2006 overall winner
Erin Soros of Canada was announced on 15 November as the winner of the 2006 Commonwealth Short Story Competition for her story "The Moon, the Cat, and the Donkey". The story tells the harrowing tale of a workman's colleagues as they watch him get slowly crushed under machinery. She wins a cash prize of £2,000 for her winning story, which will also be broadcast on radio stations around the world.
On winning the award Ms Soros commented:
"Winning the Commonwealth Short Story Prize for 'The Moon, the Cat and the Donkey' means a great deal to me. While the story is fictional, the described circumstances arise from the history of logging in British Columbia, with its inherently dramatic setting and risks. Logging remains the most dangerous occupation in Canada. The danger of this work, and the resulting injury and death, is not necessarily witnessed in the discourse of Canadian nationalism, so I am honoured that this story will be broadcast internationally and hope it may inspire listeners to consider the often complex and hidden histories of our Commonwealth. Hearing the broadcast will be like hearing a character walk off the page."
The Commonwealth Short Story Competition gives up and coming writers the opportunity for recognition and greater exposure. Writers often write about their societies and the things that matter to them. Once again this year, many of the stories addressed social questions, such as corruption, migration and the status of women. As in previous years, a large proportion of both entrants and winners are women and young people.
This year's winner, Erin Soros, was born and raised in Vancouver and studied at the University of British Columbia and at the Columbia University. A prolific writer, she is currently a Writer-in-Residence at the Colgate University in the US.
She is joined by three regional winners from Asia, Europe and the Pacific, who each receive £500, and twenty highly commended writers from across the Commonwealth. The 24 winners in total come from Australia, Botswana, Canada, Gibraltar, India, Malaysia, New Zealand, Nigeria, South Africa, Singapore and the UK.
The judges were Trinidadian writer and former Commonwealth Writers' Prize winner Lawrence Scott, Susanna Nicklin, Director of Literature of the British Council and broadcaster Sara Davis.
The Commonwealth Short Story Competition began in 1996. It is funded by the Commonwealth Foundation and administered by the Commonwealth Broadcasting Association. The 24 winning stories have been recorded on the CD and distributed to broadcasting stations around the Commonwealth.
The CDs are available for sale from the CBA website www.cba.org.uk.
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 | Commonwealth Broadcasting Association |
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| Erin Soros' winning short story (PDF) 18 KB) |
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