Have you ever eaten at a vegan restaurant that had roast duck on the menu? I would not have either, that is, if it hadn’t been for Martin Krč, who evidently is much better at writing than he is at picking ethical places to eat. This past autumn, Krč took a chance and entered a writing competition that resulted in a trip to Prague, a four star hotel, beer halls, and a place in the top ten at the National Literary Award ceremony.
When Martin initially gave me his first draft of the story he wanted to enter, I was a bit shocked. I thought, “Who is this kid from 1.B, and where did he learn to write?“ Later, even Martin was surprised when he got an email inviting him to Prague to receive an award. That’s just what happened, and on January 3rd I got an email from Krč titled “ GUESS WHAT!!!!” In the email I was informed about the invitation, and was told to fill my gas tank, because Martin was going to need a ride.
When Martin initially gave me his first draft of the story he wanted to enter, I was a bit shocked. I thought, “Who is this kid from 1.B, and where did he learn to write?“ Later, even Martin was surprised when he got an email inviting him to Prague to receive an award. That’s just what happened, and on January 3rd I got an email from Krč titled “ GUESS WHAT!!!!” In the email I was informed about the invitation, and was told to fill my gas tank, because Martin was going to need a ride.
We arrived in Prague the afternoon before the ceremony, and had some time to kill. We started our tour at the above-mentioned restaurant, in which Martin (being a vegetarian) was somewhere between annoyed and horrified to find duck on the menu. Gymy’s aspiring writer quickly recovered, and even let me convince him to try his first cup of coffee. We spent the rest of our time checking out the city, and finished strong with dinner at a traditional Czech beer hall. The atmosphere was magical, and Martin found it helpful for inspiration in writing the story he is currently working on.
The day of the National Literary Award ceremony had come, and Martin Krč was nervous! You see, Martin is a few things - intelligent, observant, and funny. He has a way with words, what he doesn’t have is an ego. The televised ceremony came and went and our Martin survived the attention. He was in the top 10 overall out of 240 students from the Czech and Slovak Republics, and 4th in his category, which had 125 people in it. Martin didn’t care as much about his amazing standings as he did about the fact that so many important people had enjoyed reading what he had written. All and all this trip was a blast, and I was honored to be included in it. Martin did an amazing job, and Gymy is proud to have him. Congratulations Martin, we look forward to reading more.
by Matt Haarman
Year 1, Issue 2