Final year BA (Hons) Visual Communication student Maya Jagger has been selected by Wakefield Literature Festival to illustrate short stories in their young writers competition.
In the autumn Maya entered a competition brief and was selected to illustrate short stories in the Wakefield Literature Festival young writers competition with a theme of Myths and Legends. The stories take inspiration from the ancient myths and legends of the Norse, Roman and Greeks updating them for today. The prize included publication of the winning stories with original illustrations by Maya Jagger.
Image: Illustration by Maya Jagger from The Demise of the Dryad story by Molly McCann, Wakefield Literature Festival young writers competition.
Maya said: “All the writers deeply impressed me, so I felt such gratitude to be commissioned. I really believed in the stories and I picked up on certain concepts that stood out to me. Poignant themes came up concerning lockdown, climate justice and Black Lives Matter, so I wanted to make sure that this came through my illustration.
I have a blended approach to my practice, working in traditional and digital media. I line draw in Indian ink, then I scan in my drawings and digitally colour them using Adobe Illustrator. Before I had a scanner, I was taking pictures of them on my iPhone, then removing the backgrounds on Photoshop.
This was my first ever brief to illustrate short stories, making this a very new and exciting challenge. And it was paid, so an added pressure! During lockdown last year I studied Reportage Illustration at Maastricht Academy of Media, Design and Technology on my 6 months abroad. This gave me the portfolio and the confidence to apply and take on the brief.”
A programme board spokesperson said:
"I really like how the key themes of the stories were amplified and presented in a way that felt mature and understanding. I also enjoy how they tied the publication together; in keeping with its Wakefield roots."
Image: Illustration by Maya Jagger from the Lone Whistle of the Wind story by Reece James, Wakefield Literature Festival young writers competition.
Image: Illustration by Maya Jagger from The Demise of the Dryad story by Molly McCann, Wakefield Literature Festival young writers competition.
The three winning stories were Demise of the Dryad by Molly Mccann, Qui Decipitur- The Deceiver by Georgina Wood and The Lone Whistle of the Wind by Reece James.
Winning writer Molly McCann said: "I thought they were beautiful, and they managed to create something so accurate to what I had envisioned when I was writing. I especially loved the drawing of the child looking up, the way it was done to make the trees look looming."