Season’s First Fiction-Prize Shortlist: Short Stories, Sophomore Outings, and Man Booker Nominees Dominate Pack
Toronto – September 28, 2011 – The Writers’ Trust of Canada announced today finalists for two fiction prizes: the Rogers Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize, recognizing writers of the year’s best novel or short story collection; and the Writers’ Trust of Canada/McClelland & Stewart Journey Prize, recognizing new and developing writers for the best short story first published in a Canadian literary journal during the previous year.
Both prizes, along with four additional awards for a body of work, will be presented on November 1 at the 11th annual Writers’ Trust Awards event in Toronto’s Isabel Bader Theatre. Total prize money will amount to $114,000.
Finalists for the Rogers Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize (click on cover for more info):
Clark Blaise | The Meagre Tarmac
Published by Biblioasis
Michael Christie | The Beggar's Garden
Published by HarperCollins Publishers
Patrick deWitt | The Sisters Brothers
Published by House of Anansi Press
Esi Edugyan | Half-Blood Blues
Published by Thomas Allen Publishers
Dan Vyleta | The Quiet Twin
Published by HarperCollins Publishers
Each of the five finalists will receive $2,500, with the eventual prizewinner receiving a total of $25,000. The finalists were chosen by a jury composed of two past prizewinners, Emma Donoghue and Margaret Sweatman, as well as a past prize finalist, Rabindranath Maharaj. They read a total of 120 books from 53 publishers. The prize is sponsored by Rogers Communications Inc.
Finalists for the Rogers Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize will be reading at the International Festival of Authors in Toronto on October 26 and in Hamilton, Ontario, on October 27.
Finalists for the Writers’ Trust of Canada/McClelland & Stewart Journey Prize (click on cover for more info):
Seyward Goodhand | "The Fur Trader's Daughter"
Published by PRISM international
Miranda Hill | "Petitions to Saint Chronic"
Published by The Dalhousie Review
Ross Klatte | "First-Calf Heifer"
Published by The New Orphic Review
Each of the three finalists will receive $1,000, the eventual prizewinner receives a total of $10,000, and the journal publishing the winning entry receives $2,000. The finalists were chosen by a jury composed of Alexander MacLeod, Alison Pick, and Sarah Selecky. They read a total of 85 stories from 32 journals. The prize is made possible by James A. Michener’s donation of his Canadian royalty earnings from his 1988 novel Journey. McClelland & Stewart has published a selection of this year’s entries in The Journey Prize Stories 23.
“The Writers’ Trust is proud to shine a light on these gifted writers and their exceptional stories that will enchant and captivate Canadian readers,” said Peter Kahnert, Writers’ Trust Chair and senior vice-president, Raymond James Ltd. “Recognition of exceptional talent through prizes awarded by a jury of their peers is the greatest affirmation a writer can receive.”
About the Writers’ Trust
The Writers’ Trust of Canada is a charitable organization that seeks to advance, nurture, and celebrate Canadian writers and writing through a portfolio of programs, including literary awards, financial grants, scholarships, and a writers’ retreat. Writers’ Trust programming is designed to champion excellence in Canadian writing, to improve the status of writers, and to create connections between writers and readers. Canada’s writers receive more financial support from the Writers’ Trust than from any other non-governmental organization or foundation in the country.
About the Writers’ Trust Awards
An annual evening awarding $114,000 to Canadian writers, the Writers’ Trust Awards is one of the richest prize-giving nights in Canada. Shelagh Rogers, host of CBC Radio One’s The Next Chapter, will emcee this year’s event in Toronto on November 1, 2011. Four additional prizes for a body of work will be presented at the ceremony:
The Writers’ Trust Awards are made possible through generous support from corporate, foundation, and individual sponsors. The national print media sponsor, The Globe and Mail, provides additional support. The project is partially funded by the Government of Canada through the Department of Canadian Heritage Canada Book Fund.
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For further information:
Becky Toyne, 416-871-0502, btoyne@writerstrust.com