"In the Soviet Union...Unofficial literature could not be published and could not receive awards; it could, however, carry a lengthy prison sentence."

http://www.thenation.com/article/173768/oligarchs-and-graphomaniacs?page=full

Oligarchs and Graphomaniacs

Sophie Pinkham 

April 10, 2013   

"In the Soviet Union, literary prizes were awarded in the Kremlin, the proceedings broadcast on the national television channel. Writers could be honored with the Lenin Prize, the State Prize of the USSR or the Award of the Komsomol. The editor of a major literary journal could be a member of the Supreme Soviet, with a rank equivalent to that of a field marshal. Literature, like the other arts, was either official or unofficial. Official literature was written by unionized writers, approved by the government and published by state presses. Unofficial literature could not be published and could not receive awards; it could, however, carry a lengthy prison sentence. Writers were important people."