Established in memory of writer Bronwen Wallace, this award has a proven track record of helping talented developing authors secure their first book deal. Two $10,000 prizes will be given for outstanding works of unpublished poetry and short fiction.
The RBC Bronwen Wallace Award is sponsored by RBC Emerging Artists. Since 2007, RBC Foundation through RBC Emerging Artists has invested more than $119 million in arts organizations, supporting more than 35,000 artists.
“‘Like Rabbits’ is historical fiction at its most intimate and convincing. This storybeautifully harks back to the golden age of Dutch science, a time when men played gods. As one such man attempts to conceive with his wife, he seeks credit for his groundbreaking discoveriesat great personal cost — only to face tragedy and his own mortality. With elegance, authority, and vitality, Nayani Jensen gives us a timeless story of ambition and a tender portrait of a marriage.”
—2024 RBC Bronwen Wallace Award short fiction jury (Jessica Johns, Maria Reva, and Jack Wang)
“Stunning and necessary, the poems in ‘Selections from “a fine African head”’ are not merely inspired by a historical event but emerge ingeniously from it. Faith Paré returns the truth not only to the victims, but also to the survivors of the 1969 Sir George Williams University computer centre incident. This urgent, chimerical, and devastating work is finely crafted from the unreliability of archive and the misery of memory.”
—2024 RBC Bronwen Wallace Award poetry jury (Derek Beaulieu, Kama La Mackerel, and Joanna Lilley)
Poetry (2024)
A jury composed of Derek Beaulieu, Kama La Mackerel, and Joanna Lilley read 215 submissions to select finalists in the poetry category.
Short Fiction (2024)
A jury composed of Jessica Johns, Maria Reva, and Jack Wang read 252 submissions to select finalists in the short fiction category.
“Publishingcanbeaconfusingandtoughindustrytonavigate,andIamtrulygratefulthattheBronwenWallaceAwardhasbeenlikeafootonthegaspedalformycareer.”
Bronwen Wallace (1945–1989) was a poet, short-story writer, and mentor to many aspiring authors as a creative writing instructor at Queen’s University and St. Lawrence College in Kingston, ON. This prize was established in her honour in 1994 by a group of friends and colleagues. Wallace felt that writers should have more opportunities for recognition early in their careers. Hence, this annual award is presented to two writers — one each in the categories of poetry and short fiction — who have been published in literary journals or anthologies but have yet to publish in book form.
The RBC Foundation aims to support the careers and development of emerging Canadian creatives through mentorship programs, education, and access and exposure to new audiences.
