Tiny stories: Vanuatu’s love of storytelling

Mikaela Nyman introduces us to the Sot Sot Storian / Microfiction competition and talks with Anna Naupa and Rebecca Tobo Olul-Hossen

This year, Vanuatu held its first microfiction competition, Sot Sot Storian 2024, on the theme of ‘Ocean’ or ‘Solwota’ in Bislama. With the ocean being such an important part of people’s lives in the Pacific region, the Vanuatu government launched a revised National Ocean Policy in June 2024, which underscores Vanuatu’s commitment to ocean conservation and sustainable management of marine resources.

Writers were encouraged to craft memorable tiny stories of no more than 100 words in Bislama, French, English or their own vernacular languages. The submissions varied from traditional (‘kastom’) stories to stories written as letters, stories written by the ocean itself, stories about love, loss and healing, and the experience of being a seasonal worker in New Zealand. Joyful stories about swimming and fishing sat next to cautionary tales about violence, pollution and the importance of looking after the ocean alongside Vanuatu’s language and culture. These tiny stories have already made waves across Vanuatu and beyond.

Mikaela Nyman talked to two of the organisers in Port Vila, acclaimed writers and editors Anna Naupa and Rebecca Tobo-Olul Hossen, about their impressions and their hopes for Vanuatu’s literary scene. Anna, Rebecca and Mikaela were part of the Sot Sot Storian judging panel together with Méré Tari Sovick (Melanesian Women Today) and Christelle Thieffry.

Mikaela also caught up with one of the joint winners, Leina Isno, who is completing a PhD at the Otago University Medical School. Leina reveals what motivates her to write and what winning the competition has meant for her. She has also received an unexpected request from her community in Malekula.

Mikaela Nyman (MN): Congratulations, what a fantastic turnout for a first microfiction competition! It’s exciting to see all the media coverage and the shared joy this new form of story-telling has generated across Vanuatu. But let’s start at the beginning. How did it come about?

Anna Naupa (AN): Really, I think you and Becs came up with the idea during Haus Storian! I just know that once the concept note was drafted by Becs, we didn’t have a chance to follow up until I had the surprising honour of winning the Australian High Commission’s International Women’s Day Mildred Sope Award for story-telling this year. Unexpected prize money that I thought could be used to encourage other local writers. I’m focusing on encouraging writing and story-telling in all of Vanuatu’s languages. Becs and I thought the competition needed to target school students as well as adults, and that in addition to the three official languages (English, French and Bislama), people could also submit in their local languages.

Rebecca Tobo Olul-Hossen (RTOH): The inaugural Haus Storian program celebrating Melanesian literature during the 7th Melanesian Arts and Cultural Festival (MACFest) in Port Vila in July 2023 highlighted the value of the literary arts in Melanesia and encouraged writing and storytelling across the sub-region. Haus Storian also included microfiction and flash fiction workshops for the public and in schools. Following on from Haus Storian 2023, collaborators Nabanga Pikinini, Alliance Française de Port-Vila, Sista Stanap Strong writers, Sista Vanuatu and Melanesian Women Today hosted the first ever national ‘Sot Sot Storian’ Kompetisen 2024.

The aim was two-fold. Firstly, literacy is a key issue for Vanuatu. The Pacific Islands Literacy and Numeracy Assessment 2021 revealed that 79% of year 4 students did not meet the minimum reading proficiency standard. This was one way the creative writing community could contribute to improving literacy, especially with the high school category (12-17 years) that will hopefully become a regular competition. Secondly, it is a way to test and grow the appetite for story writing, building on Vanuatu’s love for story-telling and doing this through a tight, concise, but fun way through the use of microfiction.

MN: How did you manage to organise it and spread the word across the islands?

RTOH: The initiative was very much a collaboration bringing together Nabanga Pikinini, Alliance Française de Port-Vila, Sista Stanap Strong writers, Sista Vanuatu and Melanesian Women Today. E-mail and connecting online via zoom calls was key to bringing it to fruition. In fact, there were no face-to-fact meetings at all, as collaborators were spread throughout Vanuatu and abroad, and this was very much a voluntary project.

Hosting two virtual creative writing workshops that were delivered by New Zealand-based acclaimed writer, co-editor of Vanuatu’s first women’s anthology and an ally to Vanuatu literature – you, Mikaela – generated lots of interest from Vanuatu-based creatives as well as those living abroad and in the diaspora. The use of social media, in particular Facebook using the Vanuatu Literature facebook page, was a key medium to spread information about the Sot Sot Storian competition to the writing public in Vanuatu and diaspora.

Mainstream media, national as well as regional, was an important part of outreach. Media releases were sent to the press at key moments, i.e. the announcement of the competition, the results, announcement of winners, and publication of work. Members of the organising committee participated in media interviews with the national broadcaster on radio and television, as well as Australia’s ABC radio’s Pacific Beat.

AN: Social media, particularly Facebook (via the @VanuatuLiterature page) was key for this, working with all the Sot Sot Storian partners. And so too were the ever generous Vanuatu media outlets Daily Post and VBTC / Radio Vanuatu / Vanuatu Television. Their assistance in promotion and awareness was invaluable. The Vanuatu Government’s project with Blue Prosperity Vanuatu generously sponsored two prizes for submissions that contributed to ocean advocacy.

Becs was great at giving us international media coverage through Pacific Beat. We described the event as the first ever national Sot Sot Storian competition (because it was), community-run, and sponsored with the generous support of prizes from: my IWD Mildred Sope prize money, Sista Stanap Strong writers, Nabanga Pikinini (which includes the Taf Tumas books), Alliance Française de Port-Vila (who helped with promotion in French), Melanesian Women Today (who also helped promote it), Papua New Guinean author Baka Bina from Haus Storian who generously committed to providing 2 bilums (baskets) per year as prizes, and Sista Vanuatu, who kindly assisted with promotion and online publication via their webpage. Foley Pfalzgraf in Hawaii supported us with social media graphics.

MN: What kind of feedback have you received?

RTOH: It went amazingly! Without having anything in the past to be able to measure success against, we felt that it went extremely well. The quantity, almost 70 submissions in total, with 29 youth and 40 in the open category, as well as the quality of the submissions blew us away. Submissions were made in nine languages including Vanuatu’s official languages (Bislama, English, and French) as well as six languages from the northernmost islands of Vanuatu (Gaua in Torba Province) to the southernmost islands (Tanna and Erromango in Tafea Province).

There are so many stories to share. One that stands out is about the winner of the youth category, 16-year-old Mislin Wari, whose childhood illness prevented her from attending school and she struggled to read and write. The Sot Sot Storian competition prize money gave her a laptop for her school work. It was a huge boost to her self-confidence.

Taf Tumas - inspirational illustrated non-fiction stories for children

AN: Frankly, despite the promotion and outreach to schools, we had not expected much engagement due to it being the first time for microfiction in Vanuatu and also because the timeframe included a chunk of school holidays (as teachers are key to engaging students in writing competitions). We were pleasantly surprised at the number of youth entries, and even more amazed at the number of open entries (since adults are often much harder to engage in writing competitions or writing in general). Mikaela’s workshops received excellent feedback, people were simply glad to have a platform to develop writing skills and also to share their efforts.

There are a couple of stories I would like to share to illustrate the type of engagement, feedback and meaning the competition gave to participants.

The oldest participant was in his 70s and while he was not on social media, nor on email, he had heard about the competition from Radio Vanuatu and seen a poster at the Alliance Française. Determined to make a submission (which were only via email, a lesson for us also), he tracked down my name and number and made sure I had received his submission. While he was not a finalist, his determination to write in French and share his thoughts about the ocean were very encouraging and a reminder that age should not be a barrier.
The winner of the youth category was a 16-year old girl in Luganville, Santo, who had only learned to read and write two years prior due to her disrupted schooling (due to illness). Her school principal reported that winning the prize gave her, and her fellow class mates who won special commendations from the Judges, so much more confidence, and the difference at school was noticeable. She asked for her prize money to be deposited with Computer World in Port Vila, who matched the prize money so she could purchase her own laptop for use at school.

On reflection, I am sure that there is more we can do in the future to elicit and shape public awareness and engagement during and after the competition.

MN: Do you think the compressed tiny story is a form that appeals to ni-Vanuatu writers?

RTOH: Compressed tiny stories do appear to be a form that appeals to ni-Vanuatu writers and the Vanuatu love of story-telling. They are also more challenging to write, compared to longer forms, as writers have to be quite deliberate in their word choice and limiting verbosity is key.

AN: This format was a steep learning curve for me too as it’s such a specific style and skill. Mikaela’s writing workshops were excellent in helping build the microfiction writing skill. In the longer run, and for future competitions, I think this format will not only encourage these types of writing skills, but also help to make writing (and reading) a little less daunting and a bit more accessible. The winning entries showed such a great range of talent and style … I am excited to see what future competitions will produce.

MN: What are your hopes for Vanuatu literature in the shorter term and more long-term? What’s next for you with regards to Vanuatu Literature?

RTOH: Our hope for Vanuatu literature is that it continues to grow and go from strength to strength. In the short term, this competition has made visible individuals who have an aspiration to write and who are writing creatively in Vanuatu, and through this, we hope that these connections continue to grow and flourish. In the longer term, we hope to bring a competition like this to Vanuatu on a regular basis, continuing to build Vanuatu’s body of literature, and bringing Vanuatu’s literature to the world through publishing of writing online and through anthologies.

AN: I met Becs through the Port Vila Public Library when we borrowed the same books; sharing a love of reading and enjoying writing for myself. I never dreamed that finding others with the same interests here in Vanuatu would grow into something so valued by the wider public, such as the Taf Tumas series, Haus Storian etc. The Taf Tumas journey took place almost in parallel to Sista Stanap Strong! (or just slightly after) and I think the timing has been fortuitous for nurturing a critical mass of interested Vanuatu writers. In five years, I believe that collectively we have re-ignited the type of passion needed to help Vanuatu Literature to grow and in another five years time I hope to see Sot Sot Storian and similar writing opportunities regularised so that emerging writers know there is a space for them to express their stories.

MN: On a more personal note, do you manage to find time for your own writing? What are you working on now, any aspirations?

RTOH: I am always trying to make time for my own writing. It is a challenge juggling a full-time job and bringing up a family, however this is important. I’m currently working on a collection of short stories and some poetry. A longer-term project I have been working on, and would like to finish, is a novel.

AN: As a current doctoral student, writing (and research) is my job, so I am fortunate that I get to write every single day. I find that the types of writing I do, however, are very diverse. When I need a break from the daily academic writing, I’ll have some fun drafting blogs or writing creative non-fiction. Non-fiction is my preferred genre, I feel that there is so much about our lived experiences in Vanuatu that we don’t always get to tell, or an angle that is never heard, and so this is what I gravitate towards. Sometimes, when I feel extremely strong about something, I write a poem. And sometimes, just for fun or waiting in a bank queue, I’ll practice some microfiction to develop my skill in this. Right now I am working on my academic thesis and two journal articles – I wish I could submit these in 100 words or less! (On a more serious note, one day I would like to write a novella from the perspective of a mixed-race girl growing up in Vanuatu … something we never get to hear about at the moment … but I’ll have to save that for another decade.)

Anna Naupa is a co-founder of Vanuatu’s first national micro-fiction writing competition, the Sot Sot Storian, which launched in 2024 and was inspired by the inaugural Haus Storian celebration of Melanesian literary arts (which she also co-founded) at the 7^th Melanesian Arts and Cultural Festival in 2023. As creator and convenor of the community-based writing collective that has produced the illustrated Taf Tumas series of homegrown Vanuatu creative non-fiction for children since 2019, Anna combines her passion for writing with literacy development, traditional knowledge and nation-building in Vanuatu. She has written, edited, and translated over 20 books and collections, and is a board member of the Nabanga Pikinini and Erromango Cultural Association in her home, Vanuatu. She is the inaugural recipient of the Australia-Vanuatu International Women’s Day Mildred Sope Award for Creative Storytelling (2024).

Rebecca Tobo Olul-Hossen is a ni-Vanuatu poet, storyteller, and editor. Rebecca co-edited Vanuatu’s first women’s anthology, Sista, Stanap Strong! (THWUP, 2021), and first non-fiction children’s book, Taf Tumas (2020). She was the co-convenor of the inaugural Haus Storian literary fest as part of the 7^th Melanesian Arts and Culture Festival in 2023. Committed to growing literature in Vanuatu and Oceania, her poems and short stories have been published in anthologies in Vanuatu, Fiji, and Aotearoa, including Sport 47, Voes, Rising Tides, A Game Of Two Halves: The Best of Sport 2005-2019, Va – Stories by Women of the Moana, NZ Poetry Shelf, and the climate change anthology No Other Place To Stand. She participated in the 60th Brisbane Writers Festival, the 32nd Medellin Poetry Festival and the First Nations Writers Festival 2023.