Publishing Prize
— 2026 —
The Winners
Finlay Lloyd Publishers and the 20/40 Judging Panel are delighted to announce the Winners for 2026.
— FICTION WINNER —
Killing Tully Herbert, Philip Canon
Comments from the Judging Panel
Why this book is different
Beth Border, the narrator of this vividly realised short novel, shares with the reader her fixation with an imaginary friend, Anastasia. ‘Together’, they try to navigate Beth’s place in a world undermined by her deeply complex sense of responsibility for the death of a boy, Tully Herbert.
Why we liked it
The quality of the writing in Killing Tully Herbert is as perceptive as it is alert and ironic. Its liveliness and empathy swept us into the specifically fraught and shifting psychology of an adolescent girl, while achieving the fine double act of feeling timeless and universal.
— FICTION WINNER —
Killing Tully Herbert, Philip Canon
Comments from the Judging Panel
Why this book is different
Beth Border, the narrator of this vividly realised short novel, shares with the reader her fixation with an imaginary friend, Anastasia. ‘Together’, they try to navigate Beth’s place in a world undermined by her deeply complex sense of responsibility for the death of a boy, Tully Herbert.
Why we liked it
The quality of the writing in Killing Tully Herbert is as perceptive as it is alert and ironic. Its liveliness and empathy swept us into the specifically fraught and shifting psychology of an adolescent girl, while achieving the fine double act of feeling timeless and universal.
— FICTION WINNER —
Becoming Mrs Smith, Robyn Ferrell
Comments from the Judging Panel
Why this book is different
In a university psychology seminar, the narrator of Becoming Mrs Smith, is reminded, with some surprise, of an imaginary friend from her childhood—a stout and intrusive middle-aged woman. And so, the reader is off on an intriguing and amusing escapade about the shifting nature of identity.
Why we liked it
Writing where imagination intersects with notions of reality, biography and intellectual endeavour can be riskily ambitious, so we were delighted to meet this wonderfully playful, comedic, inventive and insightful book. It reaches far more widely and deeply than the compact number of its pages.
— NONFICTION WINNER —
Becoming Mrs Smith, Robyn Ferrell
Comments from the Judging Panel
Why this book is different
In a university psychology seminar, the narrator of Becoming Mrs Smith, is reminded, with some surprise, of an imaginary friend from her childhood—a stout and intrusive middle-aged woman. And so, the reader is off on an intriguing and amusing escapade about the shifting nature of identity.
Why we liked it
Writing where imagination intersects with notions of reality, biography and intellectual endeavour can be riskily ambitious, so we were delighted to meet this wonderfully playful, comedic, inventive and insightful book. It reaches far more widely and deeply than the compact number of its pages.
About the Winning Authors
Philip Canon
Phil is a writer and educator who teaches English and English Language in an independent secondary college in Melbourne. He has also worked in a range of educational contexts in Auckland, London and Frankfurt. He has taught creative writing through the RMIT Short Courses program, and his short fiction has been published in literary journals and anthologies.
Robyn Ferrell
Robyn is a writer and researcher. She trained as a journalist on the Sydney Morning Herald before completing her doctorate in philosophy. She has taught philosophy and creative writing at Australian universities and has written several books of fiction and non-fiction. Her recent titles include Private Language and Philosophical Essays on Free Stuff.
A comment on this year’s Winners from Finlay Lloyd publisher, Julian Davies:
‘For this fourth year of the 20/40, the judging panel has awarded the prize to two short novels, both chosen for the strength and highly engaging quality of their writing, and both, by strange coincidence, about imaginary friends. While this accidental parallel sets up an inevitable and interesting comparison, the two books take very different paths in their exploration of invented confidants—one inventively comedic (but underpinned by deeper questions) the other psychologically astute (but shot through with irony).
‘The contrast between these two lively and moving fictional worlds affirms the valuable purpose of a publishing prize that encourages Australian writers to tackle the compact challenge of works between 20,000 and 40,000 words.’
Interview with the Winning Authors
Julian Davies, publisher and editor at Finlay Lloyd and member of the Judging panel, interviews Phil and Robyn about their works.
Get the Winning Books
For a limited time only, get this year’s winning books with our 10% discount. (Offer ends 31 Dec.)