Why We Built an Award for Thrillers AND Greece Fiction

We run retreats. We run a publishing house. Between us, Jonas has written 60 thriller novels, and I’ve written psychological thrillers of my own. So when we decided to launch a literary award, the obvious move would have been to pick one lane — thrillers, since that’s where Jonas’s name carries weight, or Greece fiction, since that’s where I live and write.

We didn’t pick one lane. We built the Homer Awards around both.

Here’s why.

Two genres, one gap

Thriller writers have award options. Greece-set fiction writers have almost none. We saw a chance to give both communities something they didn’t have: a prize with real jury weight, a manuscript track that leads to an actual publishing deal, and a ceremony tied to a place that means something — Nafplio, and BOOKfest.

It’s not a marketing add-on

A lot of author awards exist to sell entry fees. Ours doesn’t work that way. The jury tracks are judged by working authors and editors who know the genre. The community tracks are voted on by readers who actually read the books. And the ceremony isn’t a Zoom call — it’s part of a retreat in Greece, the same kind of gathering we’ve been running for years.

That’s the throughline. We already know how to bring readers and authors together in person. The Homer Awards is that same instinct, pointed at recognition instead of just travel.

Why Greece Fiction specifically

This part is personal. The Markos Synodinos Award, part of the Homer Awards, exists because Greek literary voices deserve a bigger stage than they usually get in English-language publishing. That’s not a market gap we’re filling opportunistically — it’s one we’ve felt for a long time.

What this means for you

If you write thrillers or fiction set in Greece, submissions are open. If you’d rather read than write, our community tracks let you vote on the books you love. And if you want to see the winners announced in person, the ceremony is part of our October 2027 retreat in the Nafplio/Tolo area.

Full details and submission dates: homerawards.com