Bessie Head Literature Awards Extend Deadline

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS- Deadline Extended

2013 Bessie Head Literature Awards

(sponsored by Pentagon Publishers)

Novel, Short Story, Children's Story

P10,000 in Prizes!

Bessie Head Heritage Trust and Pentagon Publishers announce prizes in literature,

three prizes to be awarded each for novel, short story, and children's story.

Residents and citizens of Botswana are invited to submit manuscripts on any topic in one of the above categories. Categories are defined according to standard literary

characteristics, and are limited to the following lengths:

Novel 40,000 words and up

Short story 10,000 words /10 pages

Children's Story 10,000 words /10 pages NOTEXT

All submissions must adhere to the following criteria:

1. All work must be original, unpublished and not submitted to any publisher.

2. All manuscripts must be typed. No handwritten manuscripts will be accepted.

You must submit four copies of your work. You must submit by post; no

emailed entries will be accepted.

3. No more than one submission (novel, short story, or children's story) per

person. You may only submit in one category.

4. No school assignments will be accepted as submissions.

5. All submissions must include one cover page with the following information:

author's name (no pen-names will be accepted), at least two ways the

author can be contacted (telephone and post or email), a clear statement

of the category of the manuscript (“novel”, “short story”, or “children's

story”), and its title. All submissions must also include one photocopy of

Omang, passport and residence certificate, or other form of ID (this copy

need not be certified). The first page of the manuscript (not the cover

page) must also state clearly the category and title of the manuscript.

6. All submissions must be written in English, and be thoroughly revised and

proofread for grammar and spelling.

7. Except for the cover page, manuscripts must not have the author's name on

them. Judges will judge all submissions blindly; that is, they must not be

able to identify the author. Any submissions that do not follow the above criteria will be disqualified. Authors are advised that they may be asked to authenticate their work, and therefore should not destroy any drafts, including the first one, since winners may be asked to produce them as proof of originality.

Contestants may only win once in each category (once you win, you are barred from

entering in the same category again for three years), and contestants must enter their

own work (a publisher or friend may not enter your work).

Novel              Short Story                             Children's Story

First prize                   P 2500             P 1500                                     P 1200

First runner-up           P1200              P900                                        P800

Second runner-up       P800                P600                                        P500

Send your cover page, copy of identification, and four copies of your manuscript to:

Bessie Head Literature Awards

P.O. Box 70401

Gaborone

Deadline: All entries must be postmarked by 23 August 2013

Winners announced at mid-October on website www.bessiehead.org

Prize-giving ceremony details to be announced.

Queries to bessiehead@gmail.com or visit www.bessiehead.org/awards/FAQ-Lit-Awards.htm

Bessie Head Heritage Trust members, Pentagon Publisher employees, contest judges, and members of their families are prohibited from entering. Pentagon Publishers reserves the right to publish prize-winning manuscripts and to evaluate the remaining manuscripts for publication. All manuscripts will be deposited with Bessie Head Heritage Trust; however, Pentagon Publishers acknowledges the substance of the rights of copyright in the manuscript and the lawfulness and validity of the copyright holder's rights and title to the rights of copyright in the manuscript.