CBC Books, CBC’s online home for literary content, together with its partners—the Canada Council for the Arts, Air CanadaenRoutemagazine and The Banff Centre—are pleased to announce the winner of the2015CBC Poetry Prize.
Mark Wagenaar of Denton, TX - originally from Grimsby, Ont. - wins the grand prize for String Theory. The poem was selected from more than 1700 works received from across the country. You can read String Theory at CBCBooks.ca.
As grand-prize winner, Wagenaar will receive $6000 from the Canada Council for the Arts and his poem will be published in the December edition of Air Canada enRoute magazine. He will also receive a 10-day writing residency at The Banff Centre.
The jury was composed of writers Shane Book, Karen Solie and Fred Wah, who said “Mark Wagenaar’s ‘String Theory’ lifts the poetic sentence into a three-dimensional collage of nostalgia and reflection, a composition of intriguing images full of surprise and acuity. The natural economy of its language feels expansive, and a tension develops in the lines’ momentum, a controlled energy. Precisely calibrated accelerations made of equal parts song and knowledge propel this poem ‘out of the sun.’”
A former player in the Canadian Professional Soccer League, Mark Wagenaar is the 2015 winner of the Juniper Prize, from the University of Massachusetts Press, for his second book, The Body Distances. His first, Voodoo Inverso, won the University of Wisconsin Press’ Felix Pollak Prize. He is the 2015-16 Halls Poetry Fellow at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a doctoral fellow at the University of North Texas.
CBC Books also announced Joanne Morency as the winner of the French grand prize this morning: forNi le nom des caresses en français. For more information, please go toICI.Radio-canada.ca/icionlit.
The four runners-up for the CBC Poetry Prize are Michelle Elrick (Halifax, N.S.) for crow (v.),Jordan Mounteer (Winlaw, B.C.) for Pareidolia, Emily Nilsen (Nelson, B.C.) for Meanwhile, and Anna Swanson (St. John’s, N.L.) for The Garbage Poems. Each runner-up will receive $1000 from the Canada Council for the Arts.
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. The Corporation is a leader in reaching Canadians on new platforms and delivers a comprehensive range of radio, television, internet, and satellite-based services. Deeply rooted in the regions, CBC/Radio-Canada is the only domestic broadcaster to offer diverse regional and cultural perspectives in English, French and eight Aboriginal languages.
A space for us all is CBC/Radio-Canada’s new strategy to modernize the public broadcaster and ensure that it continues to fulfill its mandate for Canadians and for future generations. Through to 2020, it will increase its investment in prime time television programming, and continue to create radio programs of the highest quality, while promoting the development of digital and mobile platforms and content.
Canada Council for the Arts
The Canada Council for the Arts is Canada’s national public arts funder. We champion and invest in artistic excellence so that Canadians may enjoy and participate in a rich cultural life. In 2013-14 we allocated $153.6 million dollars towards artistic creation and innovation through our grants, prizes and payments. We also conduct research, convene activities and work with partners to advance the sector and help embed the arts more deeply in communities across the country. We are responsible for the Canadian Commission for UNESCO which promotes the values and programs of UNESCO to contribute to a more peaceful, equitable and sustainable future for Canadians. The Canada Council Art Bank operates art rental programs and helps further public engagement with contemporary arts.
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 Spafax, one of the world’s leading content marketing agencies.
About The Banff Centre
The Banff Centre ‘s mission is inspiring creativity. Thousands of artists, leaders, and researchers from across Canada and around the world participate in programs at The Banff Centre every year. Through its multidisciplinary programming, The Banff Centre provides them with the support they need to create, to develop solutions, and to make the impossible possible.
For further information, contact:
Nicola Makoway
Publicist, CBC Books
Diane Hargrave
Diane Hargrave Public Relations
416-467-9954
