Boroondara Literary Awards 2019 winners announced

Some of Boroondara’s most talented writers were celebrated recently at the 21st annual Boroondara Literary Awards ceremony at Hawthorn Arts Centre.

Mayor of Boroondara, Councillor Cynthia Watson congratulated all entrants and praised the high quality and creativity of the submissions.

“Congratulations to our talented writers who have given us a reason to curl up in a chair on a rainy afternoon, to explore new ideas, make friends and discover the undiscovered country”, said Cr Watson.

“Your words are an inexhaustible source of magic and wonder for all of us. It is wonderful to see Boroondara residents harness such a passion for creative writing and interest in the competition continues to grow year on year”, added Cr Watson.

Winners and highly commended entries in the Open Short Story Competition and Young Writers’ Competition for Prose and Poetry were selected from the pool of 1,231 entries by judges and Australian authors, Lili Wilkinson, Ilsa Evans and Australian poet, Cameron Semmens. Winners shared more than $8,000 in prize money.

Eliza Janssen was named as the winner of the Open Short Story Competition for The Hole Story and was also awarded the Keith Carroll Award for the best entry by a Boroondara resident.

Councillor Watson thanked long-time partner of the Awards, Rotary Club of Balwyn, as well as local writers groups, schools and the panel of judges. Cr Watson also paid tribute to the late Keith Carroll who was instrumental in initiating the Boroondara Literary Awards in 1999.

“With sadness we honour Mr. Keith Carroll who passed away in September this year. Keith had a vision and this vision was instrumental in launching the Boroondara Literary Awards”, said Cr Watson.

“Your ongoing support for the Awards allows Council to inspire writers of all ages and unearth local talent in the community”, said Cr Watson.

Winning and highly commended entries will be published in the Boroondara Literary Awards Anthology available for purchase in print, while electronic and print copies will be available to loan through Council libraries.

2019 winners Open Short Story Competition and Keith Carrol Award Eliza Janssen for The Hole Story.

Keith Carroll was a member of the Rotary Club of Balwyn and instrumental in establishing the Boroondara Literary Awards in 1999. He sadly passed away in September this year and will be remembered for his contribution to initiating the Awards in 1999.

Young Writers’ Competition – Prose and Poetry Junior prose category: Sienna Dobson for It Middle prose category: Mia Kagiaros for Fight Quietly Senior prose category: Matilda Curtain for Hasana and Jesselle Junior poetry category: Kaylene Tan for The Dreamcatcher Middle poetry category: Stella Kirkham for Music Senior poetry category: Aeva Milos for Oh Mortal. All winners and highly commended entries

To view the full list of winners and highly commended entries for each category, see 2019 Boroondara Literary Awards winners.