Epress.am News from Armenia
This year’s Inknagir literary award for best story was awarded to journalist and photographer Anoush Babajanyan for her story “Hayk’s Story and…” The award ceremony took place on Apr. 27 at the Yerevan office of Utopiana cultural-creative NGO.
Inknagir (an Armenian word translated as autograph, or self-writing, which might also imply Samizdat, a form of dissidence prevalent in the USSR when individuals self-published censored material and secretly distributed them) is perhaps best known for its Armenian-language literary magazines which feature poetry and short stories considered controversial by some in the mainstream literature community (for instance, members of the Writers’ Union of Armenia).
The Inknagir literary award was given to the best Armenian-language story elected by the jury among 30 submitted in summer and fall 2010, according to the post on Inknagir’s blog.
During the award ceremony, Inknagir literary club director Vahan Ishkhanyan noted that three other stories were also being discussed as possible winners.
Thus, “following first place are Sona Avetisyan’s The Problem of Importance in second place, Armen Ohanyan’s Personal Page: PochATUM [roughly translated to cutting off one’s tail] in third place and Taisha Abelar’s Taisha in the Leninakan Bazaar in fourth place,” he said.
Jury members included Yerevan State University literature professor Siranush Dvoyan, Ishkhanyan and architect Misak Khostikyan. The Inknagir literary award was established in 2009, and this year’s award is the fourth. Winners receive 40,000 drams (about $110 US).
Those interested in submitting work for the next award (spring-summer 2011) can visit the Inknagir blog (only in Armenian).