Mom and son among JCDC creative writing winners

The Jamaica Cultural Development Commission (JCDC) is bolstering the country's writing landscape with a diverse cast of creatives.

At the award ceremony for their Jamaica Creative Writing Competition on Wednesday, the entity awarded more than 100 writers ranging from ages 12 to 74 years old from a vast array of backgrounds.

Lorna Morgan, 74, travelled from Montego Bay in St James to collect her silver medal for her poem Yuh Special. The silver-haired Morgan told THE WEEKEND STAR that she has been a writer for the majority of her life though she had never entered a competition for the practice before.

"I been writing for years and when I saw the opportunity to enter I said, 'Well let me try'," she said. "I'm really grateful for the opportunity to express myself this way. It helps you to showcase your talent what God has given to you and it encourages other people to say 'Well at her age, why shouldn't I get involved?'. Age doesn't matter, it's what's inside."

On the opposite end of the age spectrum, 12-year-old Xander Coote was also recognised as a first-time entrant and silver medallist. Xander said he was inspired by his mother Denise Brown, who also entered the competition and won the prize for Best Overall Writer as well as other awards.

"My mother inspired me with her poems like the one about black lives," Xander said. Brown further explained, "I took him to the award ceremony with me one year and he loved it so much he wanted to write too."

Though clearly excited for his own achievement, Xander's smile grew exponentially when time came for his mother to be acknowledged. "I felt so proud of her!" he said still beaming.

With tears in her eyes, Brown shared how special it was for her to be a good example for her son.

"I only want to inspire and to motivate them to be better persons and I think I have done that or at least got one step closer to doing that today," she said.

Another awardee was Shantele Austin, a young Jamaican who migrated to Trinidad and Tobago more than 20 years ago. She told THE WEEKEND STAR that though her last visit to Jamaica was in 2001 when she was seven years old, it was important for her to enter her writing in a local competition as a means to reconnect with her first home.

"I have been working for the past seven years to really reconnect with my Jamaican roots and heritage. Because of the work I was doing with reconnecting, it was very important for me to come back here and be in person and experience Jamaica because this is where I am from. This is where I originated so it was very important for me to be here," she said. Austin won a silver medal for her poem Limbo.

"I feel privileged, I feel honoured because I always tell people even though I've not been back to Jamaica a lot of times, I always tell people I am the best of both worlds. I am both Trini and Jamaican and at the same time, that's a blessing. I mean, those are the two best islands in the Caribbean so you can't do better," she said laughing.