The inaugural Stella Prize Longlist was released today. The announcement, for the first ever longlist of the best work of literature published in 2012 by an Australian woman, even trended on twitter. The award is named after one of Australia's most important female authors, Stella Maria 'Miles' Franklin.

The Stella Prize will be awarded on April 16, with the winner receiving $50,000 in prize money. The longlist is comprised of:

• Floundering by Romy Ash (Text Publishing)
• Mazin Grace by Dylan Coleman (UQP)
• The Burial by Courtney Collins (Allen & Unwin)
• The People Smuggler by Robin de Crespigny (Penguin/Viking)
• Questions of Travel by Michelle de Kretser (Allen & Unwin)
• Sufficient Grace by Amy Espeseth (Scribe Publications)
• The Sunlit Zone by Lisa Jacobson (5 Islands Press)
• Like a House on Fire by Cate Kennedy (Scribe Publications)
• Sea Hearts by Margo Lanagan (Allen & Unwin)
• The Mind of a Thief by Patti Miller (UQP)
• An Opening by Stephanie Radok (Wakefield Press)
• Mateship with Birds by Carrie Tiffany (Pan Macmillan/Picador)