We are organising the Female emigrants in their own voice competition for the most interesting blog by a Polish female emigrant. The competition is held as a part of a literature project under the same name organised on 4th-6th November at the Museum. Polish female writers who live abroad as well as literary scholars and researchers who focus on the theme of emigration will participate in the event.

Emigrants speak in their own voice – this is the name of the competition launched by the Emigration Museum and a series of meetings which will be held on 4th-6th November in Gdynia. The competition is aimed at Polish women who live abroad and write blogs on widely understood emigration and describe the reality in which they live in various ways. The blogs which are entered for the competition may contain descriptions of experience and journeys or reflections connected with everyday life, which present the different character of a life in a foreign culture.

The aim of the competition is to support female bloggers and show how many female emigrants write. Thanks to them, we have a chance to have a closer look at an emigrant life. Each story counts and it definitely presents an important piece of emigrant reality. Collectively, they correspond with the guiding idea of the Emigration Museum expressed by its motto – We connect stories.

A person who enters a blog for the competition must be its author. Entries can be made until 30th October 2016 until 12.00 at: blogi@muzeumemigracji.pl. The jury members: Katarzyna Tubylewicz, a writer and a columnist, Ania Witowska, the author of Kobiecy Punkt Widzenia (Woman’s Point of View) and Sebastian Tyrakowski, the Vice-Director of the Emigration Museum in Gdynia will chose the most interesting blog andaward one main prize as well as two special mentions. The prizes in the competition are a webwriting course and Empik gift cards. The winner will be interviewed for our Emigrant’s Archive (www.archiwumemigranta.pl). Among others, the blogs will be evaluated for their creativity, the ability to interest the reader, style, language as well as general graphic beauty.

Blog is the means of communication which is chosen by the emigrants most often. At the same time, it is an interesting source of information about the life in a foreign country. As we are organising a series of meetings devoted to the emigration of women this November, we have decided to have a closer look at blogs written by Polish female emigrants and invite them to participate in the competition we are organising. By organising this competition we want to show that the blogosphere has a particular significance for women, who begin their lives outside Poland – says Anna Ratajczak-Krajka, the project’s coordinator.

The guests of the meetings, whose purpose is to introduce the phenomenon of women’s emigration through rich literature by Polish emigrants, will be: Katarzyna Tubylewicz, Magdalena Parys, Magdalena Orzeł, Łucja Fice, Dana Parys-White, Magdalena Zimny-Louis, and Sylwia Chutnik. The programme of the event is divided into several thematic blocks. They will involve meetings with the female authors and debates of literary scholars and researchers who specialise in emigration. There are some accompanying events in the programme as well, like Maja Koman’s concert or workshops, which will teach you how to blog in an interesting way, which engages the readers.

The blogs entered for the competition must be in Polish. They also have to feature at least one original post by their authors published between 1st June 2015 and 5th October 2016.

The Female emigrants speak in their own voice project was co-financed with the funds of the Ministry of Culture ad National Heritage.

***

Regulations of the competition:www.polska1.pl/pl/dzialania/emigrantki_wlasnym_glosem

Time limit for entering blogs: 6th October – 30th October, 12:00

E-mail address to which entries should be sent: blogi@muzeumemigracji.pl