Mao Dun Literature Prize


Mao Dun Literature Prize is a prize for novels, established in the will of prominent Chinese writer Mao Dun and sponsored by the China Writers Association. Awarded every four years, it is one of the most prestigious literature prizes in China. It was first awarded in 1982.

Selection rules

According to selection rule, any work, authored by Chinese nationals, published in mainland China, and with over 130,000 characters, is eligible.
The selection committee in the Chinese Writers Association holds the voting poll twice, and the winner must receive over 2/3 of the votes cast. The process is highly selective and each time, the number of winners is between three and five. The prize is awarded every four years, though it was originally awarded every three years.

Criticism

The award was recently criticized for the 2011 awards, when it was revealed that eight of the top ten on the list were either the chair or vice-chairpersons of prominent provincial writers' associations. An editorial in the China Daily stated "official status cannot and should not be a criterion for literary excellence. That's why people doubt the authenticity of prizes that are awarded to officials for their literary achievements."
To avoid such controversy, novelist Tie Ning decided her works will not enter the awards as long as she is chairwoman of China Writers Association, a position she took in 2006.

Winners and nominees

Note: English titles may be literal and not book translations.
;1982
;1985
;1991
;1997
;2000
Awarded in Mao Dun's hometown, Tongxiang, Zhejiang on November 11, 2000
;2005
;2008
YearFinal round votesAuthorWork
8th
2011		---
8th
2011		58/61Zhang WeiOn the Plateau
8th
2011		56/61Liu XinglongSkywalker
8th
2011		54/61Mo YanFrog
8th
2011		48/61Bi FeiyuMassage
8th
2011		46/61Liu ZhenyunA Word Is Worth Ten Thousand Words
8th
2011		15/61Guan RenshanMai River
8th
2011		9/61Guo WenbinLunar Calendar
8th
2011		9/61Deng YiguangI'm My God
8th
2011		7/61Jiang ZilongThe Peasant Empire
8th
2011		4/61Liu QingbangA Land Cast in Moonlight
9th
2015		---
9th
2015		57/61Ge FeiJiangnan Trilogy
9th
2015		55/61Wang MengScenery on This Side
9th
2015		54/61Li PeifuThe Book of Life
9th
2015		51/61Jin YuchengBlossoms
9th
2015		40/61Su TongBeware of the Siskin
9th
2015		14/61Yan ZhenAbove Living
9th
2015		13/61Hong KeKalabu Storm
9th
2015		9/61Xu ZechenJerusalem
9th
2015		7/61Fan WenMy Blood, My Land
9th
2015		5/61Lin BaiGoing North
10th
2018		---
10th
2018		Chen YanThe Protagonist
10th
2018		Li ErProfessor Ying Wu
10th
2018		Liang XiaoshengHuman World
10th
2018		Xu HuaizhongStory of the Towing Wind
10th
2018		Xu ZechenNorthward
10th
2018		---
10th
2018		---
10th
2018		---
10th
2018		---
10th
2018		---