In the recent “Write or Die” lecture-workshop, Palanca awardee and literary critic Isagani Cruz gave some tips on how to win the Gawad Likhaan, the University of the Philippines Centennial Literary Prize offering P200,000 in cash for winners in six categories.

These tips apply not just to the Gawad Likhaan but to other literary contests as well, says Cruz, who chairs the Manila Critics Circle, a literary group that gives out the National Book Awards each year.

1. Follow the rules. Submit only original and unpublished works. Entries must be encoded, not typewritten or handwritten.

From the font style and size to the margins, your submission should adhere to the contest rules. Don’t think you can fool the judges. Cruz reveals that judges actually bring rulers with them to measure whether an entry uses one inch or one and a half inch margins.

2. Obey the laws. There are only two laws the UP Likhaan judges consider important: libel and obscenity. While some gay literature pieces have scenes depicting anal intercourse, Cruz says these are allowed only if they are essential to the story.

3. Be grammatically perfect and watch out for typos and misspelled words. The judges are particular with how Filipino terms are spelled. Cruz suggests to check with the UP Filipino Dictionary when uncertain.

4. Use literary techniques and structures. The Gawad Likhaan, after all, is a literary contest, and judges will be looking for something literary in your entry.

5. Show your familiarity with literature by “borrowing” from other works. In literature, they call this intertextuality, which means that all works come from other works. Remember the good authors and plots you have read and learn how to “use” them to add flavor to your work.

6. In writing novels, use chapters with long and equal length, a clear narrative, and at least one strong complex character.

“What the character is at the beginning does not have to be what he is at the end,” Cruz explains.

7. Don’t commit grammatical and mechanical blunders in poetry. Verbs must agree with their subjects, and end rhymes are not really necessary. Put some rhythm [indayog] in your poetry.

“There is no such thing as poetic license,” Cruz says. “Great poets don’t write with grammatical errors.”

8. Try to make your creative nonfiction (autobiography, biography, and personal essay) piece as interesting and witty as possible. Create a good plot when writing a biography. Do not merely enumerate the dates and events in a person’s life. If you’re writing an autobiography, you must have a “pretty eventful life,” Cruz says.

As a parting shot, Cruz ended his talk with advice for young writers: “Write in a form that fits your material. Do not give up on writing because if you have at least one reader whose life might have changed, then you will not have lived in vain.”

Cruz’s lecture on nonfiction is part of the ongoing “Write or Die: Writers Write” workshop series organized by the UP Institute of Creative Writing, Read or Die, and Powerbooks. The last lecture, on poetry, will be in February.

With researcher Marge Gonzales

Related story:
UP Announces Centennial Literary Prize

Photo by Noah C. Omamalin