Some Blind Alleys is offering a financial grant of €2,500 to one author for the purpose of continuing work in the field of autobiography. The grant recipient will be announced in April.
Eligibility
There were eight eligible applicants for the grant award. To be eligible, an author must have published an original essay on Some Blind Alleys during 2011 and not have already published a book. To confirm that eligibility, each author had to apply in writing for the grant. The application comprises the essay published on Some Blind Alleys and an author’s statement with proposal for future work. Readers of Some Blind Alleys will have a vote, which they can access on the SBA Facebook page.
Finalists
The finalists for the Essay Grant are:
Adrian Duncan
Chicken Lane: a walk through Stoneybatter (PDF)
Tom Mathew
That time I scattered ashes in India, under the impression that life had meaning (PDF)
Ryan Van Runkle
A sojourn in central Europe (PDF)
Karl Whitney
Open space: walking the boundaries of Tallaght (PDF)
Judges
Seven judges have donated their time to participate. They are:
Kevin Barry, author of City of Bohane
Belinda McKeon, author of Solace
Claire Kilroy, author of All Names Have Been Changed
Carlo Gébler, author of The Dead Eight
Philip O Ceallaigh, author of The Pleasant Light of Day
Molly McCloskey, author of Circles Around the Sun
Keith Ridgway, author of The Long Falling
There will also be a public vote
Each judge will rank the four pieces from one to four, and the total amount will be tallied to determine the winner. The public vote will be weighted the same as one judge’s vote. In the event of a tie, Brendan Barrington, editor of the Dublin Review, will choose the winner.
The public vote will open soon. If you would like to vote, please read all the essays.
The announcement will take place in April, with festivities and drinks.
