SC Arts Commission Press Releases
Brian Ray Named South Carolina First Novel Competition Winner
May 29, 2008
Media Contact:
Milly Hough
(803) 734-8698
COLUMBIA, S.C. –The S.C. Arts Commission and its literary partners have named Brian Ray of Columbia the winner of the inaugural South Carolina First Novel Prize. Ray is receiving the opportunity to have his novel, "Girl With Her Throat Cut," published by the Hub City Writers Project, an award-winning independent press in Spartanburg.
"The voice is confident and engaging," said Percival Everett, distinguished novelist and final judge of the competition. "I found myself not only wanting to go where the narrator was taking me, but also wanting merely to hear her speaking."
Ray is an English instructor at the University of South Carolina and USC Honors College. His novel is about a young artist who works at her dad's steel mill for one summer following the unexpected death of her mother, all while stumbling through her first romance with a muralist who paints the mill at night.
"I'm grateful to win the First Novel Prize—especially because this was the first time it was offered," said Ray. "I've been working on the novel for a few years now, and this is giving me the opportunity to really complete it."
The Hub City Writers Project will publish at least 1,200 hardback copies of Ray's novel, including a book for every public library branch in the state. Collaborating with Hub City and the S.C. Arts Commission to present this contest were the South Carolina State Library and the Humanities Council S.C. The partners received 115 manuscripts.
"The Hub City Writers Project looks forward to publishing Mr. Ray and to sharing his work with readers around this state and beyond," said Betsy Teter, executive director of the Hub City Writers Project.
"We are very pleased to provide this unique publishing opportunity during our 40th anniversary year for one of South Carolina's talented writers," said Sara June Goldstein, director of literary arts for the South Carolina Arts Commission.
The project is funded in part by a Library Services and Technology Act Partnership grant administered by the S.C. State Library and the Institute of Museums and Library Services. For or more information about the First Novel Competition, call (803) 734-8696.
About SCAC:
The South Carolina Arts Commission is the state agency charged with creating a thriving arts environment that benefits all South Carolinians, regardless of their location or circumstances. Created by the South Carolina General Assembly in 1967, the Arts Commission is celebrating 40 years of increasing public participation in the arts by providing services, grants and leadership initiatives in three areas: arts education, community arts development and artist development. Headquartered in Columbia, S.C., the Arts Commission is funded by the state of South Carolina and by the federal government through the National Endowment for the Arts. For more information, visit www.SouthCarolinaArts.com or call (803) 734-8696.
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