The Library project is launching a competition for young writers

Publicēts: 18.02.2021

The reading promotion project “Library” announces an application for the competition of young writers' novels, as a result of which, with the support of the long-term patron of Latvian literature “Baltic International Bank”, one previously unpublished author's work will be published. It is possible to apply for the competition until April 1 of this year, manuscripts must be submitted by August 31 of this year.

The competition for young writers of the “Library” has been created with the aim of promoting the growth of young Latvian prose writers. The winner's work will receive financial support of 3,000 EUR for the publication of the novel, paid publicity within the project "Library", as well as the opportunity to spend one calendar month at the International House of Writers and Translators (SRTM) in Ventspils.

To participate, new writers must first apply for the competition by filling out the application form here . In turn, the works can be submitted within the next six months. The organizers hope that such an approach will motivate not only those writers whose work has already been completed to participate, but will also encourage those who have started or are just about to start novels to write more actively.

Anyone over the age of 18 who does not have a published book in the novel genre registered with the National Library of Latvia (LNL) and who is not the author of books of any genre, which have a circulation of more than 2,000 copies, may submit a manuscript to the competition. In order to encourage the growth of young writers and young people interested in reading, the organizers have determined that works corresponding to a literary work written in the novel genre, which can interest readers aged 18 to 30, can be submitted to the competition. The submitted work can be a novel of love, fantasy, fantasy, adventure or any other genre. The work can be both fiction and based on real events. The submitted work must be in Latvian and at least 50,000 words long. These and other rules of the competition can be found in more detail in the competition regulations .

There is a participation fee for the competition, which will be divided according to the "early bird" and "late bird" principles. All financial resources that the organizer will receive from the competition participation fee will be directed to the most important annual event in the field of literature - the Latvian Literature of the Year Award (LALIGABA) - supported annually by the initiator of the project “Library” Baltic International Bank.

The evaluation of the works will take place in several rounds. First of all, in cooperation with the LNL, the compliance of the participants and the authors of the submitted manuscripts and works with the competition regulations will be assessed. Secondly, excerpts from the manuscripts will be put to a public vote and will also be evaluated by a jury. After that, five favorites of the public vote and five favorites of the jury will be nominated for the semi-finals and submitted to the jury for evaluation. As a result of the jury's evaluation, the three best works will be submitted to the publishing house "Dienas Kirjan", which will select the winner. The work evaluation process is planned to take two months.

"Every outstanding author has once experienced a crucial moment - to start work, to take the first step towards achievement," says Ekaterina Belokoņa, the author and initiator of the project "Library". "Believing in yourself and your abilities is the biggest challenge of today, especially in literature, because its value flourishes and is only revealed in the long run. I also know how important it is to get the feeling that someone supports you and believes in your strength. With this competition, we want to give encouragement to young writers - to be brave, to dare to show their work to the general public. This is a new beginning for us, the project "Library", so we hope for the response and support of the young writers, because the goal is the same for all of us - literature. Literature allows us to talk and perpetuate our achievements, experiences, solutions, spiritual values. Literature and language are the key to the longevity of every nation. They are a means of developing our intellectual and creative abilities and learning about life. ”

Cooperation partners of the young writers' competition: National Library of Latvia, Latvian Literature of the Year Award (LALIGABA), Ventspils International House of Writers and Translators, publishing house "Dienas raamat".

The competition for young writers is an initiative of the fourth season of the reading promotion project "Library". The project “Library” is a social project initiated by the patron of Latvian literature “Baltic International Bank” with the aim to promote reading and writing in Latvia. The “Library” started its operation in 2018, publishing a series of interviews with significant figures in Latvian literature and culture about the value of literature in human life. Thanks to the wide public response and involvement, in 2019 the project was continued with the creation of the traveling exhibition "Family Book", while in 2020 a series was created for families with young children "Love the Book!" and the publication “Coat of Arms of Latvia in Modern Latvia” was published. Within the framework of the project, initiatives and calls for various groups of the society are regularly developed, with the aim to pay attention to literature as an inherited value and to promote the development of reading habits in the society. More information on the website of the project “Library”: www.manabiblioteka.lv and social network profiles Instagram, Facebook and Twitter (@manabiblioteka).

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Additional information:
Daiga Katrīna Bitēna
Coordinator and content creator of the project “Library”
daiga.bitena@gmail.com
+ (371) 25629847