[authorafrica] Re: Forwarding a Note from Ken Mulholland
- From: "ffsd@xxxxxxxx" <ffsd@xxxxxxxx>
- To: authorafrica@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Thu, 21 Jul 2005 15:00:50 -0400
Dear Mr. Mullholland,
THANKS.
Valentine Umelo
Original Message:
-----------------
From: Bruce Cook, AuthorMe.com cookcomm@xxxxxxx
Date: Wed, 20 Jul 2005 06:24:18 -0700 (PDT)
To: authorafrica@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [authorafrica] Forwarding a Note from Ken Mulholland
Good evening and hello to everyone contributing to The
Africa Writers Think Tank,
I've spent these last few weeks reading some
manuscripts and all the emails from African Writers,
and I am encouraged by the spirit and commitment
embodied in them.
I am further encouraged by the commitment of Bruce
Cook, Winona Rasheed, Adam Smith and AuthorMe in
general.
It is now my intention to offer my thoughts on the
very important matters before us.
And of course, my thoughts are only offerings to the
AuthorMe Think Tank.
Use whatever all believe are of benefit to our
project, but bear in mind as your First Principal,
that without AuthorMe this communication between
writers in the West, East, North and South of all the
World would not be easily available.
Principle One. AuthorMe. An outlet to the internet
world.
Principle Two. Free Writers. (Here I must say that I
am aware of the dangers that prevail in certain places
that prohibit writers, or at least constrain them. I
know the risk in which they place themselves when they
dare to state their opinions, although I can do
virtually nothing to help their situation but to
praise them for their courage. See my article "Writers
of the dark Regions," at AuthorMe.)
Now, how to achieve the second Principle?
Well firstly we must establish who we are. The common
denominator is Writers, no matter our colour, beliefs,
geographic location or even political inclinations.
What we must do in this situation is to decide that
first and foremost we are Writers. It also doesn't
matter if we come from Africa. Africa is a starting
point, a very important starting point granted, but a
start must be made somewhere. Why Africa?
I'll tell you why, and you know the answer already,
because Africa cries out for and demands attention.
And at AuthorMe where do these attention demanding
cries come from?
From all of you and those gathering behind and about
you.
It is the sheer volume of submissions coming out of
Africa from Writers like yourselves that draw
attention to Africa.
That is why the African Writing situation needs
attention now.
Later, will come writers from other countries all over
the world who are suffering in their own situations
and these will be addressed as best that AuthorMe's
facilities can do. Perhaps by then, some of you will
already be Editors working for AuthorMe and will lend
your support in aiding them.
So for now, given that some African Writers have
generously suggested that other writers outside Africa
need help, the direction for this Think Tank should be
toward its namesake AuthorAfrica. There will be time
in the future for AuthorAfrica to aid Bosnia or Cuba
or The Globe.
Life is too short to waste even minutes over names.
Let us simply attempt to make a start.
Free Writers. That is what all of us want to be. We
also want to be successful writers. Here AuthorMe can
go only so far in helping any writer. AuthorMe can
encourage, review, suggest, correct and indicate, but
only so far.
To be successful, all writers remain alone, to stand
or fall by their own abilities. Let us not lose sight
of that.
Therefore, writers submitting to the Caine Prize or
the Africa Prize must do so knowing that ultimately
their work is the only thing that matters.
I should like to hear from any writer who has won such
coveted prize. Or from Writers who aspire to such. It
would be informative to both myself and to all of you,
I feel sure. Here we might pause a moment to think
about the volume of entries for the Caine in the
coming year. How will AuthorMe cope with this
ever-increasing submission rate?
Somehow, all the entries will have to be judged so
that only a certain number reach the submission stage
otherwise, as perhaps happened this year, the judges
of The Caine become overwhelmed.
I understand that a small committee of judges has been
selected, and they are to limit our submissions to six
in number. Still, in case this biases the Caine judges
against us, as may have happened in 2005, shall we
limit it to one or two?
Bruce Cook has accepted my offer to keep track of
submissions for the Caine contest. It will be my task
to watch that each submission is forwarded to the
judges. I will have the unpleasant task of enforcing
the deadlines. Bruce has instructed me to cut anyone
off if their manuscript is not complete in time for
the review. I will hate to do this, but we must set
standards among ourselves. Also, we must understand
that only a few will be selected. This will not be
easy for anyone.
As I recall, the deadlines are as follows. Please
correct me now if I am wrong. The times are early so
anyone not selected by the judges, who are African
writers but who will remain anonymous, will have a
chance to submit elsewhere in time to be selected for
the Caine competition.
End of July Final submissions - 2005 ebook (from last
year's submissions)
End August Release of 2005 ebook
End September Final submissions - 2006 ebook
End October Judges make final decision on submissions
(6 stories in final ebook)
End November Release of 2006 ebook
End December Formal Submissions to Caine Prize Judges
In the meantime it would also be valuable for AuthorMe
and the ThinkTank members to create a map of Africa
that gives us some idea of writer locations. This
would be a tool to at least direct us, we out of
Africa, to where all of you are and just how easy or
difficult it could be getting some of you together. I
know that America is a vast continent, Africa
likewise, and Australia, my homeland is the largest
Island or smallest continent, so I am aware of great
distances between cities and states. (Countries)
Speaking of getting together, of course that can be
done by email, telephone or letter. Yet is it that
easy? We on the outside are not fully aware of each of
your situations and possible bans upon communications.
Here it will be up to you to tell us what is best, and
to communicate with each other to this end.
I must point out here that all I am suggesting is
simple email communication between writers from
country to country, continent to continent, I am not
suggesting anything covert or illegal.
Now, who will volunteer to draw up a list of all
African contributor's locations as they continue to
amass?
Who will volunteer to coordinate these to a
geographical map of the African continent for
publication at AuthorMe?
No one? Don't like the idea? Well if you don't like
hand-outs and charity, start by doing something.
Do something!
Then, even if this project fails, at least you will be
able to say 'I did something. I was not just a Writer
waiting for success. I attempted to lend a hand.
Much talk, less progress. It is time for action.
Of course there will be misguided action, things we
try may not work out, but that's alright. Try again
until we get something working. This is pioneering
work! This is experiment! Establishment!
The beginnings.
We are bound to taste failure, and born to taste
success.
"No Exception" review dates.
We require a timetable for submissions for next year's
Caine Prize and information on The African Prize, as
well as any other literary competitions of note.
We need to set "No Exception" dates for submissions,
with "No Exception" dates.
A limit of one or two submissions per Author must be
set, and if two, this to be finally trimmed to one
only.
Not happy because your work will be weeded out and not
even submitted? Sorry, that's how it works and how it
will work with the judges of the Caine Prize. The more
manuscripts that flood them, the less time and effort
they will apply to their appraisals.
They are searching for the very best.
And so must we.
You want to be Writers? Stand up! And be Writers.
Nobody said that it would be easy. Nobody is giving
you an armchair ride. Do something! Contribute! Work
at this thing.
Or I will do it for you.
I will make it my business to do the research, collate
the information on all of you, read your works, revise
them for grammatical errors, continuity errors, errors
of punctuation, tense, syntax, and finally heart. And
if, in my opinion, your heart is not in it, I will
have to
fail you.
It is in my experience, that Committees commit to
mediocrity, that Dictatorships fall victim to the
abuses of absolute rule; of which I am sure, many of
you are well aware.
No Vested Interest other than the forward motion of
You, You African Writers, persuades me to write these
words and in so doing offer my commitment, thus
fulfilling my role as Editor/Mentor/Writer.
Start!
What do you want?
Someone like me to do your work?
Or someone like you?
"You're the Voice. Try and understand it. Make a noise
and make it clear. We're not going to sit in silence.
We're not going to live in fear."
Writers write. But they do more than write. They make
a difference. They make a difference because they
contribute with their most powerful weapons: Words.
This is not a hand-out. This is a helping hand.
AuthorMe offers a helping hand.
It doesn't matter what colour that hand is.
It only matters that you use your hands to reach out,
to breach all the boundaries of distance between; not
to grasp in hope, but to pull together. Whether your
own singular work wins a prize or not, you will be a
part of that "Pulling Together".
You don't want to commit? Fine. Others will, and you
will find that you have been bypassed to make it on
your own.
One final word.
Sometimes, many times, the 'Best Man for the job is a
Woman'.
Writing has no sex. And by that I am not being
flippant. Women all over the world are becoming more
vocal, more capable of expressing themselves, more
assured.
It is our task at AuthorMe, I believe, to foster and
encourage them.
Writers: young, old, female, male, any religion, any
colour, any region anywhere, everywhere, are a part of
this great fraternity.
Now, you or me?
Let's Do Something together, for your sake, for my
sake and for Bruce Cook and all at AuthorMe.
Sleep in peace.
Wake refreshed.
Kenneth Mulholland.
AuthorMe Editor.
Australia.
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