Parthian are currently offering our new ebook edition of Dorothy Edwards' brilliant short story collection Rhapsody at 99p. For those who prefer physical books, this title forms part of the Library of Wales series.

 

 

 

 

 

Dorothy Edwards was born in 1903 in Ogmore Vale, a small mining community in Mid Glamorgan. Her father, an ardent socialist and Independent Labour Party leader, was the local school headmaster. After a scholarship to Howell’s School for Girls, Llandaf, she took a degree at Cardiff University in Greek and Philosophy, but literature was her passion and soon after graduating her short stories began to appear in magazines and journals. These were collected in Rhapsody (1927), along with several previously unpublished stories written during the nine months Edwards spent in Vienna and Florence. Her novel Winter Sonata (1928) followed shortly afterwards. She spent the following years trying to supplement her mother’s meagre pension by writing stories and articles for magazines and newspapers, and doing some extra-mural teaching at Cardiff University, but she never undertook full-time employment. After a brief period spent living in London with acquaintances from the Bloomsbury circle, Edwards committed suicide on a Cardiff railway line in 1934. A note left in her pocket at the time of her death read: ‘I am killing myself because I have never sincerely loved any human being all my life. I have accepted kindness and friendship and even love without gratitude, and given nothing in return.’

 

 

 

 

Buy our new ebook edition of Dorothy Edwards' brilliant short story collection Rhapsody at 99p

 

 

The M. Wynn Thomas Prize is offered to celebrate outstanding scholarly work in the field of Welsh writing in English. There are two prize categories: the ‘Open’ category and the ‘New Scholars’ category. Essays submitted may be unpublished or published. Topics may include all aspects of Welsh writing in English as well as the inter-relationship of Welsh writing in English with cognate areas (Welsh Studies, history, cultural studies, film/media studies, translation studies, performance/theatre studies, digital humanities, comparative literature etc.).

 

Shortlisted essays which are unpublished will automatically be considered for publication in the International Journal of Welsh Writing in English unless the author decides otherwise.

 

The prize is awarded for a piece of substantial scholarship that is engagingly written. We encourage submissions that are ground-breaking in terms of subject-matter and/or methodology/disciplinarity. Essays that grapple with new ideas in an intelligent and conceptualised way are preferred.

 

The prize is awarded at the annual conference of the Association of Welsh writing in English, which takes place around Easter every year in Gregynog Hall (near Newtown).

 

The award is supported by the Learned Society of Wales, the University of Wales Press and Parthian Books.

 

 

 

Essays in this category will be ca. 6,000-8,000 words long, of the highest scholarly quality and either already published in, or of a standard appropriate to an international, peer-reviewed journal. Authors may be academics and scholars who are not affiliated with an HE institution.

 

Prize: £150 and a full set of the Library of Wales series of books published by Parthian.

 

 

Essays in this category will be ca. 4,000-7,000 words long and of highly developed scholarly quality appropriate to the author’s level of (postgraduate) study. Authors may be postgraduate students or students who have recently graduated.

 

Prize: £150 and a full set of the Library of Wales series of books published by Parthian.

 

Deadline: Essays must be submitted by email or by post by 15 December 2012.

 

 

Dr Alyce von Rothkirch

DACE, Swansea University

Singleton Park

Swansea SA2 8PP

mwynnthomasprize@gmail.com