Today is the last day (for those of you interested) to either submit a short short, or an analysis of a story in order to win a copy of 63 of the world's best short stories. There are of course more than 63 of them out there, but those compiled in The Art of the Short Story, along with comments by the authors and other essays on several aspects of literature, make this collection a wonderful keepsake.
Andre, Kwesi, Stolid, and Brass thank you so much for your entertaining reads. I hope you enjoy the collection. And thanks also to those who commented on their stories.
Next month I'll post another small writing challenge for the prize of a collection of stories by an exciting group of Trinidadian writers titled, Trinidad Noir.
The Akashic Books Noir series, which was launched in the Summer of 2004 with Brooklyn Noir includes collections of stories set in several U.S. cities, Paris, Istanbul, Rome, Dublin, and London, with many others forthcoming, including Haiti Noir, and Delhi Noir. Noir fiction may typically be the mystery/crime/erotic type of story, but I suspect that these collections of Noir stories add something else to the evolution of that tradition.
This mission statement leads me to think so:
Akashic Books is a Brooklyn-based independent company dedicated to publishing urban literary fiction and political nonfiction by authors who are either ignored by the mainstream, or who have no interest in working within the ever-consolidating ranks of the major corporate publishers.
Now doesn't that mission statement seem perfect for the undertaking of a collection by Guyanese writers with fresh, riveting stories of their own? Do I hear calls for a Guyana Noir?
Ruel let us stop talking and get to work on making that happen soon.
Meanwhile, keep working on those stories for Signifyin' Guyana's short story competition. The deadline's looming. And, keep an eye out for the next writing challenge, which (unlike the short story competition for Guyanese writers living in Guyana ONLY) will be open to everyone.
