SA Literary Awards extend submission date, calls for more submissions in indigenous languages

Despite a fair rate of submissions from English and Afrikaans literature, the South African Literary Awards (Sala) have extended the submission date, encouraging work in indigenous languages to be submitted.

“It has been our experience in the past years that we attract small numbers of work written in indigenous languages than in Afrikaans and English,” Sala executive director, Morakabe Raks Seakhoa tells The Citizen.

The original submission date was 8 May, and authors have been given until 9 June to submit their works so they can be recognised for this year’s edition of the awards.

Seakhoa says the extension is to give authors and nominators who may not have been aware or failed to beat the first deadline another chance to submit.

Founded by the wRite associates, in partnership with the then national Department of Sport, Arts and Culture (DSAC) in 2005, the main aim of Sala is to pay tribute to South African writers who have distinguished themselves as groundbreaking producers and creators of literature.

Sala celebrates literary excellence in the depiction and sharing of South Africa’s histories, value systems, and philosophies, as well as art inscribed and preserved in all the languages of South Africa, particularly the official languages.

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Indigenous work

Seakhoa says there may be various reasons why authors of indigenous works haven’t submitted their work for consideration at this year’s awards.

“The reasons may be many,” he says as he shares some insight.

“Inadequate resourcing of writing in these languages; the misguided notion among some writers that their work stands a better chance of reaching wider markets,” shares the Executive Director.

This year marks 20 years of Sala.  “We are planning a special occasion for Sala when [it] celebrates 20 years, as that’ll be marking a coming of age for this prestigious Awards scheme.

For this year, considerations are being entertained, including increasing the number of Lifetime Achievement Literary Award category celebrants.”

The ceremony is expected to be held in November this year.

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Sala’s 20-year journey

When the literary awards were established, there was only one award, the South African National Poet Laureate Prize.

Sala now has 16 categories, which range from the Children’s Literature Award to the Nadine Gordimer Short Story Award.

According to Seakhoa, some of the most hotly contested categories are the Regional and National Poets Laureate Prize, followed by the Novel, First-time Published Author and Creative Non-Fiction Literary categories.

“There have been a number of calls to include, expand, realign, reconfigure and rename other categories, so these will certainly be considered for the coming years, as well as working very hard to attract more financial support to increase awardees’ cash prizes,” shares Seakhoa.

The cash prizes for all categories are R30 000, except for the National and Regional Poets Laureate, who receive R100 000 and R50 000 respectively.

Last year’s Sala coincided with the 12th Africa Century International African Writers Conference, which celebrates the 33rd International African Writers’ Day and 30 years of South Africa’s democracy.

In 1991, the Conference of African Ministers of Education and Culture in Cotonou, Benin, voted to designate November 7th as International African Writers’ Day, which is currently observed across the continent.

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