2015 Gratiaen Prize to open for submissions

Friday, 23 October 2015 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Submissions for the Gratiaen Prize 2015 will open from 1 to 31 December. The prize covers a wide range of genres including fiction, poetry, creative prose and literary memoir. More details on prize submission and regulations can be found on www.gratiaen.com.

The Gratiaen Prize has the singular distinction of being the only prize for Sri Lankan creative writing in English that has been awarded without a break since its inception in 1993 and it is unique in accepting unpublished work to foster the emergence of new literary talent.

Founded and funded by Michael Ondaatje with the prize money he received as joint winner of the Booker Prize for his novel ‘The English Patient’, and administered by the Gratiaen Trust, the prize is worth Rs. 200,000. This year is special for both the Gratiaen Prize and the Gratiaen Trust because they have entered into a new long-term partnership with Sarasavi Bookshop Ltd., one of Sri Lanka’s leading book publishers and retailers.

Speaking on behalf of the Gratiaen Trust, Chairman Prof. Walter Perera stated, “We are excited at the potential opportunities this partnership offers and look forward to close cooperation with Sarasavi who have been our official booksellers for over five years. In many ways Sarasavi as a book publisher is a ‘natural’ home for a literary prize like ours.” He went on to state that as in the past the Trust will be solely responsible for all aspects of prize administration including selection of judges and the handling of submissions.

The sponsors will support the Trust in organising and funding the main prize-awarding event. Sarasavi Bookshop Ltd. Managing Director H.D. Premasiri said, “We are very happy that the Gratiaen Trust has decided to partner with us. As a socially conscious book publisher and bookseller we are always on the lookout to support literary initiatives that enliven the literary and cultural milieu of the country. The Gratiaen Prize has established itself as the premier prize for English writing in Sri Lanka over the last two decades.”

Previous winners of the Gratiaen Prize include the late Nihal de Silva (The Road from Elephant Pass), Punyakante Wijenaike (Amulet), the late Tissa Abaysekera (Bringing Tony Home) and Ruwanthie de Chickera (The Middle of Silence). Shehan Karunatilaka’s ‘Chinaman: The Legend of Pradeep Mathew’, which won the Gratiaen Prize in 2008, subsequently received the DSC Prize for South Asian Literature and the Commonwealth Book Prize.

The Gratiaen prize is now a well established event in Sri Lanka’s literary calendar, attracting a wide range of writers from all across the island. It has been successful in nurturing the English writing tradition in the country for two decades.

For further information, please contact: [email protected].