The Carol Shields Prize for Fiction is a North American
literary award, created in 2020 to honour literature by women.
[Scottie Andrew]
"A new literary prize will award more than $100,000 to a North American writer. The only criteria? No men"
. CNN
CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by ...
, February 9, 2020. The annual prize will award $150,000 to the winning work and $12,500 to each of the shortlisted finalists, making it one of the world's richest literary awards.
[Jane van Koeverden]
"New Carol Shields Prize for Fiction will award $150K to a woman or non-binary writer"
. CBC Books
CBC Arts (french: Radio-Canada Arts) is the division of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation that creates and curates written articles, short documentaries, non-fiction series and interactive projects that represent the excellence of Canada's div ...
, February 7, 2020.
The prize will be open to both Canadian and American women and
non-binary
Non-binary and genderqueer are umbrella terms for gender identities that are not solely male or femaleidentities that are outside the gender binary. Non-binary identities fall under the transgender umbrella, since non-binary people typically ...
writers in English.
[ French-language literature by Canadians, and Spanish-language literature by Americans, will be eligible when published in an English translation.][ Submissions will be judged by a jury that includes one Canadian, one American and one international judge.][ Novelist ]Carol Shields
Carol Ann Shields, (née Warner; June 2, 1935 – July 16, 2003) was an American-born Canadian novelist and short story writer. She is best known for her 1993 novel ''The Stone Diaries'', which won the U.S. Pulitzer Prize for Fiction as well as ...
was selected as the namesake of the award, both in honour of her record as an advocate and mentor for women writers and because of her status as a dual citizen of both countries.[Marsha Lederman]
"New Carol Shields prize for fiction will award $150,000 to female author"
. ''The Globe and Mail
''The Globe and Mail'' is a Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of approximately 2 million in 2015, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on weekdays and Saturdays, although it ...
'', February 8, 2020. The winner will also receive a residency
Residency may refer to:
* Domicile (law), the act of establishing or maintaining a residence in a given place
** Permanent residency, indefinite residence within a country despite not having citizenship
* Residency (medicine), a stage of postgra ...
at the Fogo Island writers' retreat, while the runners-up will receive residencies at Canadian or American universities.[Deborah Dundas]
"New $150,000 Carol Shields fiction prize ‘to shine a light on women writers’"
. ''Toronto Star
The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. The newspaper is the country's largest daily newspaper by circulation. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and pa ...
'', February 7, 2020. In addition, the winner will also select an emerging female or non-binary writer, who will receive a year-long mentorship.[
The prize was created by Canadian novelist Susan Swan and editor Janice Zawerbny, with an organizing committee that includes noted women literary figures such as ]Alice Munro
Alice Ann Munro (; ; born 10 July 1931) is a Canadian short story writer who won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2013. Munro's work has been described as revolutionizing the architecture of short stories, especially in its tendency to move f ...
, Dionne Brand, Jane Urquhart
Jane Urquhart, LL.D (born June 21, 1949) is a Canadian novelist and poet. She is the internationally acclaimed author of seven award-winning novels, three books of poetry and numerous short stories. As a novelist, Urquhart is well known for her e ...
, Charlotte Gray, Margaret Atwood, Marie-Claire Blais
Marie-Claire Blais (5 October 1939 – 30 November 2021) was a Canadian writer, novelist, poet, and playwright from the province of Québec. In a career spanning seventy years, she wrote novels, plays, collections of poetry and fiction, newsp ...
, Natasha Trethewey
Natasha Trethewey (born April 26, 1966) is an American poet who was appointed United States Poet Laureate in 2012 and again in 2013. She won the 2007 Pulitzer Prize in Poetry for her 2006 collection ''Native Guard'', and she is a former Poet L ...
, Jane Smiley
Jane Smiley (born September 26, 1949) is an American novelist. She won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1992 for her novel ''A Thousand Acres'' (1991).
Biography
Born in Los Angeles, California, Smiley grew up in Webster Groves, Missouri, a s ...
, Francine Prose
Francine Prose (born April 1, 1947) is an American novelist, short story writer, essayist, and critic. She is a visiting professor of literature at Bard College, and was formerly president of PEN American Center.
Life and career
Born in Brookl ...
and Erica Jong
Erica Jong (née Mann; born March 26, 1942) is an American novelist, satirist, and poet, known particularly for her 1973 novel ''Fear of Flying''. The book became famously controversial for its attitudes towards female sexuality and figured pro ...
.[ Alexandra Skoczylas is the current executive director. ]["Jury announced for inaugural Carol Shields Prize for Fiction"]
. ''Quill & Quire
''Quill & Quire'' is a Canadian magazine about the book and publishing industry. The magazine was launched in 1935 and has an average circulation of 5,000 copies per issue, with a publisher-claimed readership of 25,000. ''Quill & Quire'' reviews ...
'', January 26, 2023.
Nominees and winners
References
{{reflist
Canadian fiction awards
American fiction awards
Literary awards honoring women
Awards established in 2020