Club news
Written by: DanielL
The annual Rooker Prize is now open – and for the first time, everyone can enter.
The pioneering football club has run the literary competition since 2022, inviting its community owners to write the opening words of a novel.
The aim is simple: to democratise novel-writing by lowering the barriers that might stop people starting at all.
‘Everyone has a novel in them, right? But does everyone have the time to write one? And what if, 100,000 words later, it isn’t any good?
This is where The Rooker Prize comes in: you only need to write the beginning 400 words.
The winner receives an expert coaching session from within the publishing industry. But this year, Lewes FC is flinging open the gates beyond its turnstiles, inviting anyone to enter.
Riffing on the football club’s nickname, The Rooks, the Rooker Prize opens up the possibility of writing a novel by asking entrants to do just one thing: write the opening 400 words. That’s it. Just that.
An illustrious judging panel will be chaired by Baroness Lola Young, a former Chair of the Booker Prize and a big football fan
The prize is generously sponsored by Rockonteurs – the award-winning podcast hosted by musicians and writers, Gary Kemp & Guy Pratt, alongside Hachette UK, one of the UK’s leading publishing groups, who share Lewes FC’s commitment to challenging established thinking.
The prize
The winner of The Rooker Prize will receive:
• A beautiful hand-carved wooden trophy
• £250 to donate to a charity of their choice
• An exclusive one-hour feedback and coaching session with an experienced editor at Hachette UK’s London offices, designed to help kick-start a potential writing career
How to enter
The Rooker Prize is now open for entries:
• Type your 400-word opening to a novel (including the book title and genre)
• Email it as an attachment to Karen@lewesfc.com
• You must use the subject line: ROOKER PRIZE
• Include your name and contact details in the email
Closing date: Monday 30 March 2026
Winner announced: Monday 27 April 2026
(International Crow and Raven Appreciation Day)
For further information, please contact:
Karen Dobres – Karen@lewesfc.com
About Baroness Lola Young:
Margaret Omolola Young, Baroness Young of Hornsey OBE, is a British actress, author, crossbench peer, and Chancellor of the University of Nottingham.
She became involved with Lewes FC through her work chairing the APPG for Sport, Modern Slavery and Human Rights, and has been a cub owner ever since.
A lifelong football fan, and avid reader, Baroness Young published her ‘8 Weeks’ last year, charting her journey from childhood in foster care to becoming one of the first black women in the House of Lords.
About Rockonteurs:
Rockonteurs is an award-winning podcast telling the real stories behind real music.
Hosted by Gary Kemp (Spandau Ballet) and Guy Pratt (Pink Floyd, Madonna), it features candid conversations with some of the biggest names in rock and pop.
Guests include Sir Bob Geldof, Phil Manzanera, Trevor Horn, Chris Difford and Pink Floyd’s Nick Mason.
About Hachette UK:
Hachette UK is one of the UK’s largest publishing groups, with 12 autonomous divisions and more than 50 imprints. Its mission is to to make it easy for everyone to discover new worlds of ideas, learning, entertainment and opportunity.
Hachette UK are the market leader in e-books and publish a range of bestsellers in audio format, the fastest-growing part of our business.
The group also publishes thousands of new books every year and its authors include Michael Connelly, Alice Oseman, John Grisham, Val McDermid, Stephen King, Stieg Larsson, Nelson Mandela, Stephenie Meyer, Ian Rankin, J.K. Rowling and Malala Yousafzai.
Hachette UK has offices across the UK, including its London headquarters and the Hely Hutchinson Centre (HHC) for distribution in Didcot, with international subsidiaries in Australia, India, Ireland, Jamaica and New Zealand.