“It started early, in the 1980s,” remembers Marc Guillemin. One of my first writings was called Fairs and markets in Bonneval”, named after the town of Eure-et-Loir. The entrance to the house of the Bonnevalais writer testifies to his fervor for local history. The entire space is transformed into a library and is full of books. One of them, “Le secret du beauceron” (ed. Christian Puybaret), is not only signed with his name but has earned him his notoriety.
It is with this novel that Marc Guillemin won the Manuscript Prize in 2005, organized in Beauce, and which will celebrate its 20th anniversary this Sunday, November 17 at the same time as its new winner. “You write, you could participate in it. In addition, you are anchored in the region, you could write a regional novel,” Jean-Claude Ponçon, himself a writer from Dunois, told Marc Guillemin, the founder of the event. “That’s how I got started in literary writing,” the septuagenarian recalls today.
“The secret of the Beauceron” recounted the fate of a “poilu” from Bonneval (Eure-et-Loir), Pierre, who, in 1915, went to war. He leaves Marie. One day, the mayor announces to her the death of her fiancé… a story inspired by the life of Marc Guillemin's grandparents. “This prize reinforced my writing,” he explains two decades later. I felt like I was capable of doing other things and embarking on other writing adventures. Above all, it gave me the strength to go and knock on publishers! »
Winner from the second edition, this son of a shoemaker whose small workshop was located in the heart of Bonneval, won a new prize in 2012 with “Mourir pour des vins” (editions du Colombier). Marc Guillemin is now satisfied and prefers to “give way to young people”. “You have to dare,” he said, “that doesn’t commit you to anything. » All the winning manuscripts have also been published.
For its 20th anniversary, the Beauce and Dunois Manuscript Prize is opening up to 6-12 year olds with the first Plume Prize. The literary fair will be held this Sunday, November 17, 2024 at the Espace Centaure in Fresnay-L'Évêque. Jean-Claude Ponçon, local writer, initiator of the Prize and president of the jury from 2004 to 2014, will be present to recall the history of the prize. We will have to wait until 5:30 p.m. to find out the 20th winner of this promising competition.
