STAND S805 CPI Group (Antony Rowe) / scriblist.com  (TRADE & GENERAL)

LONDON, April 14th 2008: The science fiction story set in the year 2050, is one of five short stories from ‘Five Green Bananas', Book One from Scriblist.com. ‘Five Green Bananas’ is a unique publication of fictional work written in competition by thirteen different authors aged between 14 and 64. They live on different continents and have never met. It is printed by Antony Rowe of CPI Group, for launch on April 14th 2008 at the London Book Fair, and features on stand S805.

The website launched in January 2007 and now has over 2,300 registered users. Scriblist ran the five stories simultaneously. Authors posted entries for the opening chapter of a short story in January 2007. Entries were rated and commented on by site users, and the authors could choose to revise their work accordingly. Five winning chapters were chosen by the Scriblist panel, taking the community ratings and feedback into consideration. The cycle was repeated until all five stories were completed in June 2007.

Story Five is set in the year 2050, when the world’s resources can no longer support its population. The British Prime Minister’s radical solution is to introduce compulsory euthanasia at the age of seventy, yet this could shortly result in the death of his own father.

“The study of medical ethics in religious education; environmental issues and all the different predictions for the future, inspired me,” says Catherine Old, 16, GCSE student from Nottinghamshire, who entered the first winning chapter, which determined the start of the plot, format and style of the story. “I wanted to explore how characters would react to those sensitive subjects and a diary format effectively allowed me to do this. Most of all I wanted to write a story about the future that would include a variety of possibilities for 2050 whilst focusing on one family. I couldn't wait to see how others would create the rest of the story.”

Prime Minister Lee White’s Digi-diary - 16/09/50 22:30
What a successful day! The Prime Minister of China was the last to finally agree to the law, our solution to the Climate Change problem. It was becoming ridiculous with over fifty percent of the population living to over a hundred. I announced on television at noon the new law that at seventy years of age everyone will undergo compulsory euthanasia. This is now essential to reduce carbon dioxide levels and the population of this country and every other. I hope my father will be proud of me for making such a positive difference to this world. I’m sure he’ll understand.

Glynnis Morgan, 17, currently sitting her AS exams in South London, says, ”After entering I got a little obsessed, logging onto the website every lunch time to check my (feedback) comments and the position of my chapter. When I found out that mine had been chosen I was at my local library, so I couldn't shout and jump around for joy as I had to be quiet! However, I was ecstatic that people had decided that my chapter was the one they wanted next in Twenty Fifty. I made several new friends whom I still email. It is a fantastic opportunity and I am really looking forward to having my name in print.”

The website (www.scriblist.com) registration and competition entry is free and successful authors receive 1% per winning chapter, of any royalties. The competition ran nationwide throughout UK secondary schools in 2007, featuring in the Times Educational Supplement, Writing Magazine, NAWE and on BBC Radio Five Live with Simon Mayo. What sets Scriblist apart from other online projects is that the authors were writing in the knowledge that a book would actually be published in print at the end of the Book One timetable.

David Wade, co-founder of Scriblist says, “With the publication of Book One, we are delighted to have established scriblist.com as the go-to platform for younger aspiring authors and at the widespread national backing in schools. The new Book Two competiton opens April 14th 2008 and we look forward to that continued participation.”

The other four stories are called; ‘The Witness’, ‘How do you solve a problem like Maria?’, ‘The Kabul Case’ and ‘Under the Acacia Tree’. The book title ‘Five Green Bananas’ refers to the five stories and the amateur nature of the authors.
    
About Scriblist.com Book One ‘Five Green Bananas’:
Scriblist was founded by two British teachers to promote creative writing within education. The internet-based collaborative writing platform, Scriblist.com, was set up to give aspiring writers – particularly talented younger writers – the chance to become published authors. However, competitions are open to all.

The collection addresses classic themes of love and death, friendship and family, social injustice and violence, but also talks to modern subjects such as autism, adoption and the impact of today’s carbon footprint on the future. The book title refers to the five different stories and the amateur nature of the authors at the start of the project. Five Green Bananas is available for purchase at scriblist.com .
ISBN: 978-0-9558725-0-1

http://www.scriblist.com

http://fivegreenbananasnews.blogspot.com

web trailer on YouTube : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=57kQxBK1JhM

Listen to podcast extracts from Story 5: 2050  http://www.box.net/shared/03i2r2eqs0

Contacts:
PR Coordinator
Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it            
###