As I announced back in November, I was one of the judges for the 2022 McKitterick Prize. This is one of several prizes administered by the Society of Authors, the UK trade union for writers, which awards various grants and prizes.

The McKitterick Prize has, since 1990, been awarded to a debut novelist aged 40 or over. It’s unique in that it considers unpublished manuscripts as well as published novels – Tom McKitterick, who endowed the Prize, was a former editor of Political Quarterly and had an unpublished novel at the time of his death.

My particular role in the process was helping to assess the unpublished manuscripts and whittling them down to a longlist, which then joined the traditionally published novels for overall judging. I can’t say too much about this process or the particular narratives that I read due to the judges’ nondisclosure agreement, but I’ll make a few general observations.

Almost all of the entries were capably written and would have done fine as self-published novels, but I was looking for a touch of greatness – something that could compete, as is, with published work. For the most part, it was clear which manuscripts were at a different level. In terms of serendipitous moments, I noted multiple “meet the parents” scenes and mentions of moss or witches. Switching between 2–4 time periods was a recurring feature. There were lots of thrillers and dystopian setups, too.

The shortlist was announced this morning. None of the manuscripts made it through, but I’m delighted to see Under the Blue on there. I’ve heard a lot about the Taddeo and Yoder, both of which seem to be divisive. The Mohammed was already on my radar, I’m interested in the Bennett, and the Annand is new to me but I’ll investigate further. Judge Anietie Isong says, “These are deeply engaging works that swell with vitality.”

I was also interested to note the shortlists for the

• Betty Trask Award for a first novel by a writer under 35: it overlaps with the latest Sunday Times Young Writer of the Year Award shortlist on two authors, Nelson and Nolan. I’ve also read the Brown. But I’m rooting for Will McPhail’s In, the first graphic novel to be shortlisted for an SoA award.

• Gordon Bowker Volcano Prize, new this year, for a novel focusing on the experience of travel away from home (in memory of Malcolm Lowry and endowed by Gordon Bowker, his biographer): I’ve read Asylum Road and I think I have Diving for Pearls from NetGalley. I’ve read a nonfiction work by McWatt and would be interested in trying her fiction.

• Paul Torday Memorial Prize, awarded to a first novel by a writer over 60: I’ve only heard of one nominee, The Day I Fell Off My Island by Yvonne Bailey-Smith – that’s because she’s Zadie Smith’s mum.

Winners and runners-up will be announced at the SoA Awards ceremony, to be held at Southwark Cathedral on June 1st – I’ll be watching the livestream.

See any nominees you’ve read? Who would you like to see win?