Doha, February 18 (QNA) - The Cultural Village Foundation- Katara announced Sunday that it has adjusted the system of publishing the nomination lists of the best artworks participating in the 10th edition of the Katara Prize for the Arabic Novel, adding that the first list will be published in June each year, with 18 artworks nominated for the published and unpublished novels, unpublished historical novels, young novels, as well as unpublished studies.

The second list will be published in August each year with 9 artworks nominated for the category of the aforementioned prize, as requested by numerous participants and those interested in the evolution of Arabic novels.

General Manager of the Cultural Village Foundation (Katara) Dr. Khalid bin Ibrahim Al Sulaiti said the prize has deepened its trailblazing at the regional and global levels through numerous initiatives that have been launched since the inauguration of the first prize in 2014. He added that the last one was the addition of the unpublished historical novels with the participation of 99 competitors during the 10th edition of the prize to raise the Arab narrative awareness and formulate the critical thinking patterns in pursuit of promoting such a type of literature and consolidate its pioneering role at the Arab and global levels.

For his part, General Supervisor of the Katara Prize for Arabic Fiction Khalid Abdelrahim Al Sayed said the declaration of the nomination lists of the best artworks was profoundly satisfactory for those participating in the prize, along with those interested in novel in general, because the lists obviously grant the shortlisted artworks the opportunity to be become renowned and help accelerate the publication of unpublished novels.

He reaffirmed that the prize is committed to adhering to the values of independency, transparency, and integrity during its all stages, culminating in the selection of best artworks that deserve the prize, which is a first-of-its-kind in terms of value and multiple categories and literary reputation.

It should be noted that the number of participants in the 10th edition of the Katara Prize for the Arabic Novel for 2024 reached 1697, the number of unpublished novels in this edition amounted to 886, whilst the published novels reached 437 in 2023.

There were 177 entries in the unpublished young adult novels category, 91 entries in the unpublished studies category, in addition to 7 published Qatari novels, and 99 unpublished historical novels in the sixth category of the award.

The total amount of the prize with its various branches reaches up to USD375,000, of which USD90,000 is devoted to the published novels, as the three winners receive USD30,000 each, while the total prizes for the unpublished young adult novels category amount to USD45,000 and are awarded to three winners, with USD15,000 for each winner.

The winner in the published Qatari novels category receives a prize of USD30,000, awarded to one winner, with the winner in the unpublished historical novel category receiving a prize of USD30,000 to one winner. (QNA)