The organisers of Burnham-On-Sea Book Festival have this week announced the winner of their anthology cover competition, and the shortlist of their writing competition.
Organisers recently announced that the 2023 Burnham-On-Sea Book Festival will take place from May 19th to 21st in The Princess Theatre and Burnham Library.
Chair Rebecca Strickland says: “The winning artist is Pat Keeler who created a beautiful cover featuring boats in the estuary,” pictured above.
“The festival committee received a fantastic range of entrants from artists across Somerset and North Somerset, in a broad range of styles.”
“We really appreciate the great breadth of work that local artists brought to this contest. Everyone interpreted the brief in such a different way.”
The committee also announced the shortlist from their writing competition, which featured three different age categories, for poetry and short stories.
The shortlisted writers are:
11 & Under Poetry: Ella Bond, Hazel Bruce, Janine Cipres, Freya Jeffries, Charlie Neilson-Pritchard, Charlotte Robinson & Bella Thomson
12-18 Poetry: Isobel Saba Grace, Jacob Hoyes, Petra Rihan, Ben Shaw-Young & Kelly Yu
Adult (19+) Poetry: Ben Banyard, Anstice Fisher, Richard Leslie, Macaque, Jan Martin, Nyika Suttie & Mandy Woods
11 & Under Short Story: Lowen Delbridge, Adam Egan, Ayla Mottram, Ellie Smith, Rebecca Turner & Leo Wynn
12-18 Short Story: Amelie Hood, Grace Poole, Petra Rihan, Alex Shaw-Young, Matilda Taylor & Arabella Turner
Adult (19+) Short Story: Lorraine Cooke, Jan Martin, Lynda Mason & Sharon S Summervale
“We received over 250 entries,” adds Rebecca. “It was amazing to see so many writers taking part!”
“Deciding on a shortlist wasn’t easy,” added event lead Lewis Coleman. “There’s an amazing amount of talent in the area.”
The stories and poems will be published in an anthology, featuring Pat’s cover art. The final cash prizes, sponsored by local author Damien Boyd, will be awarded at a ceremony 1:30pm on Sunday 21 May.
Burnham Book Festival runs from 19th – 21st May at The Princess and Burnham Library. It features talks, workshops and panel sessions, plus chances to meet with local writers. To book tickets, visit princesstheatreandartscentre.co.uk For more information and to see the full details of this year’s shortlist, visit burnhambookfest.co.uk
