Plaza Prizes Writing Awards Collapse Amid Payment Disputes and AI Allegations
A prestigious writing competition, the Plaza Prizes, which offered a £20,000 prize fund for new writers, appears to have abruptly closed down, leaving winners and judges, including a Booker prize-winning novelist, out of pocket. Established in 2022, the competition last year promoted 10 awards judged by what it called the "finest poets and writers in the world." However, recent developments have revealed a trail of unpaid fees and controversial disqualifications.
Judges Left Unpaid as Competition Founder Faces Scrutiny
Several high-profile judges for the 2025 competition have reported not receiving payment for their work. Damon Galgut, the 2021 Booker prize winner, described the Plaza Prizes as a "scam" after he was not paid the promised £1,500 for judging the fiction section. Galgut stated that he agreed to participate believing such competitions support emerging writers, but when he and his agent attempted to contact founder Simon Kerr for payment, they received no initial response.
Kerr eventually replied, claiming Galgut had not invoiced properly and committed to payment within 60 days, but Galgut dismissed this as an excuse, accusing Kerr of disappearing when payment was mentioned. Kerr then threatened legal action for defamation and harassment. Similarly, Anthony Joseph, winner of the 2022 TS Eliot poetry prize, says he was not paid £1,250 for judging the audio poetry prize, leading him to take a case to the small claims court.
Winners Hit Back Over AI Accusations and Disqualifications
In addition to payment issues, a number of winners have had their entries withdrawn after being accused of using artificial intelligence to create their work. Peter Doolan, winner of the audio poetry prize, was disqualified when his entry was "flagged by AI content detectors." Doolan vehemently denied the allegation, pointing out that his poem was originally published in 2018, long before such technology was prevalent.
Another anonymous award winner received an identical email disqualifying them for AI use, which they "vigorously deny," stating they are unable to use the technology. Both writers claim they were not given an opportunity to prove the originality of their work, raising questions about the competition's fairness and transparency.
History of Controversy and Financial Struggles
The Plaza Prizes was founded by Simon Kerr, a writer who previously worked for the University of Hull and ran another writing award that faced complaints over late payments. According to the now-inaccessible website, Kerr received grants from the Society of Authors and the Royal Society of Literature, which he said helped save his house from repossession after job loss during the pandemic. He claimed to have invested capital from the subsequent house sale into the prizes.
A planned awards ceremony in the Dordogne, France, last October was cancelled, with the website citing withdrawal of support from a millionaire fantasy writer due to entry quality. A linked short story writing course was also cancelled after a lack of donations, and Kerr made appeals for funding to publish a planned anthology. In 2014, the Guardian reported that a previous competition run by Kerr had not paid a prize winner, with payment made only after media intervention.
Kerr, whose website listed an address in Islington, north London, did not respond to recent queries from the Guardian regarding the Plaza Prizes. The website's inaccessibility this week further signals the competition's apparent demise, leaving a community of writers disillusioned and financially impacted.
