The Comedy Women in Print Prize (CWIP) has unveiled the longlists for the second year. With crime fiction, retellings of classics,
coming-of-age and contemporary narratives, the list proves there’s no single formula for funny fiction.
At a time when funny books are needed more than ever, writers longlisted in the Published Comic Novel category are:
• Queenie by Candice Carty-Williams (Hachette UK / Trapeze)
• Big Girl, Small Town by Michelle Gallen (John Murray Publishers)
• Christmas Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella (Transworld Publishers / Bantam Press)
• The Nursery by Asia Mackay (Bonnier Books UK/ Zaffre)
• The Blessed Girl by Angela Makholwa (Bloomsbury Publishing)
• The Flatshare by Beth O’Leary (Quercus)
• So Lucky by Dawn O’Porter (HarperCollins UK)
• Reasons to be Cheerful by Nina Stibbe (Penguin Random House
• Are We Nearly There Yet? by Lucy Vine (Orion)
• In the Crypt with a Candlestick by Daisy Waugh (Little, Brown Book Group)
• The Bookish Life of Nina Hill by Abbi Waxman (Headline Publishing Group)
• Diary of a Confused Feminist by Kate Weston (Hachette Children’s Group)
• Frankissstein by Jeanette Winterson (Jonathan Cape)
• Miss Blaine’s Prefect and the Vampire Menace by Olga Wojtas (Saraband)
The Comedy Women in Print Prize 2020 longlist for Published Humorous Graphic Novels is:
• Sensible Footwear: A Girl’s Guide: A graphic guide to lesbian and queer history 1950-2020 by Kate Charlesworth (Myriad Editions)
• The Trials & Tribulations of Mr. T. Deeyum by Susannah Felstead (Self-published)
• Passing for Human by Liana Finck (Jonathan Cape)
• The “C” Word by Vanessa Lawrence (Self-published)
• A Pocketful of Clouds Volume 6: Practical Mythology by Morag Lewis (Sweatdrop Studios)
• My Husband is a Cultist by Mei Lian Hoe (Self-published)
• Life Drawing. A Life Under Lights by Jessica Martin (Unbound)
• Bloodlust and Bonnets by Emily McGovern (Simon & Schuster)
• Was it… Too Much for You? by Danny Noble (Self-published)
• Cassandra Darke by Posy Simmonds (Jonathan Cape)
• Stand in Your Power by Rachael Smith (Self-published)
The Comedy Women in Print Prize 2020 longlist for Unpublished Comic Novels is:
• Nigel by Tierney Acott
• The Bird in the River by Zahra Barri
• Tinker, Tailor, Schoolmum, Spy by Faye Brann
• Everything Is Under Control by Annette Gordon
• Sandwich by Nancy Peach
• The Lady’s Companion by Janey Preger
• New Members Welcome by Sarah Scally
• The Club for Mature Indulgence by Elaine Simmonds
• Plan C by Lindsey Symonds
• Kassie McKinnon Is Starving by Karen Vivers
• You Can Drop Me Here by Julia Walter
• Second Wife Syndrome by Kathleen Whyman
A new award category celebrates Published Humorous Graphic Novels by women for the first time. The longlist include Posy Simmonds MBE and Kate Charlesworth
Eleven aspiring novelists are also longlisted in the Unpublished Comic Novel category. A surprise Game Changer Award will be presented to echo Jilly Cooper’s Lifetime Achievement prize last year.
The CWIP Prize was launched by actress, author and stand-up Helen Lederer in 2019 in response to the lack of exposure for female comedy writing, and as a way of celebrating fresh and established talent.
Marian Keyes, Chair of Judges for the CWIP Published Novels Prize, says: “I am absolutely delighted with our longlist. The range is glorious – everything from lighthearted commercial fiction to literary fiction – it’s a demonstration of all the different ways in which women can be funny in print. It was a pleasure and very exciting to read all ninety submissions, and this is a list that I’m very proud of.”
Helen Lederer, Founder of the CWIP Prize, says: “I’m relieved the longlisted titles reflect both anti-snobbery and a huge respect for literary wit. A new but necessary punctuation mark highlighting the visibility of women’s wit on the page.”
The Comedy Women in Print Prize winners will be announced at an award ceremony at the Groucho Club, rescheduled from July to Monday 14th September 2020.
