Government will recognise the achievement of local writers through a new biennial awards programme.

Development and Opportunity Minister Terry Lister yesterday announced that the Bermuda Literary Awards, saying he believed the awards programme "will stimulate and encourage more Bermudians to write and publish books''. "Over the years, Bermuda authors have produced some excellent works, but to date a larger proportion of these works has featured information on Bermuda's history and photographs of its scenic beauty,'' Mr. Lister added. "While this is a good thing and while books of this nature have been and will continue to be greatly appreciated locally, we believe that these kinds of books only touch the surface of what can be produced for the literary world.'' The Founders Award of $2,500 will recognise an outstanding contribution to Bermudian letters and work published by an international publishing house.

The Prize for Fiction, of $2,000, will be offered for a published novel or a collection of short stories.

There will also be $2,000 prizes in Non-Fiction, Children and Young Adult Fiction, Poetry and Drama -- for scripts written for theatre or radio.

The deadlines for submitting work is February 15.

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