Children’s Books North Network Prize
The first prize for aspiring picture book illustrators based in the North of England
Submissions are now pen for the inaugural Children’s Books North Network Prize – the first prize for aspiring picture book illustrators based in the North of England.
Class and geography create serious obstacles for authors and illustrators seeking publication and the further away they are from the London hub, the more hurdles there are to overcome. The CBNN Prize hopes to fix this by bringing aspiring Northern talent to the attention of the wider publishing industry. The Prize will also play an important role in highlighting the wider Northern literary ecology.
All contributors (including New Writing North and Northern Writers’ Awards) are based in the North, and the Prize is working closely with other Northern organisations and cultural venues to engage with as much aspiring Northern talent as possible, with portfolio reviews, illustration workshops and high-profile illustrator in-conversations.
The Prize will alternate each year between picture book illustrators and writers, with this first year focusing on illustrators. Entrants will be asked to illustrate 3 double-page spreads from a picture book text written by the bestselling picture book author, Corrinne Averiss. The text, Fabulous Frank, is available to download on the CBNN Prize website.
The Judges for the 2026 Prize are Dapo Adeola, Emma Layfield, Lydia Monks and Ness Wood.
We are looking for unpublished Northern talent that can bring Corrinne’s fabulous text to life with original and outstanding illustrations, demonstrating creativity in visual storytelling for children. It has been absolutely amazing meeting aspiring illustrators at our roadshow events all over the North of England, and we’d love to see entries from all walks of life – whether you are an illustration student, an illustrator working in a different field like animation, or simply just love to draw and it has always been your dream to illustrate a picture book – this is your chance!
Chair of Judges, Emma Layfield
Submissions close on Thursday 26 February 2026 and the winner will be announced at an event at Seven Stories on Wednesday 1 July 2026.
Visit the CBNN Prize website for more information on how to enter and full eligibility criteria.
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