German Poetry and Fiction Prizes Leonce‑und‑Lena and Wolfgang‑Koeppen Set for 2026‑27

The city of Darmstadt announced the 25th Literarischer März poetry competition for 2027, offering the Leonce‑und‑Lena prize of €8,000 and two Wolfgang‑Weyrauch‑Förderpreise of €4,000 each for young German‑language poets born after 1991. Submissions – up to twelve poems in PDF – must be received by 15 September 2026 and cannot have been published in book form.

Separately, the Wolfgang‑Koeppen‑Preis for 2026 was awarded to novelist Charlotte Gneuß. The €5,000 prize, proposed by former laureate Madame Nielsen, will be presented in September 2026 in Greifswald’s Literaturhaus Vorpommern. Gneuß, born in 1992, is known for her debut novel Gittersee, which has earned multiple literary awards and nominations, including a long‑list spot for the German Book Prize 2023.