Pedro Calatrava Labandeira won the Mediterráneo Foundation Novel Award’s first edition with his work blue man, a story about a retired man who discovers purpose through a series of adventures. The novel is slated for a first edition by Pre-Textos, with a print run of 800 copies. The author, hailing from A Coruña, has a portfolio of 933 works across 33 countries.
The jury’s decision for this inaugural prize carried a prize of 20,000 euros and was announced at an event hosted at the Murcia headquarters, in attendance at the time of the foundation’s president. The event also featured Louis Boyer, Rector of the University of Murcia, together with José Lujan and Francisco Florit, who chaired the jury.
Florit’s panel included respected figures from the Royal Spanish Academy and noted writers such as Vicente Molina Foix, Soledad Puértolas, Clara Sánchez, and Silvia Pratdesaba. In the minutes, Pre-Textos publishing house stated that the author possesses the capacity to craft a compelling novel. The work is described as a coming-of-age tale about a middle-aged man who pursues personal growth through a journey filled with adventures, ultimately finding meaning in life after retirement. It is likened to a modern bildungsroman.
The president described blue man as a well-read, entertaining narrative whose most striking feature is the protagonist: a retiree who becomes entangled with a secret society that employs unorthodox methods to confront crime. This struggle lends purpose to the hero’s life.
award-winning
Calatrava spoke via video link after the decision was announced, saying that winning the award was a shock. He described arriving as if he were buying a lottery ticket and never expecting to win, only to receive a call that brought tremendous excitement and left him trying to process the moment.
“I am a newcomer with my first novel,” the author remarked, adding that he has always written since childhood. He noted that he had started many manuscripts, but this was the first complete novel he finished. He reflected on life’s finite nature and how plain persistence can finally yield results.
In response to a question about the creative process, Calatrava explained that for him the challenge lies less in writing and more in deleting. If he writes a hundred words, he ends up discarding five hundred and rewriting a thousand. He recalled living through a similar pause that age brings and the patience that silence can require.
Born in Madrid in 1958, Calatrava moved to La Coruña in 1965 and has resided there ever since. He studied Medicine, Psychology, and Law. His professional background includes work in the chemical industry. Some unpublished and unexhibited stories and short pieces exist in the creative section, alongside occasional collaborations of text and comics in various blogs and publications.
Fundación Mediterráneo introduces two new 25,000-euro literary prizes
Novel
The novel follows a recently retired insurance agent who receives a job offer from a former employer. The mission is straightforward: track policyholders making claims against their insurers to uncover fraud. Yet during one assignment, the hero’s world shifts as he uncovers hidden truths from his family’s past.
Further, this mission propels him toward life itself. An adventure unfolds that he never intended, yet, unbeknownst to him, he was more prepared than he realized. The hero’s once monotonous, lonely life is transformed through a cast of characters, most of whom belong to a secret society known as the Blue Man. This organization fights abuse, arrogance, corruption, and evil through methods that are not always conventional.
Bet
The president of the Mediterráneo Foundation, Luis Boyer, stated that literature is embedded in the foundation’s DNA. The three literary prizes under its umbrella—Azorín de Monóvar, the founder’s legacy, and the awards for authors like Azorín, Carlos Arniches, and Gabriel Miró—are recognized as emblematic projects. He noted that the thousands of manuscripts submitted for the call reflect notable international interest, and with this new prize, the foundation aims to be a hub for reflection, growth, creativity, and new talent in the first edition of the award.
The countries contributing the most works included Spain, Argentina, and Mexico, followed by Colombia, Venezuela, Chile, Peru, the United States, Cuba, France, and many more. Works originated from 17 Spanish autonomous communities. The distribution across age groups showed the widest participation among writers aged 46 to 60, followed by those over 60, and a substantial portion of works from ages 36 to 45.