Never too late: over-50s urged to write fiction with prize for debut novel

Raynor Winn was 55 when she published her debut novel, The Salt Path. Photograph: Karen Robinson/The Observer

London book fair, which concluded earlier this month, always brings with it a flurry of headlines about debut authors signing six-figure publishing deals. Most of these have at least one thing in common – their youth.

As a result, anyone with an ambition to be a novelist might think that the ship has sailed once they leave their 30s. But fear not: there’s an increasing drive to encourage those who come to writing past the first flush of youth that it’s never too late.