ADAM SWEET AND “NEW YEAR’S EVEY” WIN THE BRNO SHORT STORY WRITING CONTEST

“Kuba’s Rotation” by Theo Singleton Is Second

“Dark Horse” by Maja Vusilović Is Third

BRNO, Czech Republic — The 2017 Brno Short Story Writing Contest was won by Adam Sweet for his story about dealing with the loss of a loved one in a story entitled “New Year’s Evey”. He earns the top prize: 6,000 kc.

“New Year’s Evey” was described by Sweet, an American, as: “A man grappling with the death of his wife spends New Year's Eve at a hidden place in Brno near the birthplace of Bohumil Hrabal where he searches for solace and where the unbelievable comes true.” Click here to read "New Year's Evey": http://brnowritersgroup.blogspot.cz/2017/06/new-years-evey-by-adam-sweet.html  

“Kuba’s Rotation” by Theo Singleton, an Englishman, was second and earns 2,000kc. Click here to read the "Kuba's Rotation": http://brnowritersgroup.blogspot.cz/2017/06/kubas-rotation-by-theo-singleton.html

“Dark Horse” earns 1,000kc for third place for Maya Vusilović, a Croatian. Click here to read “Dark Horse”: http://brnowritersgroup.blogspot.cz/2017/06/dark-horse-by-maja-vusilovic.html

Eight additional stories were awarded honorable mention. Click here to see the table of contents for the honorable mention stories: http://brnowritersgroup.blogspot.cz/2017/06/bsswc-honorable-mention-entries.html

Many of the also ran stories are also available. Click here to see the table of contents for the also ran entries:  http://brnowritersgroup.blogspot.cz/2017/06/bsswc-also-ran-entries.html

The Brno Short Story Writing Contest was made possible by a grant awarded by the Brno Expat Centre.

Eight additional entries were awarded honorable mention, listed in alphabetical order:

• Before The Lights Fade Away, by Veronika Baršová
• Brnight, by Barbara Tambini
• Chime (Tweleven), by Jerguš Števko
• Confessions of an Unborn Child, by Tereza Málková
• Hrabal, In the Air, by Hugh Smith
• Imprisoned, by Richard Skolek
• My Personal Prison, by Anna Johanes
• The Endless Renouncement of Feelings, by Inga Morawski

The free contest, which was supported by the Brno Expat Centre, attracted 87 entries. Every entry had to include the City of Brno in some significant way. There was only one entry per person. The short stories had to be in English and 2,500 words or less. The deadline was April 30 at midnight.

The jury included Simon Mawer, the internationally acclaimed author of “The Glass Room” and many other books, and a cross-section of local cultural icons and writing enthusiasts: Don Sparling, a co-founder of the Brno Expat Centre and a longtime leader in the local expat and Masaryk University communities; Tomáš Kačer, a teacher in the Department of English and American Studies at MU and a translator; Anna Formánková, the Chief of Staff for Re:Views Magazine; and contest co-founder and Brno Writers Group co-founder Lee Adams, the At the Movies blogger for the Brno Expat Centre.

The jury was instructed that the contest was focused on creating a story that included Brno in some significant way. The story was the most important aspect, including writing, originality, character development, and plot development.

For more information, go to the contest website at www.facebook.com/brnowritersgroup or the Twitter feed @Brnowriters or send an email to the contest administrator, Bruno Zalubil, at brnowritersgroup@gmail.com . 

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