A manuscript written almost 10 years ago has been selected as winner of the Dusty Manuscript contest sponsored by Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank) for budding Nigerian writers.
Written by Kukogho Iruesiri Samson, the winning manuscript titled Devil’s Pawn clinched the top prize ahead of The Orchid Protocol by Onoche Emeka Onyekwena and The Other Side of Truth by Nneoma Anieto, which came second and third respectively.
Organised in partnership with Kachifo Ltd and OkadaBooks, the Dusty Manuscript contest is the latest in a long line of GTBank’s YouREAD initiatives aimed at fostering the culture of reading and creating a platform for the appreciation of Africa’s literary excellence.
As part of the contest, Nigerians were invited to submit their unpublished stories and stand a chance to get publishing deals for their works.
The contest received over 1,000 entries and had a panel of four judges made up of authors Eghosa Imasuen, Yejide Kilanko and Toni Kan and assistant professor of English, Dr Ainehi Edoro-Glines.
As part of the prizes in the contest, the authors of the top three manuscripts received 1,000,000, N500,000 and N250,000 respectively, as well as publishing contracts with Kachifo Ltd.
The authors of the top 10 manuscripts also received e-publishing contracts with OkadaBooks, while the authors of the top 20 manuscripts were hosted to a two-day intensive writers boot-camp to sharpen their literary and business skills.
Speaking about the winning entry, the lead judge, Dr Edoro-Glines, said “Devil’s Pawn was a unanimous choice. Told in a fast-paced narrative style that keeps you glued to the pages, the story is a gift that keeps giving.”
“The Orchid Protocol is an intriguing detective story, call it CSI Lagos and you won’t be too far off the mark,” said Eghosa Imasuen, one of the judges.
“The Other Side of Truth presents a woman’s life, without judgement. In making the case for the novel a single word comes to me: Empathy,” added another judge, Toni Kan.
Commenting on the contest, Managing Director of Guaranty Trust Bank, Segun Agbaje, said, “At GTBank we see art as not just a medium for creative expression but also as a means of livelihood, and by organizing the Dusty Manuscript Contest we are helping budding writers share their stories with the world whilst providing them with a platform to build successful writing careers.”
