eighties, a director at Haus Publishing, the company set up by her daughter Barbara, using Ilse’s maiden name. Not long after the company started operating, Ilse became the curator of a unique list of travel books inspired by many a journey she had taken – or wished she had. Ilse’s commissions resolutely reflected a love of travel itself and a refusal to pander to the mainstream.

Beautifully written, the books on Ilse’s list invited us all to voyage far beyond the sunset, even if we never leave our armchairs. The Ilse Schwepcke Prize therefore celebrates travellers she would have wished to have accompanied, writers she would have commissioned, and authors she would have loved to have published.

The Prize is currently open for submissions. Please use the form below to enter.

Enter the Prize
The Ilse Schwepcke Prize is an annual award for women’s travel writing in English. An independent jury selects a shortlist and the winning book will be announced in October, with the prize awarded in a ceremony at the Frankfurt Book Fair. The winning author will receive £5,000.

To read more about the Ilse Schwepcke Prize and its sister prize in Germany, the Ilse-Schwepcke-Preis, visit http://www.ilseschwepckeprize.co.uk.

The award is administered by the Society of Authors.

Deadline: 31 March 2026

Entry criteria:
Submission period opens 1 January 2026 and closes 31 March 2026.
Entries to the English prize must be written in English and not translated works.
Entries must have been published between 1 April 2025 and 31 March 2026.
Submissions must be made by an established commercial publisher.
This prize is for non-fiction, prose works of travel writing and not open to fiction or poetry
Submissions must not contain the use of AI generated works.
How to enter
For each entry, please send five physical copies of the book to:

The Ilse Schwepcke Prize
Prizes Department
24 Bedford Row
Holborn
London
WC1R 4EH

Please note any couriers should use the entrance on Theobalds Road.

Please also upload a digital version of the book when prompted below. If the file you are using is too large for the form, please complete the rest of the entry form and then send the file via email or WeTransfer to prizes@societyofauthors.org

Find out more….

Come check out these other great indie publishers:

POST HILL Press Skyhorse Publishing Two Dollar Radio

Think maybe you’ve got the writing bug, too? REAL WRITER’S MARKET has over 500 publishers and 800 Imprints! Submissions now open. Check it out…

Thank you and Happy Publishing…