Each year the Texas Institute of Letters awards $25,750 to recognize outstanding literary works in several categories. In addition to these literary prizes, the TIL bestows a lifetime achievement award ($7,000) and the Jones Fellowship ($9,000), for a total of $41,000 in annual awards.
Eligibility for the awards requires that the author have been born in Texas or have lived in Texas for at least five consecutive years at some time. A work with subject matter that substantially concerns Texas is also eligible. Beginning in April of 2024, the year listed refers to when the award was presented.
Submissions:
The window for 2025 submissions has now opened. Guidelines for this cycle can be found here.
The online contest entry form can be found here.
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Award Winners for 2024 and 2025
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Jesse H. Jones Award for Best Book of Fiction ($5,000)
Kay Cattarulla Award for Best Short Story ($1,000)
- “All B’s and One C” by Patrick Font, Iron Horse Literary Review, 2025.
- “Jewel of the Gulf of Mexico” by Selena Gambrell Anderson, McSweeney’s, 2024.
Edwin “Bud” Shrake Award for Best Short Nonfiction ($1,000)
- “Forgotten Keepers of the Rio Grande Delta” by Dylan Baddour, Texas Observer, 2025.
- “Amor Eterno” by Skip Hollandsworth, Texas Monthly, 2024.
