Laline Paull's Blog - Posts Tagged "schrodinger-s-prize"
Schrodinger's Prize
So Pod's out in the world, the slings and arrows and all that - but also - the shortlisting for The Women's Prize in the UK! Didn't see that one coming, and it's a great honour and is bringing the book to readers all over the world.
The prize is announced on June 14th, just under a month from today, and odds are the shortlist is as far as POD goes. But it doesn't matter, because you don't write a book for a prize listing, or a particular kind of reader, or any reason except you have to.
I had to write POD, I really didn't want to - and I didn't get much of a say on the copy either, which makes it sound like a YA novel (not, I hasten to add, that there's anything wrong with the YA genre, but it's yet another box and limit to a story).
The book has upset people - but what I've come to see is that they're highly sensitive and they're upset at how humans are treating and trashing the ocean, and that is part of the story. I didn't set out to write a story about that, but about two dolphin tribes, one displacing the other as a result of human activity in the environment.
Displaced people struggle and fight to survive - that's what happens on land and in the ocean of this story. People struggling to stay alive lose their manners at times. And show extraordinary grace and resilience at others. This is also part of the story - and the people are marine citizens - they're unapologetically people in the form of dolphins, whales, fish.
So in the Schrodinger's Prize period between now and the announcement (my money's on the very good Black Butterflies by Priscilla Morris) Pod might, or might not have won - but it doesn't matter.
What matters is that The Women's Prize has got it more precious readers, and even pushed some of them over the edge into environmental activism. Everyone's powerful in some way - that's also part of the story.
Best wishes
Laline
The prize is announced on June 14th, just under a month from today, and odds are the shortlist is as far as POD goes. But it doesn't matter, because you don't write a book for a prize listing, or a particular kind of reader, or any reason except you have to.
I had to write POD, I really didn't want to - and I didn't get much of a say on the copy either, which makes it sound like a YA novel (not, I hasten to add, that there's anything wrong with the YA genre, but it's yet another box and limit to a story).
The book has upset people - but what I've come to see is that they're highly sensitive and they're upset at how humans are treating and trashing the ocean, and that is part of the story. I didn't set out to write a story about that, but about two dolphin tribes, one displacing the other as a result of human activity in the environment.
Displaced people struggle and fight to survive - that's what happens on land and in the ocean of this story. People struggling to stay alive lose their manners at times. And show extraordinary grace and resilience at others. This is also part of the story - and the people are marine citizens - they're unapologetically people in the form of dolphins, whales, fish.
So in the Schrodinger's Prize period between now and the announcement (my money's on the very good Black Butterflies by Priscilla Morris) Pod might, or might not have won - but it doesn't matter.
What matters is that The Women's Prize has got it more precious readers, and even pushed some of them over the edge into environmental activism. Everyone's powerful in some way - that's also part of the story.
Best wishes
Laline
