Award-winning Ontario author Anuja Varghese pledges $25K to the Dayne Oglivie Prize

Hamilton, Ont.-based writer Anuja Varghesehas pledged $25,000 $5,000 per year for the next five years to the Dayne Ogilvie Prizefor 2SLGBTQ+ emerging writers.

The award is presented annuallyto a Canadian writer from the 2SLGBTQ+ community for a debut book in any genre. Varghese won in 2023 for her short story collectionChrysalis, which also won the 2023 Governor General's Literary Award for fiction.

Chrysalisis a short story collection that centres South Asian women, showing how they reclaim their power in a world that constantly undermines them. Exploring sexuality, family and cultural norms, this collection deals with desire and transformation.

"When I was puttingChrysalistogether, Ireally questioned if my stories would find an audience, if they were too weird, too queer, too ragey," Varghese told CBC Books in an email."But the response from readers has been incredible, and then to receive such generous praise and support from the Dayne Ogilvie jury, who themselves are writers I respect so deeply it made a huge difference for me, personally, creatively and of course, financially!"

LISTEN | Anuja Varghese discussesChrysalisonThe Next Chapter:

The Next Chapter13:48Anuja Varghese's short story collection sizzles with desire and transformation

Hamilton-based writer Anuja Varghese shares the inspiration behind her debut short story collection, Chrysalis.

When Varghese won the prize, she said that she wanted to use the prize "open doors for other queer writers the way doors have been opened" for her. For that reason, among others, she made a donation to this award.

"I also work in the nonprofit sector and know what a struggle it is for arts organizations to findsustainable funding, when so much funding is short-term, or heavily reliant on government or corporate support which can change quickly," she said. "Offering multi-year support eases some of these pressures."

Varghese's stories have also been recognized in the Prism International Short Fiction Contest and the Alice Munro Festival Short Story Competition and nominated for the Pushcart Prize.

• Anuja Varghese looks at death, life & the shackles of identity in this original short story

"I think it's more important than ever to uplift queer Canadian storytellers and the Dayne Ogilvie Prize is a high profile way to do that. Queer and trans rights are at risk in Canada, which makes it critical to amplify voices from our community."

The prize is administered by theWriters' Trust of Canada, an organization that supports Canadian writers through literary awards, fellowships, financial grants, mentorships and more.

The organization was founded in 1976 byMargaret Atwood, Pierre Berton, Graeme Gibson,Margaret Laurenceand David Young. The Dayne Ogilvie Prize began in 2007 by Robin Pacific in remembrance of her late friend and editor.