Application

Apply now until 15 July 2026 for the Treffen junger Autor*innen.

You like to write poems, plays, short stories, slam poetry or experiment with language?
Do you want to present your texts to an audience at a reading in Berlin?
Would you like to meet other young authors, exchange ideas with professionals, and try out writing workshops?

Then apply now for the Treffen junger Autor*innen!
The winners will travel to Berlin for a five‑day festival.
Another 20 authors will receive a book voucher and a one‑year subscription to a literary magazine.

For all young authors between 11 and 21 years.

Young Authors Wanted!

You can submit up to five pages of text or ten poems. It is also possible to submit texts in other languages or multilingual texts.

The Treffen junger Autor*innen offers the invited award winners a platform to present their work, drawing attention to the concerns, themes, and perspectives of young writers. At the same time, the meeting provides a protected space where young artists can connect, inspire one another, and, with professional guidance from experienced authors and workshop leaders, be encouraged to further develop their personal artistic expression.

All costs for participating in the Young Authors’ Meeting will be covered.orkshop leaders.

Learn more about the Treffen junger Autor*innen

Dates for the Treffen junger Autor*innen 2026

Start for applications 5 March 2026
Deadline for applications 15 July 2026
Q&A digital on the application with the team (digital) 30 June 2026, 17:00,
registration via treffenjungeszene@berlinerfestspiele.de
Announcement of the final selection 15 September 2026
Treffen junger Autor*innen 26 to 30 November 2026

Conditions of Application

You can apply if you are between 11 and 21 years old.
As this is a national competition, unfortunately only applications from within the Federal Republic of Germany can be considered.
Repeat applications are possible. Authors who have already won a prize must pause their application for one year.

Applications

Applications have to be made via our Application Portal (in German only). After you registration you can provide all the necessary details for your application. You can also upload the following application material:

Text manuscripts: no longer than five pages in total (excerpt if applicable), or a maximum of 10 lyrical texts and a maximum of one text in another language or a multilingual text.
Additions to texts in other languages or mixed languages: Please explain briefly what the text is about. Or maybe you have the possibility to include a rough translation (not an artistic text). Of course, we are also curious to know why you are writing in the respective language. You are also welcome to write something about it.
If applicable, explanation of the use of artificial intelligence (AI):
Do you use AI in your artistic work process? Please explain exactly how you use AI, what you use it for, and why you decided to use AI as a tool. Please indicate what was created with AI.

Please observe the following format requirements: Font size at least 10, line spacing at least 1.5 and clearly labelled footers: Title + author + page number. The best format for submission is a single PDF file. Texts may also be uploaded as individual files, but should not exceed a total of five pages.

If you have any questions of problems using our new application portal, please contact us by phone under +49 30 254 89 113 or by e-mail treffenjungeszene@berlinerfestspiele.de.

If selected by the jury, the submitted texts may not be revised or substantially altered. The text is binding in the form in which the jury read it in the application and subsequently selected it. In the case of texts that are not yet complete, the part presented at the time of submission must be representative of the planned concept of the text.

Selection

An independent jury will select approximately twenty authors and their texts from the applications received. Up to twenty additional applicants will receive a book voucher worth 75 euros and an annual subscription to a literary magazine.

The selection process will be completed in mid-September. The jury's decision is final – there is no right of appeal.

Selection Criteria of the Jury

The jury is looking for remarkable and exemplary texts by the younger generation. In order to be able to compare the submitted applications, the jury looks for certain characteristics in the texts.

These characteristics are important to the jury:

An independence and seriousness of literary writing is noticeable
The texts convey a sense of curiosity and move beyond established patterns
The texts develop their own voice and perspective, an individual language is recognisable
The authors show courage and originality
There is an urgency and weightiness to the content The texts deal with specific issues and there is a thoughtful examination of the topics
There is a flow when reading the texts
There is an interplay between form and content, a sense of structure, rhythm, narrative arc and the end of the text

Documentation

In the event of selection for the Treffen junger Autor*innen, I agree to the following:

The publication of my texts in the anthology.
The publication of excerpts from the texts on the websites and social media accounts of the Berliner Festspiele / Treffen junge Szene.
The recordings of the readings made at the festival will be available to interested parties in the Berliner Festspiele media library for an agreed period of time and will then be stored for the purpose of archiving the festival.
Photo and video material created on behalf of Treffen junge Szene during the festival may be used for documentation purposes in publications and on the internet.

The rights to the texts remain with the author.