The four winners of the 2025 National Literary Competition were announced on Tuesday, with the emphasis this year on supporting Luxembourg authors who have written novels in any of the three national languages or English.
The prizes, ranging from €3,000 to €7,000, are aimed at helping the authors in their work and/or with assistance in getting their novels published, according to a press release from the culture ministry.
The Young Authors category, for those aged 12-19, was won by Maude Blaschette for her novel Silent Screams, for which she will receive a €3,000 prize.
The jury, chaired by Antoine Pohu and composed of Sofia Cumming, Sonia Da Silva, Helmuth Sperl and Jil Weiler, called Silent Screams “a captivating detective novel about young people”. They praised its vivid juxtaposition of crime scenes and action with psychological tension, “as well as strong emotions such as fear and love, thus drawing the reader into its world”.
The book touches on issues including bullying, loneliness, grief, friendship and solidarity in a way poignantly relevant to young readers.
The 2025 competition was launched a year ago, in October 2024, and attracted 56 applications from adult authors and five from authors aged 12-19.
Den Impakt vu Klappentexter by Jhemp Hoscheit scooped first prize in the adult author category, winning €7,500 and a further contribution of up to €5,000 towards the publication costs of the winning work.
Neel mat Käpp by Cathy Clement claimed second prize in the adult author category, winning €4,000, while third place went to Die Elefantenhaut by Guy Helminger, who won €3,000.
The official 2025 awards ceremony will take place on 2 December at the National Literature Centre in Mersch. The 2026 edition of the competition will focus on collections of poetry, the culture ministry said in its statement.
