@firstgraphicnovel
The First Graphic Novel Award is a biennial award for UK debut graphic novelists run in partnership with The Cartoon Museum and SelfMadeHero, supported by The bks Agency, and generously funded by Arts Council England for the 2025 Award.
We have been celebrating! Huge congratulations to Hannah McCann for winning the 2025 First Graphic Novel Award, shown here at the ceremony at Waterstones Piccadilly with previous winner Alex Taylor on Monday 19th January for her work-in-progress ‘St Brigid and Me’!
We wanted you lovely people to know that the 2025
#FirstGraphicNovelAward winner will be revealed on January 19th 2026 at 18:30 at Waterstones Piccadilly! Meet the shortlist, judges and @selfmadehero to find out whose GN will be published.
Tickets for in-person and online attendance available NOW!
A timely and brilliant piece of work. An extract was shortlisted for the 2023 First Graphic Novel Award and is the third book to be published from that year’s finalists.
Less than 24 hours left to back our ACID BOX kickstarter!
“If you missed the ‘90s rave scene, or forgot what all the fuss was about, you need ACID BOX. It’s part time-travel treatise of a cultural phenomenon, and part personal journey—as a club scenster tries to save her brother” —Shelly Bond
The awesome CCIC sextet have done it again! They’ve combined their strengths and skills into this impressive funding bid for comics and now it’s up to us to promote it!
If you’re entering the First Graphic Novel Award please post your entry before Easter! Our deadline for your entries to arrive is Tuesday 22nd April for a chance to win £500 and publication by @selfmadehero.bsky.social plus feedback on your entry. Huge thanks to @artscouncilengland.bsky.social
podcast: Ian Williams, Corinne Pearlman, Kelly Vassie, @myfanwytristram.bsky.social and Alex Fitch discuss how to create #comics for the @firstgraphicnovel.bsky.social - recorded at @waterstones.bsky.social Brighton, sponsored by selfmadehero.bsky.social - panelborders.wordpress.com/2025/04/09/p...
Is Alex Fitch too young to be legendary? The host of so much, including so many live comics events, ask him who was his favourite interviewee, what was the most challenging event he hosted, and who he’d most like to interview on his comics desert island?
Sifting through the first batch of entries at The Cartoon Museum! Three people have posted their comic but not included any contact name or details, and there’s no matching digital entry! It’ll be just over weeks from now until the deadline on 22 April so please send us your entries in good time!!
broadcast: Alex Fitch chats w/ Ian Williams about their joint experiences of judging the @firstgraphicnovel.bsky.social award, + to Kelly Vassie & @myfanwytristram.bsky.social about being long and short-listed for the prize. 5.30pm 5th Mar Resonance FM panelborders.wordpress.com/2025/03/02/n...
Monday night comics treat in person (Brighton) or online @molluscdimension.bsky.social visits Cartoon County www.cartooncounty.com/nextguest
2025 First Graphic Novel Award evenings at Brighton Waterstones - Tues 4 February at 19:00.
A page from à Myfanwy Tristram’s graphic novel The Noisy Valley, showing the Aldermaston march being photographed by David Hurn
A page from Satin and Tat, a graphic memoir by Myfanwy Tristram, showing teenage goths at a jumble sale
Myfanwy Tristram self portrait
Hey #brighton what’ya doing this Tues 4th? Come to Brighton Waterstones to hear all about the @firstgraphicnovel.bsky.social contest… and, if you make #comics too, how to enter it.
We now have a YouTube channel! Our recording of the launch event is here youtu.be/p8o1eVcwOnY?... , albeit without the first 10 mins so apologies to judge @karriefransman.bsky.social Thanks as ever @paulaknight.bsky.social for comments about accessibility. Way to go but we’re trying.
Open for your entries now! If you’re in the Brighton’hood on Tues 4 Feb, do join judges and judged to discuss the latest First Graphic Novel Award at 7pm Brighton Waterstones! If not, do watch insta live with @myfanwytristram.bsky.social Ian Williams Kelly Vassie Alex Fitch
Thank you, Bobby!
Thanks, Paula. Yes, we do need a YouTube channel; am exploring! As a live event we wanted people to come in person so we didn’t advertise it as a live event until a few days before. We will be doing another live event at 7pm on Tuesday 4th Feb at Brighton Waterstones, also on instagram live.
I hope you were able to watch our launch event on live instagram, or as a reel afterwards. Is that platform ok for you and/or is it better to upload onto a YouTube channel after?
You can choose wherever you like. Some people will just be starting from scratch; others might have been working on their books for ages!
Oh what a lovely idea! Thank you dear BF/Gosh! Pals!
Thank you, Andy! You were a brilliant judge!
Calling all UK comics creators 18+ who do not have an agent and have not had a full-length graphic work commercially published. Run by @selfmadehero.bsky.social The Cartoon Museum with #NationalLottery public funding through @artscouncilengland.bsky.social here's a chance to see your GN published!
Excited to get the show on the road again! Thanks to public funding by the National Lottery through @artscouncilengland.bsky.social , we are on our way!
We’ll be delighted to see you there!
Could your graphic novel make its debut in 2025? Check out the latest posts from @selfmadehero.bsky.social which remind us of the diverse and varied shortlist in last year’s award. An eclectic bunch if ever there was so no prescriptions about what were looking for! Submissions open 9 Jan - 22 April.