site.btaDeyan Enev Receives International Short Story Contest Award

Svishtov marked the 163rd anniversary of the birth of celebrated Bulgarian writer Aleko Konstantinov with a series of events, culminating Tuesday in the awarding of this year’s Aleko International Short Story Competition to Bulgarian author Deyan Enev.

Enev was named the winner in the contest on January 5. 

The ceremony took place at the Svishtov community centre, where the jury, led by literary scholar Yordan Eftimov and including Mihail Veshim, Rumen Belchev, Tanya Likova, and Veselina Spasova, announced the winner. Enev’s story, The Black Panther, was read to the audience. The tale, inspired by a widely reported incident in June 2025 when a black panther was spotted in the Shumen Plateau, was selected from 91 submissions sent by 62 writers from nearly 20 countries.

During the celebration, Eftimov praised Enev’s long-standing contribution to Bulgarian literature, noting that he has published 697 weekly texts over 13 years, establishing himself as a prolific master of the short story. Enev expressed gratitude to the jury and the town of Svishtov before reading an additional story dedicated to Aleko Konstantinov.

He received a statuette, a certificate, and a portrait of the writer from Svishtov Mayor Gencho Genchev.

The evening also featured a performance of the musical comedy Bai Ganyo European by the Konstantin Kisimov Musical-Drama Theatre from Veliko Tarnovo, with ticket proceeds supporting the 100th anniversary of Svishtov’s History Museum. Earlier in the day, celebrations included a school ceremony at the Aleko Konstantinov Vocational High School, an exhibition of works by Petar Borsukov at the Nikolay Pavlovich Art Gallery, a torch procession from Konstantinov’s birthplace, and a citywide homage at his bust in the town garden.