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Anna Dempsey Wins Inaugural Hilary Mantel Fiction Prize

3/24/2026

Summary

Story summary

Anna Dempsey won the inaugural Hilary Mantel prize for fiction, receiving £7,500 for her unpublished novel This Is About an Alligator and Nothing Else.
The prize honors Hilary Mantel for fiction and supports unpublished writers in the UK and Ireland, and Dempsey was chosen from 2,300 submissions, with both winners receiving mentorship.
Uduak-Abasi Ekong, Nigerian writer based in Manchester, was the runner-up and earned £2,500 for A Kind of Resurrection.

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Story summary

Anna Dempsey won the inaugural Hilary Mantel prize for fiction, receiving £7,500 for her unpublished novel This Is About an Alligator and Nothing Else.
The prize honors Hilary Mantel for fiction and supports unpublished writers in the UK and Ireland, and Dempsey was chosen from 2,300 submissions, with both winners receiving mentorship.
Uduak-Abasi Ekong, Nigerian writer based in Manchester, was the runner-up and earned £2,500 for A Kind of Resurrection.