The Gratiaen Prize 2010 - Shortlisted Authors

Rozaine Cooray

Colours of the Sun (published novel)

Rozaine is a business psychologist by profession and is a regular columnist for a leading Sunday newspaper on contemporary work issues. Infected by the 'travel bug' and influenced by her experience when studying and working in Sri Lanka, Australia, the UK and Dubai, her greatest inspiration is the diversity of people and cultures. She is a visiting lecturer for two prestigious universities in Colombo and heads her own consultancy Forte, specializing in customized training, organizational development and the coaching of young executives and managers.

Shyam Dissanayake

Dalada (unpublished novel)

Being involved in the local film industry as a teenager, and blessed with an overactive imagination, Shyam continued to develop an urge for movie-making and later writing, in the 70s. Marriage and the resultant children meant that he had to subordinate his desires; hence the MBA that he added to his B.Sc., and a lifetime in industry. With his responsibilities satisfied, he says it is "a pleasure to inflict my first literary effort on a hitherto unsuspecting public".

Herman Gunaratne

The Suicide Club (published novel)

Herman counts 43 years experience as a plantation manager, his career culminating with his appointment as regional manager of the Nuwara Eliya region in charge of Sri Lanka's best tea lands. He was thereafter appointed as the general manager of the Mahaweli Development Scheme He is the author of three earlier books, The Plantation Raj, For a Sovereign State and Tortured Island. He runs his own plantation and tea factory and is also developing the only private tea museum in the world.

Shirani Rajapakse

Breaking News (published short stories)

Shirani spends her time writing stories and weaving verses out of fragments of dreams and left-over sentences. She used to work at The Sunday Times and the Daily Mirror, and in international organizations including the World Bank and Commonwealth Secretariat. She read for an honours degree in English Literature from the University of Kelaniya and has a Masters in International Relations from the Jawaharlal Nehru University, India.

Sakuntala Sachithanandan

On the Streets and other Revelations (published poetry)

Sakuntala was educated at Visakha Vidyala, Colombo, qualified as a lawyer at the Sri Lanka Law College, and is married to Thirukeswaram Sachithanandan, also a lawyer. She is fond of children, animals, reading, writing, painting, gardening and teaching children. She has published the children's book, Tales From The Tree House, and another children's book, The Adventures of Sokadi The Line-Room Mouse, is in the process of being published.