The longlist for the Polari First Book Prize was announced last night at the Polari Literary Salon at the Southbank Centre.
Twice as many submissions as last year were received, which is reflected in an extended longlist of twelve titles, increased from ten.
The Polari First Book Prize, is for a first book which explores the LGBT experience and is open to any work of poetry, prose, fiction or non-fiction published in the UK in English within the twelve months of the deadline for submissions (this year Feb 1, 2013).
Self-published works in both print and digital formats are eligible for submission.
The winner will be presented with a cheque for £1,000, courtesy of the Société General UK LGBT Network and this year, for the first time, the shortlisted books will be displayed at major WH Smiths Travel outlets across the UK.
The shortlist of 5 books will be announced at the Polari Literary Salon on September 8, 2014.
The winner will be announced on October 8, 2014 in the Purcell Room at the London Literature Festival.
The judges this year are:
Paul Burston (Chair of Judges) – author, journalist and host of Polari
Bidisha – critic and broadcaster
Matt Cain – author and former Culture Editor for Channel 4 News
Suzi Feay – literary critic and broadcaster
Rachel Holmes – author and former Head of Literature and Spoken Word at the Southbank
VG Lee – author and comedian
The Polari First Book Prize Longlist:
• I Am Nobody’s Nigger by Dean Atta (Westbourne Press)
• Stephen Dearsley’s Summer of Love by Colin Bell (Ward Wood Publishing)
• The Girl with The Treasure Chest by VA Fearon (VIllage Books)
• The Palace of Curiosities by Rosie Garland (Harper Collins)
• The Falling Sky by Pippa Goldschmidt (Freight Books)
• Petite Mort by Beatrice Hitchman (Serpent’s Tail)
• Hainault via Newbury Park and Other Broken Tracks by Keith Jarrett (self-published)
• The Birds That Never Flew by Margot McCuaig (ThunderPoint Publishing)
• Fairytales for Lost Children by Diriye Osman (Team Angelica)
• God’s Other Children – A London Memoir by Vernal W. Scott (self-published)
• The Rubbish Lesbian by Sarah Westwood (Mimwood Press)
• Out in the Army by James Wharton (Biteback Publishing)
Polari Literary Salon launched in 2007 in the upstairs room of a pub in Soho, was named ‘London’s peerless gay literary salon’ by The Independent on Sunday and is happily housed at the Southbank Centre where monthly events showcase the best in established, new and up-and-coming LGBT literary talent and performance. The Prize’s media partner is Square Peg Media, publishers of g3 and OUT In The City magazines.
Paul Burston, Chair of the judges, said: “The judging panel had a tougher job than ever this year, thanks to the increased number and overall quality of submissions. This is reflected in the fact that we have a long list of twelve books, rather than the usual ten.”
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