Shortlist for the 2017 Sanlam Prize for Youth Literature

Okay, so generally I don't just copy/paste press releases to my blog unless it's super awesome, and trust me, my precious dah-lings, this one's bloody super awesome. Yes, I'm a finalist for this prestigious award and I can't even begin to tell you how much the announcement has rocked my world. Those of you who're close to me know the many years' blood, sweat and toil that I've put into my writing, so to have gotten this far tickles me pink.

The story I wrote is about adventuring dwarven lasses who save their village from a rampaging dragon. And there's a witch. And a really cute baby dragon. And loads of action. And girls who don't want to be pigeonholed, and who want to be heroes... on their own terms. And, and, and ... You're going to have to read it when it's eventually ready.

A huge-ass congratulations to the other finalists! Now, to survive until October.

Oh, and have a celebratory sparkler.

SHORTLIST FOR THE 2017 SANLAM PRIZE FOR YOUTH LITERATURE ANNOUNCED

Sanlam and Tafelberg are proud to announce the finalists for this year’s Sanlam Prize for Youth Literature. Six finalists are included in each category: English, Afrikaans and African languages. The total prize money amounts to R54 000: R12 000 for the winner (gold) and R6 000 for the runner-up (silver) in each category.

The finalists in the English category are:
Nick Wood from London;
Nerine Dorman from Welcome Glen, Cape Town;
Lesley Beake from Stanford;
Joanne Hichens from Muizenberg;
Erna Müller from Windhoek; and
Jayne Bauling from White River.

The finalists in the Afrikaans category are:
Nellie Alberts from Calvinia;
Annerle Barnard from Bloemfontein;
Jan Vermeulen from Despatch;
Carin Krahtz from Centurion;
Riana Scheepers from Wilderness; and
Jelleke Wierenga from Napier.

African languages contenders are:
Nguni languages
Dumisani Hlatswayo from Cosmo City, Johannesburg;
Siphatheleni Kula from Butterworth (Eastern Cape); and
Thabi Nancy Mahamba from KwaNdebele (Mpumalanga).

Sotho languages
Mathete Piet Molope from The Tramshed, Pretoria;
Thabo Kheswa from Bophelong, Vanderbijlpark; and
Lebohang Jeanet Pheko from Meloding, Virginia.

Tshivenda languages
Lazarus Mamafha from Kutama, Zimbabwe; and
Thilivhali Thomas Mudau from Rosslyn, Pretoria.

Xitsonga languages
Musa Given Sithole from Kempton Park.

The winners will be announced in October 2017 and the prize-winning books will be available in bookshops and in e-book format shortly thereafter.

The Sanlam Prize for Youth Literature was launched in 1980 and is awarded every second year. This year Sanlam introduced the “250 Words a Day” campaign to make the competition more accessible to young and upcoming writers. By joining the “250 Words a Day” group on Facebook, entrants had access to a panel of renowned authors who acted as writing mentors. To motivate would-be authors to complete their manuscripts before the closing date of 7 October 2016, they were encouraged to write 250 words every day. Author and mentor Page Nick says she loved being part of the project. “The thought of writing a whole book all at once is overwhelming, but breaking it down into chunks makes it much more doable. Congratulations to every writer who finished a piece and submitted it to the competition, it's a huge achievement.”

Apart from making the competition more interactive and reaching a broader audience, the total amount of entries grew by 60 from the previous round.

Number of entries per language:
English: 55
Afrikaans: 33
Zulu: 14
Venda: 7
Xhosa: 7
Xitsonga: 5
Ndebele: 4
Sesotho: 4
Setswana: 3
Sepedi: 2

"As Wealthsmiths, we have a deep understanding of and respect for what it takes to turn the twenty-six letters of the alphabet into something of great value.  The Sanlam Prize for Youth Literature celebrates writers’ ability to make the most of what they have. Their books create enriching experiences for our youth and have the ability to take readers on journeys that will make them cry, or scare them, and to places that will stay with them forever," says Elena Meyer (Senior Manager:  Sponsorships for Sanlam).