Guy Mankowski (B01) wins Arts Council grant for his second novel 'Letters From Yelena'
Guy Mankowski (B01)
His debut novel 'The
Intimates' was published by Legend Paperbooks in March 2011, and described by
Radio 4’s Edward Stourton as having ‘a clever conceit and a compelling
narrative.’ Last week Guy was awarded a research and
development grant, supported by the National Lottery through Arts Council England,
to develop his second book ‘Letters From Yelena.’ The book in progress contains
the letters sent by a brilliant ballerina to a writer who first gave her faith
in people after the darkness of her childhood.
"I'm grateful that this award
will allow me to devote a much greater proportion of my time to writing this
book, as well as taking me to St Petersburg in Russia in a few
weeks to conduct research. Whilst there I plan to visit the prestigious Vaganova Academy and the world famous Mariinsky
Theatre - places where my lead character learnt to dance. I am particularly
grateful to be given this award given the current economic climate, in which
such grants are becoming increasingly hard to come by. I look forward to having
the chance to investigate exactly how my character would have lived, and
hopefully see her come to life before me in St Petersburg."
To find out more about the Arts Council visit www.artscouncil.org.uk