The Hazel Rowley Prize
The Hazel Rowley Prize supports first-time biographers with financial support, agent review, and publicity for an outstanding English-language biography proposal to help secure representation and publication.
Funder: Biographers International Organization
Due Dates: March 1, 2027 (Entry deadline)
Funding Amounts: $5,000 prize, plus agent review, one year of BIO membership, and annual conference registration
Summary: Supports an outstanding English-language biography proposal by a first-time biographer seeking representation and publication.
Key Information: Applicants cannot have agent representation, and proposals must remain out of publisher consideration until the winner is announced in May.
Description
The Hazel Rowley Prize is an annual award from Biographers International Organization (BIO) for the best proposal by a first-time biographer. It helps new practitioners secure representation and publication through financial support, professional attention, and connections to BIO’s community of biographers, agents, editors, and biography enthusiasts. Eligible projects tell the story of an individual’s life or a group of lives, including young adult biographies.
Presented at the annual BIO Conference, the prize honors Hazel Rowley, an acclaimed biographer and advocate for biographers supporting one another. Alongside the cash award, the winner receives a careful reading by an established agent and publicity for the author and project through BIO’s website and The Biographer’s Craft newsletter.
