If you want to enter a book prize
07 January 2025
BAKA BINA
PORT MORESBY - Happy New Year 2025 to all of you who are deep in literature as writers or readers.
For writers, 2024 wasn’t easy and I’m sorry to say things looks just as bleak going forward.
Elders and keepers of our national repository of traditional stories, songs and dances will die and take with them all of these lovely parts of our Melanesian culture.
This is a great tragedy as the rest of us move along in our ennui, hoping the next person will do something to capture and record parts of our 850 traditions, so faithfully kept in the oral inheritance which rarely made its way into the written word.
We are even losing entire languages. We must record our elders before it is too late.
PNG Attitude has experimented with AI assisted editing and Mr Philip Fitzpatrick has decided to rest his brain and pens. Both of these are to our peril for both old and new writers.
But amidst these clusters, there appears to be a beacon on the horizon for PNG writing.
It has been around for several years but last year it was mostly a PNG affair. Papua New Guinean writers having the opportunity to become authors.
One newbie, Richard Napam, must be over the moon to see his manuscript, Stunned by Light, turned into a book.
The First Nations Writers Festival (FNWF) is picking up budding writers and turning them into authors.
Last year FNWF received nine manuscripts and eight short stories as part of their 2023 call-up for stories from Indigenous writers in the Pacific Islands.
The FNWF judges are interested in our Indigenous stories and I am sure they will do their best to accept and publish them.
So again a call-out to all writers, talk to the elders and keeper of stories from your villages, clans and tribes. Don’t wait till they die.
From these nine manuscripts, six of them from Papua New Guinean writers found favour with the judges, and they are now being published as books.
Five are complete and one is a work in progress as it involved breaking a story into three books.
I submitted two manuscripts. One found no favour with the judges, who had selection criteria to guide their assessments.
One of the criteria has been that stories must not have been published previously – even on other social media platforms like Facebook.
Excerpts of some of my stories inside Resis long KSSP were previously published on other sites so on that basis they automatically fell off the list for consideration.
It would be remiss for me not to suggest to those who are posting titillating short shorts on social media that one day you will rue this slight misplacement of not knowing what is out there in the world of publication for your writings.
I was not deterred by some of my manuscripts not being considered because I know how to self-publish and did so. In fact I’ve self-published eight of my nine books previously and decided to go also self-publish a collection of short stories, Resis long KSSP, as my fourth anthology.
All nine books have been produced with Amazon KDP.
In self-publishing Resis long KSSP, I hoped to deliver a twofold message for Papua New Guinean writers.
Firstly, as half of this book was written in Tok Pisin, it was my intent to tell Papua New Guinean writers that Tok Pisin can be a medium to tell stories and there is nothing wrong with that.
In this book I had an English version and a Tok Pisin version of the same story: eight stories in Tok Pisin and the same eight retold in English.
I do not mean to suggest that FNWF will not consider Tok Pisin work.
Last November in PNG Attitude Phil Fitzpatrick wrote on the perils and pitfalls of writing in Tok Pisin.
However, stories in Tok Pisin are doable. And I think, with short stories, you are able to put in all those classic cliches and they’d still be good.
My second message was to tell everyone that a collection of short stories can be published as an anthology. Not everyone can write the 60 000 or more words that comprise a book.
But, if it is so desired, writers can get together a collection of short stories (maybe 1,500 words each) and turn 20 short stories to make into a 60 000 word book-sized anthology of short stories (20 is a number plucked from the air).
A good example of this is My Walk to Equality edited by Rashmii Bell, which has 81 stories and essays, or my Antics of Alonaa, Volume 1, which has only six stories.
So, for people who say they don’t know how to write 60,000 words for a book, they don’t need to. They can write short stories and once they have a good collection, they can publish them as a book or, better still, submit the collection as a manuscript for FNWF to consider for publication.
Getting back to FNWF, in 2024 they have now published five of six manuscripts entered in the competition by Papua New Guinean writers - all available for sale on the internet. They are A Bride‘s Price by Arnold Mundua, Remembering, Father and Me by Marlene Potoura, Ani’s Portrait by Julie Mota, Stunned by Light by Richard Napam, Porugl, the Atrocity at Kerwanba by John W Kuri (the second instalment of his trilogy, the first book being Porugl of the Underworld published by FNWF in 2023).
And there’s one more still to be published - a trilogy, also by a Papua New Guinean writer.
FNWF requires writers with manuscripts to send expressions of interest (EOI) and they have a deadline for that to be submitted – Friday 28 February.
I tried to submit a manuscript after 28 February last year but realised that I had not sent my EOI. I pleaded with FNWF to be allowed to submit after the deadline and fortunately they agreed. I think I may have had standing with FNWF to be allowed that.
Such goodwill is unlikely to be available to other writers so I encourage anyone who has a manuscript ready to submit their EOI before 28 February. You can do that on the FNWF web page.
Then work furiously on your manuscript to make it ready for submitting before 31 March. It will pay off for you to take another relook at your manuscript and do a comprehensive self-edit. FNWF will not rewrite work stories - although they do line editing for small grammatical errors and typos.
Once the judges say yes, they will publish, it’s a go. It’s final. They will not make changes to the words or story and will publish what you provide.
If you are working on a laptop in Word, use the program to correct for English grammar. Switch to the English (Australia) on your computer so is the one your computer is using. Take the time to go through that.
I was once sent a piece via email that was full of all kinds of coloured lines inserted by the Word program. I did not spend time correcting it. And I did not want to rewrite another person’s work.
Professional editors will baulk at such entries. When introducing a non-English word, provide the reader with a translation or, if there are many such words, provide a glossary.
I think short stories need to be submitted by 31 March 2025. Again, look at the criteria carefully and ensure you have not published this story elsewhere.
That is not to deter those that put up stories on Facebook, especially Poetry PNG. Good Facebook posts will give you recognition and a fan base. You can also submit stories to Ples Singsing and PNG Attitude which will give you a platform for publication.
But you cannot submit such published stories to any competition including FNWF.
I encourage you to submit a story to FNWF so please go to their webpage telling how to submit a story.
You can also do so the same with the Commonwealth Short Story Prize in September of each year.
Now that the First Nations Writers Festival is open for submitting short stories and EOI for manuscripts, I will wish all writes and prospective authors encouragement to muster their energy to finish their manuscripts.
Cheers and my hope that all writers have a good and successful 2025.
I have just talked to Marapa Publications.
If Paeope can email them at email [email protected], they will see if they can assist.
Another avenue is to talk to First Nations Writers Festival (FNWF) and ask if it can fit the categories they accept for consideration.
Libraries for All was one place that was dealing and printing children's books. I don't know who can assist but I think Caroline Evari has got most of her books done by Libraries for All.
Posted by: Baka Bina | 06 February 2025 at 12:57 PM
Hi there - I hope this finds you well. I have a contact who has written a children's book and would like to publish it.
Would you be able to direct me to the right people here in PNG to get in touch with? Your assistance would be greatly appreciated.
_________
Hi Paeope - This is a singaut for PNG authors and publishers. Could you offer Paeope some of your good advice please? - KJ
Posted by: Paeope Ovasuru | 04 February 2025 at 11:25 AM
Thank you Phil - I have now corrected the omission of my name on the cover page and the title on the spine.
I have some outstanding corrections to make to my other publications and your advice has been very helpful. I will make the amendments as I trudge along.
It is also now in my skillset that I will use when I start my ninipurr. Once again, tenkyu tru.
Posted by: Baka Bina | 21 January 2025 at 01:55 PM
Hi Peter - Log on to your account and then click “Your Account” at the top left of the screen.
KDP will then ask you where to send a “One Time Password” to verify it’s actually you operating the account. This is usually to your mobile phone number.
Click “Send OTP”.
When the password arrives on your mobile enter it in the box on the screen.
This will open your account details. There will be a note at the top of the screen if an update is required.
Make any changes required and click “Save” at the bottom of the screen.
Once that’s done everything should work and you can publish your book.
Posted by: Philip Fitzpatrick | 15 January 2025 at 08:21 AM
Baka, will get the manuscript of my second novel to FNWF. Thank you for the opportunity. Am also interested in Amazon KDP, created an account and uploaded the eBook but cannot publish and sell. It says I have to complete my account details, which is quite confusing as I have account. Contacted KDP customer care and they referred me to Amazon. Any tips and assistance pls.
Posted by: Peter S. Kinjap | 14 January 2025 at 12:52 PM
Thanks Phil - HNY, how is the resting of the brain and pen going for you?
I'd say you have parked it nearby for quick retrieval to offer quick help here.
Thanks for giving this tip to correct this big bubu/slip up.
Another new thing to learn for me. Learning doesn't stop, even for a lauto like me.
Let me fix to correct that spine and front cover.
You take care.
Posted by: Baka Bina | 10 January 2025 at 09:54 AM
On your bookshelf page, go to where your book is listed and go to "paperback actions" on the right and click the little oval shape with the three dots (...).
Then click on "edit book content". From there you can upload an amended or new cover or an amended or new text.
Then you save it as usual and proceed to the publish page.
The changes will have to go through the KDP checking process again and they'll email you when it's approved and live again.
Posted by: Philip Fitzpatrick | 09 January 2025 at 05:48 PM
Thank you Keith. And thanks for the accompanying picture.
That stack of books with my name on the top was a proud eyeful moment for me. But it was dashed when it became obvious that a seasoned self publisher like me could even make a mistake to not have the title of the book on the spine of the book.
Even moreso the author's name is not on the front cover - a major F/U. I attribute it to the lack of sleep and the bottle of red wine I had beside me.
I'm not sure how to correct that but will try talking to Amazon KDP. My omission here and I apologise to all.
It takes me about three full days and nights to get it right with Amazon KDP when I'm trying to publish so I say I did push hard on this book. Next time there'll be no red wine and I'll try this magic of self publishing over a week so that I dont get bleary eyed at the end of that episode.
But needless to say, the content is good and, as Mr Fitzpatrick said, there are some gems in the book.
The Tok Pisin versions will please those who would like the Koloka Apo version of it.
Posted by: Baka Bina | 08 January 2025 at 11:30 AM