“A prize is a great comfort to all of those who have decided to write, a way of jumping
inside the cage of literature. A cage that can be full of dangerous and wild animals, but
which is the only possible place where a writer can exist”.
Santiago Gamboa, Author & Judge.
To mark the celebration of its fifth anniversary, Colombiage is delighted to announce its
new global initiative – the Colombiage Fiction Prize – created to give unrepresented,
unpublished Colombian fiction writers an opportunity to be discovered on the international
stage.
The Colombiage Fiction Prize was born out of a desire to discover, nurture and promote
original literary voices from Colombia, recognising the talent and ambition of a new
generation of writers with compelling new stories to tell. Entrants for the prize must have
completed or be close to completing a novel; the fiction can embrace any genre although
the story and the writing should be distinctive and absorbing. Submissions will be accepted
in either English or Spanish.
Colombiage Founder & Artistic Director Landa Acevedo-Scott says, ‘At Colombiage we
are all about nurturing talent and helping that talent tell their own stories. We can’t think of a better way of doing this than through the incredible power of literature.’
The selection process will be led by critically acclaimed author and philosopher Oscar
Guardiola-Rivera, joined by the celebrated Santiago Gamboa along with the eminent
Juan Gabriel Vasquez acting as Patron for the prize. A shortlist will be announced on the 21st March 2013.
The prize winner will be awarded £1,000 cash and literary representation by two
prestigious agencies, Casanovas & Lynch in Spain and Tibor Jones & Associates in
the UK. The winner will be announced at the Bogotá International Book Fair in April
2013, the most relevant editorial and cultural event in Colombia.
The Prize follows the format of the Tibor Jones Pageturner Prize in the UK, which has
already led to two book deals, one of which was the result of an 11-way UK auction won
by Harper Collins for Nathan Filer’s THE SHOCK OF THE FALL; and the Tibor Jones
South Asia Prize, where the inaugural winner, Sri Sen, landed a prestigious deal with
Picador India for THE SKINNING TREE.
Submissions for the Colombiage Fiction Prize 2013 prize are now open through to 24th
January 2013. The prize is distinct in that manuscripts are submitted by up-and-coming,
unrepresented writers of Colombian origin* who have not been published before.
“A literary prize independent of the interests of big publishers, awarding writers on the
basis of their capacity to surprise and produce something unexpected in literature is a
crucial development”. Oscar Guardiola-Rivera, Author & Chair of the Judges.
* By Colombian origin we mean: Colombian nationals living in Colombia and abroad;
Colombians born in Colombia holding a foreign passport; second generation Colombians
i.e. those foreign nationals (UK and beyond) born to Colombian parents.
Key dates & info
• Submissions open: October 31, 2012
• Submissions close: January 24, 2013
• Submissions email: fictionprize@colombiage.com
• Shortlist will be announced on March 21 2013.
• For more information on the rules attached to the prize, please visit
http://www.colombiage.com/fiction-prize
Notes to editors
A Spanish version of the press release is also available on request.
For press enquiries please contact:
In the UK – Sophie Hignett, Colombiage Fiction Prize / 020 7733 0555 /
shignett@tiborjones.com
In Colombia – Ana Maria Diaz, Colombiage Fiction Prize / ana@colombiage.com
For general press enquiries relating to Colombiage please email press@colombiage.com
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About Colombiage
Colombiage is Europe’s most influential celebration of contemporary Colombian arts and
culture. Launched in November 2007, Colombiage was born out of the need to give our
talented writers, musicians and filmmakers a meaningful voice on the international stage.
Since its inception, Colombiage has:
- Created a forward-thinking platform for intercultural exchange between Colombia and the UK.
- Premiered the work of over 100 Colombian writers, musicians, filmmakers and artists in London.
- Engaged and entertained approximately 20,000 people with an unrivalled programme of events spanning music, theatre, dance, film, literature, visual arts and current affairs.
- Worked with internationally renowned artists including Manu Chao.
- Worked with some of the UK’s landmark cultural centres, including the Southbank Centre, the Barbican Centre, the RichMix, the Roundhouse and the Riverside Studios.
- Consolidated solid partnerships with some of the most dynamic movers and shakers in the cultural landscape including the Hay Festival, the BBC, and Como No!
For more information on Colombiage, visit http://www.colombiage.com
About Tibor Jones
Tibor Jones & Associates was co-founded in 2007 by Kevin Conroy Scott and Landa
Acevedo-Scott as a literary agency and arts consultancy dedicated to building the careers
of the serious authors and creatives of their generation. The ambition of the company is to
keep a small list of authors and help those authors achieve their vision wherever their
ideas take them.
The company name is a dedication to two people: Tibor Kalman, the late graphic designer
who said, ‘I do something once and I fuck it up, I do it a second time and I get it right and
the third time I move on. If you do this you can achieve an incredible ecstasy of learning.’
And Nerys Jones, an author of profound character who passed away unexpectedly before
the company was established.