ABU DHABI // The eighth edition of the Sheikh Zayed Book Award is accepting entrants for its 2013-2014 competition.
Accomplished and fledgling writers across a wide spectrum of literary disciplines have until October 15 to submit their entries.
Along with the call for competitors, award organisers have announced that they are expanding the scope of the Literary and Art Criticism category.
The Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority has said it will now include studies and analytical works in theatre, poetry, narratives, history of literature and literary theories, as well as books on various forms of art such as music, cinema, architecture, calligraphy, sculpture, photography and digital arts.
Previous winners in this analytical category include Dr Maher Radi, in 2009, for his book Thought of Light, which gained acclaim for its insights into cinematography.
In 2010, Dr Iyad Hussain Abdullah, from Iraq, received the award for his work The Art of Design, a study of how aesthetics and design factor in to everyday objects.
Prestige aside, the winner in each category will also receive Dh750,000.
The book award has been running since 2007 and accepts entries in seven other categories.
They are: Contribution to the Development of Nations; Children’s Literature; Young Author; Translation; Literature; Arabic Culture in non-Arab language; and Publishing and Technology.
Each year, the tourism authority also names its cultural personality of the year at the ceremony, which honours a prominent Arab or international figure who has contributed to the advancement of Arabic culture.
The title comes with a Dh1 million prize.
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