PEN Canada Launches 2nd Annual New Voices Award for Emerging Writers

TORONTO, Feb. 3, 2014 /CNW/ - PEN Canada is pleased to announce the second PEN International New Voices Award. The annual award aims to encourage new writing and to provide a space where young, unpublished writers can submit their work. The winning writer, selected from the submissions of PEN centres around the world, will be published by PEN International and will receive a $1000 prize.

PEN Canada is now accepting submissions up to midnight April 3, 2014. Once these have been reviewed, an independent jury will review a shortlist and submit one entry to the international jury.

Submissions to PEN Canada must be in English. The chosen entry will be translated into PEN's two other official languages (Spanish, French) and submitted to PEN International. All judging will be blind. Detailed submission guidelines can be found on our website www.pencanada.ca.

Claire Battershill, PEN Canada's nomination for the inaugural New Voices Award, was shortlisted for the award. She was invited to read her short story "The Collective Name for Ninjas" at PEN International's Congress in Reykjavík in September 2013.

PEN Canada is a nonpartisan organization of writers that works with others to defend freedom of expression as a basic human right at home and abroad. PEN Canada promotes literature, fights censorship, helps free persecuted writers from prison, and assists writers living in exile in Canada. www.pencanada.ca

SOURCE: PEN Canada

Mica McCurdy, Events Coordinator, [email protected], [phone] ext. 27