The Prize for an Unpublished Manuscript by an Emerging Victorian Writer: Shortlist 2007

Now in its fifth year, there is clearly no shortage of new writing happening in Victoria. The judges were treated to a very diverse range of work amongst the 71 entrants - short stories, poetry, fantasy, crime fiction, writing for younger readers and for young adults, literary and popular fiction. Themes ranged from the personal to the political, aging to ethnicity. Narrowing this down to three manuscripts was a daunting but ultimately rewarding task for the judging panel. In having to arrive at these decisions, we were conscious of having to exclude other titles that we’d like to acknowledge and recommend as work that we expect will be seen as published texts: The Luna Museum, by Julie Ann Morrison and Unloched by Candice Lemon-Scott.

Judges: Joel Becker (Convenor), Kevin Brophy and Lucy Sussex

Shortlist

	The Ghostwriter Nick Gadd The Ghostwriter packs a very strong narrative punch as it tells the story of a one-time respected investigative journalist who has stepped on the wrong toes. With his personal life and health falling apart around him, he is consigned to a suburban newspaper writing filler pieces around real estate and restaurant advertisements. Covering what appears to be a ‘run-of-the-mill’ but tragic suburban rail death, he becomes involved in a multi-tiered investigation that sees him raising the ire of leading figures in the art, business and political worlds. The novel touches cleverly on aspects of the history of modernism in Australian art, while always keeping the lives of the characters in the foreground. Strong dialogue, a tight structure, and an exceptional narrative voice take the reader on a journey to a provocative conclusion.
	Dissection Jacinta Halloran Dissection is a perfectly judged and beautifully written account of a 43-year-old woman, a doctor managing her own general practice. With a malpractice suit in process against her, she is no longer sure she can get it right, at least not every time. The novel gradually unfolds the complexities involved in making a diagnosis, and becoming involved in the consequences of an error. Or was it an error? Alongside her work and visits to her solicitor, Anna is mother to her boys and wife to Paul. Her husband seems to be infatuated with a new young designer at his office, and Anna finds herself having to entertain this woman at home. The novel poises wonderfully and painfully at this extended moment of possible change in Anna’s life. It is a pensive and probing character study, a portrait of quiet despair and stoicism.
	The Wog Manual Amra Pajalic The Wog Manual forces the reader to re-evaluate preconceived notions of life in an Australian-Muslim family. Told in the voice of Sabiha, a 16-year-old Australian-born Bosnian Muslim girl with a dysfunctional family, there is a refreshing candour as stereotypes get broken down. The complex family dynamics bring out the best and the worst in the characters, and the issues of fitting into Australian society. Sabiha is caught between the world of the Australian teenager and distant Bosnia, and must create her own identity. She is a vivid and compelling narrator, and the novel is never less than lively. It pulls no punches, and is refreshingly direct.