Municipality of Lajes do Pico/Ver Açor Editors
Translation: Portuguese Heritage Publications
DIAS DE MELO deals in his books, as did Vitorino Nemésio, with the profound Azorean insularity. Dias de Melo developed several of his novels in the South of the island of Pico, in the era of the whalers and the omnipresent sea. He socialized with Ferreira de Castro, Fernando Namora, Urbano Tavares Rodrigues, Armando Côrte- Rodrigues and many others.
It is the extraordinary literary dimension of one of the greatest Azorean writers, the largest in the whaling literature that justifies the promotion of the National Literary Award Dias de Melo, which has a meaning of great prestige for the Azorean Literature.
The National Literary Award Dias de Melo, promoted by the municipality of Lajes do Pico and by Ver Açor Editors, is intended to honor, biennially, a previously unpublished work or published in the previous year, in the categories of romance, novel, short story, chronic, or poetry, written in Portuguese language.
The jury is composed of five personalities of recognized merit: Daniel de Sá, Isabel Pires de Lima, Luis Fagundes Duarte, Manuel Tomás and Maria de Jesus Maciel. Each candidate work should be submitted to the Municipality of Lajes do Pico, by May 30, 2012.
The monetary value attributed to the National Literary Award Dias de Melo, is 5,000.00 euros. The selected work will then be published or reprinted by Ver Açor Editors. The prize winner will be announced at the official opening of the Whalers Week event.