2020 Has Been Hell, But We Should Never Forget It
HELP WRITE HISTORY AND SUPPORT NEW YORKERS IN NEED

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“There are decades where nothing happens; and there are weeks where decades happen.”

 

 

Now accepting personal essays from New York-based writers of up to 2500 words reflecting on COVID-19, quarantines, and what 2020 has meant for them.

The Corona Chronicle Essay Contest is a charitable, real-time community history writing project, collecting the unique perspectives of real New Yorkers living through an uncertain period in the City’s history. Our goal is to create an accurate, engaging, and rich collection of first-hand accounts to help future historians and those currently hungry in our community.

The top 10 essays will be published as part of our forthcoming “Corona Chronicle” anthology with the top five essays, selected by our judges, receiving $500 for first place, $200 for second place, as well as $100 for three runners-ups. All 10 finalists will also be invited to read selections from their submissions in an online-only launch party in 2021, as well as receiving free copies of the final collection upon printing.

To participate, please purchase a $10 submission ticket below, and you will receive a link to our submission portal and contest agreement via email.

50% of all proceeds from submissions to the Corona Chronicle essay contest and subsequent anthology sales will be donated to the Food Bank For New York City, the provider of 80 million free meals per year for hungry and homeless New Yorkers.

 

Deadline: December 31st, 2020. 11:59 pm.
Must be 18 or older and a New York resident to enter.

 

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CONTEST UPDATES:

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FINALISTS ANNOUNCEMENT:

To The Excellent Friends of Ellipsis Rare Books,

In addition to wishing you happy summer and a slightly belated solstice, we are pleased to announce that after much deliberation our judges have selected 10 finalists for publication in the Corona Chronicle anthology as the winners of our essay contest.

The writers listed below contributed entries whose use of prose and eye for detail best captured unique perspectives on this unprecedented part in our city’s history. As a reminder, all finalists will receive a free copy of the anthology upon its release and $1000 in prizes will be divided among the top five entries.

10. Alexander Cavaluzzo
9. Zoe Valery Rodriguez
8. Megan McNeary
7. Seema Bajaria
6. Tim Eberle
5. Robert Salzman
4. Brahna Yassky
3. Gulshan Ashaque
2. Kelly Jean Fitzsimmons
1. Hannah Berger

We will be reaching out to all of our finalists and making further announcements as we move toward publication but most importantly:

Congratulations To All Our Winners
&
Thank You for Helping Us Write History!

Andrew Lenoir

Proprietor
Ellipsis Rare Books

6 – 21 – 2021

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SEMI-FINALISTS ANNOUNCEMENT:

To The Exemplary Friends of Ellipsis Rare Books,

We hope your 2021 has started in the right direction and are pleased to announce the selection of our semi-finalists for inclusion in the forthcoming Corona Chronicle anthology.

The 21 essays selected from our entries demonstrated a depth of thought and engagement with their subject matter and details that we felt best captured the experiences and questions of New Yorkers over the last year.

However, as we celebrate those selected, we want to acknowledge the dozens of talented writers who submitted their portions of our collective history and the hundreds of dollars all of you have already helped raise for The Food Bank For New York City. In the course of our reading we encountered far too many moving stories, testimonies and tributes for us to possibly include every worthy entry. Although your piece might not have been the perfect fit for this project, please, save it, share it, and spread it as far as you can. Submit your essays for publication, save them for posterity, but most importantly, be proud of them.

We are humbled and inspired by the honesty and humanity all of you have shared with us and are sincerely grateful for your participation.

While we are sorry that this must mark the end of the road for most of our contestants, thank you again for your generous participation and please join us in congratulating our semi-finalists:

Stay tuned for further updates including the announcement of final selections and awards in the coming months.

Until then,
Andrew Lenoir

Proprietor
Ellipsis Rare Books

3 – 15 – 2021

 

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OUR PARTNERS

For further information on this project or to become a supporting sponsor, please email
info@ellipsisrarebooks.com