When Leticia Tuset was a sophomore, she had no idea that the short story draft she wrote for an intermediate fiction class at UNC would become a piece recognized by the North Carolina Writers’ Network.
Now in her senior year, the Morehead-Cain scholar was given an honorable mention for her short story "Close" earlier this month.
The honorable mention is from the Jacobs/Jones African-American Literary Prize contest, an annual literary competition open to any Black writer whose primary residence is in North Carolina.
The contest was created when UNC alumnus and North Carolina native Cedric Brown reached out to the North Carolina Writers’ Network. He wanted the award to encourage Black writers in the state.
Ed Southern, executive director of the North Carolina Writers’ Network, said the competition is open to writers regardless of their credentials.
“One of (Brown’s) goals in creating this contest with us was to try to convey, as he put it, the rich and varied existence of Black North Carolinians," Southern said. "I think with this contest being as open as it is, to all sorts of writers, that’s a great way of identifying excellent writing from outside what may be considered mainstream literary circles.”
Tuset’s “Close” explores themes of family and identity, with a specific focus on unusual family dynamics. The main character, Essie, is a young girl struggling with an emotionally abusive mother. Essie craves intimacy and maternal connection, so she takes the initiative to make a change herself and “something pretty strange happens," Tuset said.
“Close” is set in Creedmoor, North Carolina, where Tuset attended school and church. She said Creedmoor is “a stereotypical small town” and greatly influenced how she thinks about human relationships and the South.
Tuset continued that her piece sought to shed light on ideas of intimacy and familial ties.
