British expat bags top Montegrappa prize at Lit Fest

Dubai-based Heaney - who is just 23-years-old - was crowned the winner of the fifth Montegrappa Writing Prize on Saturday evening

A last minute entry by budding author Rebekah Heaney may have just proved to be a turning point in the story of her own life.
Dubai-based Heaney - who is just 23-years-old - was crowned the winner of the fifth Montegrappa Writing Prize on Saturday evening at the Emirates Airline Festival of Literature, but the win nearly didn't come to be.
"I actually submitted my synopsis and chapter one on the final day of the competition. I sent it at 11pm and entries closed at 12am. But that's classic me, leaving it to the last second," Heaney told Khaleej Times.
Heaney led the way in a line-up of aspiring female authors on Saturday, but it was her debut novel 'What We Learnt at Number 9' - which remains unfinished - that caught the eye of the judges.
"When my name was called out, my mum squeezed my knee so tight. I was overwhelmed as I had resigned myself to thinking I hadn't made the cut, but this has made me realise that real people can give it a go and succeed."
With Margaret Attwood, Sarah Waters and David Mitchell all making it on her list of top authors, Heaney said the dream of being a published writer has always been there, though she didn't know the reality would come around quite so soon.
"I thought it could have happened one day, but not till I was in my thirties or forties. Getting noticed at 23 is great validation."
But she said winning doesn't automatically guarantee that the book will get published, so she's staying humble about the whole experience.
"This is more than I ever expected, so whatever comes next is a bonus. I thought I'd just get some good feedback but I feel that winning was the universe's way of telling me 'come on, it's time to move forward with my book'."
Speaking about the "book-to-be" 'What We Learnt at Number 9', Heaney said it initially started out as a short story idea.
But when she heard about the competition through a friend (last year's runner up Charlotte Butterfield), she decided to re-visit it.
With only two chapters complete so far, Heaney said the win was quite daunting, but UK literary agent and judge, Luigi Bonomi assured her that it was quite common for winners of the past to have incomplete entries.
"His words did put me at ease, but I definitely have a clear vision in my mind about what direction the story is going in."
The general premise for the book revolves around a woman in her mid-60's who is dying of a terminal illness.
After putting an advertisement in the paper urging readers to divulge their biggest secrets to her - she promises to take them to her grave. And it's an experience which changes her last few moments of life.
Although the plotline didn't come from a personal experience, Heaney said she wanted to take the phrase 'take it to the grave' and give it a more literal meaning.
Tough competition
Runners up on the day included Pakistani national Musfira Shaffi (Swiped Away), UK-born Jennifer Bromham (Pond), Indian national Farzeen Noorie Ashik (Rainbow Dorm Diaries), and the UK's Helga Jensen-Fordewere (Temptation at Tiffany's).
The competition, open to unpublished writers in the UAE, received a number of high calibre entries this year, and Bonomi said it has "tapped into a giant fount of creative talent here in the UAE".
"Reading the submissions is a real joy. Choosing the eventual winners this year has been a tough ask. All the entrants should be proud of their achievement, irrespective of the final result.'
Heaney will now embark on a trip to London to further discuss her submission with Bonomi, with the runners-up receiving a Montegrappa Limited Edition pen and copies of the current Writers' and Artists' Yearbook. 
Entry requirements
The competition requires UAE residents over the age of 21 years who have never published a novel to send in a 400-word synopsis and the first 2000 words of their fiction manuscript via the Festival website.
kelly@khaleejtimes.com

• Dubai