Ivan Vladislavić Congratulates the International Aubrey Tearle Proofreader’s Derby “Champoin”

A Gofer’s corrected manuscript of Ivan Vladislavić’s The Restless Supermarket earned him the crown in the inaugural International Aubrey Tearle Proofreader’s Derby.

The competition, which is run by Africa in Words, was organised to celebrate the re-release of Vladislavić’s The Restless Supermarket and Double Negative in the United Kingdom, and this year was judged by Vladislavić himself.

Vladislavić, whose classic first novel, The Folly, was re-released in South Africa recently, offered the winner some good-humoured advice, and paid compliments to the runners up:

A. Gofer (c/o Steph Newell) suggested some welcome improvements to the golf course at the Royal (henceforth Royale) Alibian Country Club and was therefore declared Overall Champoin of the Derby. In all fairness, it must be acknowledged that this competitor’s proofreading skills are not up to scratch and would not impress Aubrey Tearle. A. Gofer (c/o Steph Newell) would do well to put aside the golfing implements for a while and work instead at mastering the blue pencil.

True proofreading skill was displayed in the entries submitted by Words and Things, Kai Easton and Rehab Abdelghany. Words and Things shows practised flair with the traditional handwritten marks and submitted the most adept, technically correct entry. Kai Easton and Rehab Abdelghany were also highly accurate.

Carli Coetzee started promisingly and came up with some pleasing albeit fragementary corrigenda, but unfortunately failed to stay the course. I was also entertained by the entries of Graham Riach, Games Jraham [sic] and Carol Leff.

My best wishes to all the competitors.

Ivan Vladislavić

• Complete article: Africa in Words

The real-life Derby was inspired by the fictional version featured in The Restless Supermarket, as Africa in Words explains:

[T]he novel is set in the shifting inner-city of Hillbrow, Johannesburg, in the lead up to New Year’s Eve of 1994. It is both an example of Vladislavić’s remarkably attenuated writing of place and of the inventiveness and remarkable facility with language that marks his body of work. The Proofreader’s Derby, which makes up the entire central section of the novel, is compiled from a lifetime’s collection of textual errors, which are somewhat reluctantly narrativised by the cantankerous, conservative Aubrey Tearle, a retired proofreader of telephone directories. A competitive proofreading challenge that represents his life’s work, the Derby is Tearle’s challenge to what he sees as declining standards everywhere [...]

• Complete article: Africa in Words

Book details

• The Folly by Ivan Vladislavic
  Book homepage
  EAN: 9781415205525
  Find this book with BOOK Finder!

• Double Negative by Ivan Vladislavic
  Book homepage
  EAN: 9781908276261
  Find this book with BOOK Finder!

• The Restless Supermarket by Ivan Vladislavic
  Book homepage
  EAN: 9781415201695
  Find this book with BOOK Finder!

eBook options – Download now!

Image courtesy of Africa in Words