You can read an extract from ‘Blue Swirls’ here.
PRESS RELEASE
The Carmel Bird Digital Literary Award longlist announced
Eleven finalists have been announced by renowned Australian author Carmel Bird in the first year of the Carmel Bird Digital Literary Award.
Launched at the State Library Victoria in December 2017, The Carmel Bird Digital Literary Award showcases new works of short fiction from Australian and overseas writers. The longlist was judged from a field of over 130 submissions, including short story collections as well as novellas, many of which included digital narratives with multimedia elements.
Carmel Bird was pleased with the diversity of entries to the award: “I was surprised and delighted to see the large number of entries, coming from a great range of writers, some of whom were unpublished, many of whom were students in writing courses, and others who were established writers.”
“It was fascinating to observe what was a kind of broad snapshot of the thinking and practice of fiction-writing in Australia today. The energy of so much of the work, the range of subject-matter, and the confidence in the use of language and form were a source of great pleasure,” Ms Bird said.
Finalists in the 2018 Carmel Bird Digital Literary Award will be showcased by State Library Victoria via the online platform, Tablo. Visitors to Library’s Tablo page will be able to read and respond to an extract from each submission. The three winning entrants will receive cash prizes totalling $5000 as well as publishing agreements with Spineless Wonders. The winners will be announced in September.
Justine Hyde, State Library Victoria’s Director of Library Services and Experience, said the Library was always looking for new ways to shine a light on digital writing: “The Carmel Bird Digital Literary Award is a great way for us to highlight talented and creative authors who bring together the literary and digital worlds. We are thrilled to support this award in unearthing innovative and exciting new digital work.”
The longlisted entries are:
Ashley Kalagian Blunt, Flicker of Justice, No More
Craig Cormick, Everybody Loves a Good Cook Book
Susie Greenhill, Maps for the Lost
Mel Hall, Goodbye Tom Morrow
William Lane, Small Forest
Catherine Moffat, Remnants of Sound
Ruairi Murphy, Two Sets of Books
Arna Radovich, Mosaic of Loss
Bronwyn Rodden, Darkness
Guy Salvidge, The Dying Rain – And Other Forays into the Bramble Noir
Beth Spencer, The Age of Fibs