Sheung-King, Anthony Oliveira, and Martha Baillie Win Big at the Writers' Trust Awards, and More...

This evening, at a vibrant ceremony that took place in the Glenn Gould Theatre at CBC HQ, the Writers’ Trust of Canada announced the winners of the majority of its major awards for the year, with more than $330,000 up for grabs to Canadian writers. It was a night of new voices, celebrated authors, and those who have lived the writing life to the fullest. The event was hosted by Canadian playwright and performer Charlie Petch.

The three featured prizes of the evening were handed out accordingly:

Sheung-King received the $60,000 Atwood Gibson Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize for Batshit Seven, published by Penguin Random House Canada. The prize was presented by juror Saeed Teebi and is sponsored by the Balsillie Family Foundation.

Anthony Oliveira was awarded the $12,000 Dayne Ogilvie Prize for LGBTQ2S+ Emerging Writers for Dayspring, published by Strange Light. The prize was presented by its founder Robin Pacific. An increase to the prize purse from $10,000 to $12,000 was announced on stage. The prize was founded by Robin Pacific and continues to receive community support, highlighted by a generous investment by last year’s winner Anuja Varghese.

Martha Baillie was awarded the $75,000 Hilary Weston Writers’ Trust Prize for Nonfiction for There Is No Blue, published by Coach House Books. The prize was presented by juror Annahid Dashtgard and is sponsored by The Hilary and Galen Weston Foundation.

In addition, four authors were celebrated for their contributions to literature in Canada through their bodies of literary work: 

Rita Wong won the $60,000 Latner Griffin Writers’ Trust Poetry Prize

Sara O'Leary won the $25,000 Vicky Metcalf Award for Literature for Young People

Madeleine Thien won the $25,000 Writers’ Trust Engel Findley Award

Marie Clements won the $40,000 Matt Cohen Award; an increase to the prize purse from $25,000 to $40,000 was announced on stage.

Congratulations to all of the 2024 winners, and to their publishers, editors, publicists, agents, and everyone else involved in creating these fantastic works!

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Additional information about the prizes presented and jury comments are below:  

Atwood Gibson Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize ($60,000)  

This prize is awarded for the year’s best novel or short story collection. A jury composed of Canadian fiction writers Saeed Teebi, Joan Thomas, and Uchechukwu Peter Umezurike selected the 2024 finalists and winner. In total, 139 titles were submitted by 70 publishing imprints. Each finalist received $5,000; the winner received $60,000. Translators received a portion of prize monies. The Atwood Gibson Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize is part of a $3 million commitment to supporting our nation’s literature by the Balsillie Family Foundation.

Winner: Sheung-King for Batshit Seven (Penguin Canada)   

“An audacious reinvention of the novel for a dystopian age, Batshit Seven is a canny depiction of late-stage capitalism set among the glittering towers and street markets of Hong Kong. Sheung-King deftly conveys the dilemma of the self-aware citizen through the character of Glue, a transnational would-be writer whose identity, self-respect, and even language are being insidiously dismantled by a society where everything is commodified. Assimilation or self-parody are increasingly Glue’s only options — modes of existence Sheun-King brilliantly evokes through the very language of the novel. A perfect amalgam of form and idea, Batshit Seven is poignant, darkly hilarious, and stunningly original.” —Jury Citation

Finalists:  

• What I Know About You by Éric Chacour, translated by Pablo Strauss (Coach House Books)
• Prairie Edge by Conor Kerr (Strange Light) 
• Code Noir by Canisia Lubrin (Knopf Canada)
• Hi, It’s Me by Fawn Parker (McClelland & Stewart)

Dayne Ogilvie Prize for LGBTQ2S+ Emerging Writers ($12,000)  

This prize is awarded to a Canadian writer from the LGBTQ2S+ community for a debut book in any genre. A jury composed of authors Jillian Christmas, Adam Garnet Jones, and Hazel Jane Plante selected the 2024 finalists and winner. In total, 26 titles were submitted by 21 publishers. Each finalist received $2,000; the winner received $12,000. Translators received a portion of prize monies. An increase to the prize purse from $10,000 to $12,000 was announced at this year’s awards event. The prize was founded by Robin Pacific and continues to receive community support, highlighted by a generous investment by last year’s winner Anuja Varghese.

Winner: Anthony Oliveira for Dayspring (Strange Light)  

“Ambitiously and audaciously, Anthony Oliveira transforms scripture into a poetic and erotic queer love story. Dayspring crosses centuries and genres, bends fan fiction into dazzling verse, and mixes the sacred and the profane with the sublime and the perverse. In a sly nod to red letter bibles, Oliveira uses blood-coloured ink to render the words of Jesus, who emerges as fallible and playful, horny and tender. With the heft of a tome, the lure of a page-turner, and the sweep of an epic poem, Dayspring is an effervescent and poignant work about love and humanity.” —Jury Citation

Finalists: 

• Perfect Little Angels by Vincent Anioke (Arsenal Pulp Press)
• What I Know About You by Éric Chacour, translated by Pablo Strauss (Coach House Books)

Hilary Weston Writers’ Trust Prize for Nonfiction ($75,000)

This prize is awarded for the year’s best literary nonfiction book. A jury composed of Canadian nonfiction writers Annahid Dashtgard, Taylor Lambert, and Christina Sharpe selected the 2024 shortlist and winner. In total, 117 titles were submitted by 74 publishing imprints. Each finalist received $5,000; the winner received $75,000. The Hilary Weston Writers’ Trust Prize for Nonfiction is sponsored by The Hilary and Galen Weston Foundation through a multiyear funding commitment to elevate and embolden nonfiction writers both in Canada and abroad.  

Winner: Martha Baillie for There Is No Blue (Coach House Books)

“In this exquisitely written memoir, Baillie delves into the fine despair coating family relationships, calling into question how clearly we see those we live most closely to. Through the art of the essay, she explores her mother’s passing, her father’s protective role, and the long-term consequences of living with a sister who has schizophrenia. Here are the age-old challenges of loving someone who doesn’t understand us, the doomed attempts to save someone from themselves, and the constant reckoning with the millions of ways family imprints itself on us. An elegy to the beautiful fight to keep a family together and an ode to the devastating loss when things fall apart, There Is No Blue rattles the bones of what it is to be in imperfect relationships with the people we are tied to by birth and blood.” —Jury Citation

Finalists:   

• Vantage Points: On Media as Trans Memoir by Chase Joynt (Arsenal Pulp Press)
• Here After: A Memoir by Amy Lin (Zibby Books)
• Invisible Prisons: Jack Whalen’s Tireless Fight for Justice by Lisa Moore and Jack Whalen (Knopf Canada)
• Everything and Nothing At All: Essays by Jenny Heijun Wills (Knopf Canada) 

Latner Griffin Writers’ Trust Poetry Prize ($60,000)

This prize is awarded to a mid-career poet in recognition of a remarkable body of work and in anticipation of future contributions to Canadian poetry. The prize was presented by co-sponsor Scott Griffin, with the 2024 winner chosen by a jury composed of poets Julie Pellissier-Lush, Ayaz Pirani, and Laisha Rosnau. The Albert and Temmy Latner Family Foundation and Scott Griffin co-sponsor the prize.

Winner: Rita Wong

“Rita Wong’s immediate and necessary poetry takes the breath away. Wong is a poet of total commitment. Her poetry lives on the page, and she sometimes claims the margins as well. We can feel her heart in her words in ways that are both playful and blunt, razor-sharp and lyrically beautiful. Frankly political and decolonial, Wong accompanies her warrior’s poetry with intense meditations on heritage and ecology, often in the same moment. Wong’s body of work is remarkable, transformative, and inspiring.” —Jury Citation

Vicky Metcalf Award for Literature for Young People ($25,000)

This prize is awarded to a writer of literature for young readers in recognition of an exceptional body of work. The award was presented by president and CEO of the Metcalf Foundation Jamison Steeve, with the 2024 winner selected by jurors Deirdre Baker, Andrea Curtis, and Itah Sad. The award is sponsored by the Metcalf Foundation.  

Winner: Sara O’Leary

“With deep insight into the unwavering spirit of children, Sara O’Leary shows that her young characters are able to speak for themselves, to overturn assumptions and worn-out ways of seeing. O’Leary has devoted her picture books to complex and playful expressions of how fantasy suffuses our experience of this world — from a poignant account of the young Brontë siblings to loving and outlandish answers to a child’s question, ‘Where did I come from?’ Her direct address to readers is surprising and engaging, initiating a lively conversation or a personal relationship. In celebrating diversity or tracking a little girl’s intensely busy play, O’Leary explores, sometimes subtly, sometimes overtly, the possibilities imagination offers. Enhanced by her many gifted illustrators, O’Leary’s willingness to be both fanciful and serious, to take chances with tone, format, and structure, makes each new book a delightful work of spare, neatly crafted words.” —Jury Citation

Writers’ Trust Engel Findley Award ($25,000)  

This prize is awarded to a mid-career writer of predominantly fiction in recognition of a remarkable body of work and in anticipation of future contributions to Canadian literature. The award was presented by Writers’ Trust of Canada board member, lawyer Sana Halwani and the 2024 winner was selected by jurors Wayne Arthurson, Corinna Chong, and Phil Halton. The award is sponsored by the Writers’ Trust Prize Fund and the Estate of Timothy Findley.

Winner: Madeleine Thien

“Madeleine Thien’s acclaimed body of work is nothing short of masterful. Seamlessly blending history and imagination, Thien’s narratives span generations, vast distances, and richly drawn casts of characters. Whether navigating the most intimate moments of love and loss or the dramatic stages of war and political oppression, Thien’s prose brims with sensitivity and compassion, illuminating vivid imagery and sparking insights that continue to resonate long after reading. It’s clear that Thien treats every sentence with the utmost care; the apparent ease with which her writing moves is a striking testament to her extraordinary command of the literary craft. We are in awe of the humanity and generosity that anchors all of her writing thus far, and we are eager to see what she gifts readers next.” —Jury Citation

Matt Cohen Award: In Celebration of a Writing Life ($40,000)

This prize is awarded to an author whose life has been dedicated to writing as a primary pursuit and in recognition of a lifetime of distinguished work. The award was presented by Lorraine Greey and the 2024 winner was chosen by a selection committee composed of Patsy Aldana, Michelle Good, Wayne Grady, Sylvia D. Hamilton, and Hal Wake. An increase to the prize purse from $25,000 to $40,000 was announced at this year’s awards event by the award’s patron, Lorraine Greey.

Winner: Marie Clements

“As a playwright, filmmaker, radio documentarian, and multi-media artist, Marie Clements consistently creates multidimensional works that challenge and reframe colonial history. By rearticulating false narratives, Clements exposes audiences to the disconnect between the myths underpinning colonialism and the actual experiences of Indigenous peoples. Her unique style draws on traditional storytelling and western theatrical conventions to create dynamic art that demands critical thought regarding erroneous representations of Indigeneity. She fearlessly addresses many forms of colonial violence that cast an oppressive shadow of misrepresentation and thwart reconciliation by deepening the divide between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people. Clements continues to demonstrate brilliance, acuity, and intensity in her work in the best tradition of teaching through artistic expression.”  —Jury Citation
About Writers’ Trust of Canada    

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Writers’ Trust of Canada is a charitable organization that seeks to support and celebrate Canadian writers and writing through a portfolio of programs including 11 literary awards, financial grants, career development initiatives for emerging writers, 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.        

Learn about Canadian writers and writing at writerstrust.com