Canvas, a nonprofit organization that promotes Filipino arts and culture, is calling out for entries to the Romeo Forbes Children’s Storywriting Competition.
Entries may be in English or Filipino, in 1,600 words or fewer, and should not have been previously published. The theme of the stories should center on this untitled piece painted by CCP Thirteen Artists awardee Don Salubayba (see photo above).
Now on its sixth year, the storywriting competition was named

Canvas, a nonprofit organization that promotes Filipino arts and culture, is calling out for entries to the Romeo Forbes Children’s Storywriting Competition.
Entries may be in English or Filipino, not more than 1,600 words, and should not have been previously published. The theme of the stories should center on an untitled piece painted by CCP Thirteen Artists awardee Don Salubayba (see photo above). The winning entry will receive a P35,000 cash prize and will be published as a full-color book by Canvas.
Last year’s winner of the Romeo Forbes story-writing was Fernando Gonzalez, whose story “Mga Huni sa Loob ng Kawayan” was based on an oil painting by Juanito Torres.
Previous winners include Palanca awardee Becky Bravo, whose story “The Rocking Horse” was inspired by Elmer Borlongan’s painting; Rowald Almazar, whose entry “Si Lupito at ang Baryo Sirkero,” was based on a work by Jose Santos III; fiction writer Fernando Rosal Gonzalez, who wrote “Ang Batang Maraming Bawal” from a painting by Rodel Tapaya; and Eline Santos, whose “Doll Eyes” was inspired by Joy Mallari’s painting.
Now on its sixth year, the storywriting competition was named after award-winning artist Romeo Forbes, who succumbed to cancer in 2006. Forbes had a prolific career as an artist, winning the 2000 Asia-Europe Young Artists Competition, the 1998 Instituto Cervantes art competition, as well as other contests by Petron, Shell, and the Asian Development Bank. Along with some artists, he pioneered the Malate-based visual-literary group Artery.
For contest rules and details, read the Canvas blog.