Sunday 24 February 2008

William Trevor Short Story Competition


Well,
The shortlist for the William Trevor Short Story Competition has been announced.
It was judged by Seamus Hosey, a well known producer from RTE radio. Not by Mr Trevor. I wonder is he judging the cutdown list? The site says he is the 2007 adjudicator. The competition fee was 20 Euro in bank draft only so not surprisingingly, although they had a international competitor list, only 2 of the 14 are from outside Ireland, both London. A commentor on my blog says the organisers told him only a small percentage were submitted from outside Ireland so it's probably just a proportion thing.

Steve Smithson London, Passing the Leek.
Ivy Bannister Dublin, Archaeology of the Soul.
Tanya Farrelly Dublin, By the River's Edge.
Philip Lumley Offaly, Small Voices.
Jo Campbell London, Staging Post.
Rosalind Lloyd Wexford, Passing Time.
Orla Shanaghy Waterford. Yesterday's Snow.
Imelda Carroll Wexford, The Elephant in the Room.
Richard Stevens Dublin, Rex.
Mary O'Shea Cork, The Winter Visit.
James Martyn Galway, Angelground.
Orlaith O'Sullivan Dublin, Louisa and the Sea.
Thalia Miller Dublin, The Blue Olive Tree.
Alyn Fenn West Cork, The Wire Road.

And one story was withdrawn after what sounds like a bit of a kerfuffle. I hope there is not problem chosing a good winner. First prize is 3,500 Euro. I wonder is it in a bank draft too!

Now worryingly, following the contentious Willesden Herald competition, last years (aka 2006) William Trevor Short Story Competition had no winner. The site said

William Trevor has completed his adjudication of the short-listed entries in the William Trevor Short Story Competition 2006. There was an excellent response to the competition with entries being received from Australia, England, India, Italy, Scotland, Singapore and U.S.A. as well as nearly every county in Ireland.


He chose five stories as being worthy of prizes, one by a name I know, but did not award the cash prize:

The first prize in the competition had a cash value of, circa, € 2,500. William Trevor decided against the awarding of this substantial prize.

It didn't say exactly why.

The competition will run in 2008 under the title of the Mitchelstown Short Story Prize. Consult this site after 01/08/2008 for further information on this competition.

5 comments:

fedora said...

I figured I'd been conned. I went to the bank to get a bank draft for twenty euro from a suspicious bank clerk. I said it was for a short story competition. He was even more suspicious. I said William Trevor would be reading it. He nodded and I left and went to the post office to send my story and twenty euro draft for William Trevor... who I've not heard back from.
Fedora

Emerging Writer said...

I doubt Seamus Hosey would be knowingly involved in a scam and I do know one of the writers shortlisted last year so I expect it's just badly run.

A writer of character :-) said...

Conned, all right.
Just checked the website and read that Seamus Hosey has chosen the winner and runners-up ( their names are listed).
What bothers me is that also on the website, the organisers finally reveal that Trevor contacted them in December 2007 to tell them he would not be able to adjudicate. And yet, they did not have the decency to post that info immediately on the site and offer apologies for the switch.
At that time they should also have given entrants the option to have their money refunded ( deadline was November 2007 and they knew in December about Trevor's non-participation). I know that I, for one, entered this contest solely because Trevor ( one of my favourite writers) would be adjudicating.
I don't find fault with either Trevor or Hosey but I do with the contest organisers.

Ethical Scribe aka Writer of Character.

Emerging Writer said...

I don't know why anyone would want their money back just because the judge of the last few stories has changed. But I didn't enter...

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