CBC BOOKS, CBC’s online home for literary content, together with its partners the Canada Council for the Arts, Air Canada enRoute magazine and Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, today announced the winner of the 2017 CBC Short Story Prize Alix Hawley of Kelowna, British Columbia for Witching. The story was selected from more than 1800 works received from across the country. You can read Witching at CBCBooks.ca.
As grand-prize winner, Hawley will receive $6000 from the Canada Council for the Arts and her story will be published in the May edition of Air Canada enRoute magazine. She will also receive a 10-day writing residency at Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity.
The jury was composed of writers Jen Sookfong Lee, Shyam Selvadurai and Marina Endicott, who said:
“Witching is charged with tender dread—the calamity of a damaged soldier’s return from Afghanistan. Vivid images of war and the formless desert draw us in and, along with his wife, we incrementally learn the geography of his altered nature. This story springs from his parched silence, but rings and resonates with his wife's silenced and impossible rage. The language is elegant and understated and draws the reader deeply into this world."
Alix Hawley is the author of All True Not a Lie In It, which won the Amazon.ca First Novel Award and the BC Book Prize for fiction. It was also longlisted for the Scotiabank Giller Prize. Her next novel will be published in 2018.
CBC Books also announced Philippe Arseneault as the winner of the French grand prize this morning: for Chercher toujours. For more information, go to ICI.Radio-canada.ca/icionlit under the ‘Prix de la nouvelle’ tab.
The four runners-up for the CBC Short Story Prize, each receiving $1000 from the Canada Council for the Arts, are Kasia Juno (Montreal, Quebec) for The Peninsula of Happiness, Krzysztof J. Pelc (Montreal, Quebec) for The Duolect, Jasmina Odor (Edmonton, Alberta) for Everyone Has Come, and Meg Todd (Vancouver, British Columbia) for Warrior.
For more information on the awards, please visit CBCbooks.ca.
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About CBC Books
CBCbooks.ca features all of CBC's rich literary content and major events and programs such as Canada Reads, Canada Writes, The Next Chapter, and Writers & Company. This one-stop destination for book lovers and writers includes exclusive interviews with authors, the latest literary news stories, book recommendations and writing competitions.
About CBC/Radio-Canada
CBC/Radio-Canada is Canada’s national public broadcaster and one of its largest cultural institutions. We are Canada’s trusted source of news, information and Canadian entertainment. Deeply rooted in communities all across the country, CBC/Radio-Canada offers diverse content in English, French and eight Indigenous languages. We also provide international news and information from a uniquely Canadian perspective. In 2017, CBC/Radio-Canada will be at the heart of the celebrations and conversations with special 2017-themed multiplatform programming and events across Canada.
Canada Council for the Arts
The Canada Council for the Arts is Canada’s national arts funder. Its grants and payments to artists and arts organizations benefit Canadians by ensuring a vibrant arts sector in Canada. Its awards celebrate creativity by recognizing exceptional Canadians in the arts, humanities and sciences. The Canada Council Art Bank is a national collection of over 17,000 Canadian contemporary artworks – all accessible to the public through rental, loan and outreach programs. The Canadian Commission for UNESCO operates under the general authority of the Canada Council. The Canada Council for the Arts distributes payments to over 17,000 Canadian authors annually through the Public Lending Right (PLR) Program as compensation for free public access to their books in Canadian public libraries.
About Air Canada enRoute magazine
Air Canada enRoute magazine is seen by over 1 million readers each month. The magazine – available exclusively on all Air Canada flights and in Maple Leaf Lounges worldwide as well as in select hotels and boutiques across North America – is an inspirational authority for the global traveler, known for its strong visual presence and innovative design. Air Canada enRoute is published by Bookmark, one of the world’s leading content marketing agencies.
About Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity
Founded in 1933, Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity is a learning organization built upon an extraordinary legacy of excellence in artistic and creative development. What started as a single course in drama has grown to become the global organization leading in arts, culture, and creativity across dozens of disciplines. From our home in the stunning Canadian Rocky Mountains, Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity aims to inspire everyone who attends our campus – artists, leaders, and thinkers – to unleash their creative potential and realize their unique contribution to society through cross-disciplinary learning opportunities, world-class performances, and public outreach.
For further information, contact:
Nicola Makoway Diane Hargrave
Publicist, CBC Books Diane Hargrave Public Relations
nicola.makoway@cbc.ca 416-205-7673 dhprbks@interlog.com 416-467-9954
