This club is for anyone passionate about writing wherever you are in the world.
Brno Writers Group held a contest for the best short story about the city of Brno. “The competition has gathered 87 entries which is far more than I have expected”, says one of the organizers and the co-founder of the Brno Writers Group, Bruno Zalubil.
The free contest, supported by the Brno Expat Centre (BEC), accepted short stories written in English with a maximum cap of 2500 words. The deadline was April 30th. It took more than a month for the judges to determine the best short story. In the process, they have written about 25000 words of critique and feedback for the participants to ponder on. After all, the project also aims to develop the writing skills of people passionate about writing.
The judges of the contest included Simon Mawer, an author of The Glass Room, a book based on the Villa Tugendhat, which was named the best book of 2009 by The Economist, Financial Times and many other international reviewers. He also wrote a biography of Gregor Mendel and a fiction named Mendel’s Dwarf. Don Sparling a co-founder of BEC, Tomáš Kačer, a professor of English and American studies at MU and Anna Formánková the Chief of Staff of Re:Views Magazine were also in the jury of the competition.
The first place and a top prize of 6000 crowns went to Adam Sweet, an American by birth, Czech on purpose. His short story titled “New Year’s Evey” grabbed the jury with its touching, romantic plot of a widower who moved to Brno.
Second place and 2000 crowns went to an Englishman Theo Singleton’s “Kuba’s Rotation”.
The third winner with a thousand crowns is a Croatian, Maya Vusilović, and her story “Dark Horse”.
Bruno Zalubil and Lee Adams created Brno Writers Group, they describe themselves as “two English-speaking gentlemen who fell in love with the city”. They have seen the potential of Brno to be a city of art, whether it is expressed in colors of paint, harmony of sound or alluring enchantment of letters. When creating this club, the two hoped that the hidden talents and cultural diversity in Brno would show their signs. They strive to help them flourish.
On July 18, Brno Writers Group will hold an event where the founders, Bruno Zalubil and Lee Adams will share their short stories with you. During the meeting, you will have a chance to address the positive and negative sides of the stories to the writers, bringing an invaluable constructive criticism. This is an excellent opportunity for those who would like to improve their written and spoken English.
