BNZ Literary Awards calling all aspiring writers

BNZ Literary Awards calling all aspiring writers

BNZ is putting out the call for New Zealand’s best published, novice, student and short story writers, as the BNZ Literary Awards entries open for 2014.

With a 56 year history and a $10,000 grand prize, the country’s preeminent short story awards continue to boom. 2013 was the most successful year in the award’s history with a 20% increase in entries across all four categories from the previous year.

BNZ executive team member, Andy Symons says, “For over half a century now, BNZ has been supporting literature and the arts in New Zealand. Every year we are encouraged and impressed by the depth of talent we have in New Zealand. So many of our past winners have gone on to become some of the country’s most well know authors and key figures in the literary world confirming the importance of events and competitions like this.”

The judges for this year’s competition include Charlotte Grimshaw who will be judging the Katherine Mansfield award, Pip Adams judging the Novice Writer category, Elizabeth Know judging the Young Writers category, and Graham Beattie returning for a fourth year as judge of the Short Short story category. Charlotte Grimshaw also won the Katherine Mansfield award herself in 2006.

Prizes for each category are:
• BNZ Katherine Mansfield Award - $10,000 prize money
• BNZ Novice Writer Award- for unpublished writers - $1,500 prize money
• BNZ Young Writer Award - for writers who are at secondary school - $1,500 for the student and $2000 for the winner's school.
• BNZ Short Short Story Award - $500 prize money

Entries are now open and close June 30 2014. Applicants can enter the three main categories via BNZ’s website, www.bnz.co.nz/ literaryawards. Entries for the Short Short story can enter via the bank’s facebook page, www.bnz.co/bnzstoryart.

The winners will be announced later this year in September in an awards ceremony in Wellington.

ENDS

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