Do you have what it takes to get NCCA's Writer's Prize award?
The National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) is now accepting entries for this year's Writer's Prize, a biennial award given to promising writers across various genres.
The award is given to given to a total of five writers, one each for the categories of poetry, novel, essay or creative non-fiction, short story, and drama.
"The award, in the gross amount of ₱250,000, will assist the winner during the writing stage of the project. The award is good for one year, after which a manuscript of the writing project will be submitted to the NCCA," the commission said.
Specifically, the pieces are submitted to the National Committee on Literary Arts for possible publication or staging.
"With the cash award, the NCCA Writer's Prize winners will be freed from the demands of their work and shall be able to focus on the writing of the complete manuscript for one year," it added.
Interested applicants must submit an accomplished official entry form, curriculum vitae, concept paper of three to five pages discussing the rationale and significance of the writing project, and the project's initial output. The submission format is via PDF.
The expected initial output for each category this year are the following: poetry in Manobo, 10 poems with one poem per page; novel in Ilokano, first 50 pages; essay or creative non-fiction in Kapampangan, three essays with a minimum of 2,000 words each; short story in Chavacano, three stories with a minimum of 2,000 words each; and drama in Filipino, one act of a full-length work or two one-act plays.
The awardees or grantees must complete the project as follows: poetry in Manobo, at least 30 poems; novel in Ilokano, minimum of 50,000 words; essay or creative non-fiction in Kapampangan, at least 12 essays with a minimum of 2,000 words each; short story in Chavacano, at least 12 stories with a minimum of 2,000 words each; and drama in Filipino, full-length (at least three acts) or five one-act plays.
Deadline for submission of entries is on July 31, 2021. All entries should be addressed and submitted to the NCCA Writer’s Prize Secretariat email at [email protected].
"The NCCA, in line with its mission to 'encourage the continuing development of a pluralistic culture by the people themselves'…will be creating the opportunity to have a direct hand in the development of Filipino literature," the commission said in a statement.