5 Canadian writers shortlisted for $60K Atwood Gibson Writers' Trust Fiction Prize

Five Canadian writershave made the shortlist for the 2024 Atwood Gibson Writers' Trust Fiction Prize.

The annual $60,000award recognizes the best novel or short story collection by a Canadian author.

The nominees are ric ChacourforWhat I Know About You,translated by Pablo Strauss, Conor Kerr for Prairie Edge, Canisia Lubrin for Code Noir, Fawn Parker for Hi, It's Meand Sheung-King for Batshit Seven.

"Through the minds and incandescent talent of their creators, works of fiction have the power to get us closer to understanding truths about the human experience," said David Leonard, executive director of Writers' Trust of Canada, in a press statement.

"These five works are compelling additions to our canon and will long be considered by future readers looking to study the craft of writing."

• The 2025 CBC Short Story Prize is currently accepting submissions

This year's jury is composed of celebrated Canadian fiction writers Saeed Teebi, Joan Thomasand Uchechukwu Peter Umezurike.

The shortlisted writers were selected by the jury from 139 titles.Each finalist will receive $5,000.

The books are available in accessible formats through the Centre for Equitable Library Access.

The 2024 winner will be announced on Nov.19 at the annual Writers' Trust Awards ceremony at CBC's Glenn Gould Studio in Toronto.

The Writers' Trust of Canada has awarded an annual fiction prize since 1997,and it was renamed in honour of Margaret Atwood and Graeme Gibson in 2021.

Atwood and Gibson were among the five co-founders of the Writers' Trust of Canada, alongside fellow writers Pierre Berton,Margaret LaurenceandDavid Young.

Neither Atwood nor Gibson were ever nominated for the prize that now bears their name.

• Graeme Gibson and Margaret Atwood discuss writing

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

It gives out 11 prizes inrecognition ofthe year's best in fiction, nonfiction and short story, as well as mid-career and lifetime achievement awards.

Last year's winner of the Atwood Gibson Prize was Kai Thomas for his novel In The Upper Country.

• Kai Thomas'In The Upper Countryshows how Black and Indigenous histories intertwine

Other past winners include katherena vermette, Austin Clarke, Alice Munro, Lawrence Hill,Miriam Toews, Andr Alexis andDavid Chariandy.

Get to know the 2024 finalists and their books below.

What I Know About Youby ric Chacour, translated by Pablo Strauss

InWhat I Know About You,Tarek is on the right path: he'll be a doctor like his father, marry and have children. But when he falls for his patient's son, Ali, his life is turned upside-down as he realizes his sexuality against a backdrop of political turmoil in 1960s Cairo. In the 2000s, Tarek is now a doctor in Montreal. When someone begins to write to him and about him, the past that he's been trying to forget comes back to haunt him.

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Chacour is a Montreal-based writer who was born to Egyptian parents and grew up between France and Quebec. In addition to writing, he works in the financial sector.What I Know About Youis his first book and was a bestseller in its French edition, winning many awards including the Prix Femina.

Strauss has translated 12 works of fiction, several graphic novels and one screenplay. He was a finalist for the Governor General's Literary Award for translation forThe Country Will Bring Us No Peace,SynapsesandThe Longest Year.His translation ofLe plongeurby Stephane Larue calledThe Dishwasherwon the 2020 Amazon First Novel Award. He lives in Quebec City.

What I Know About Youis also one of the 12 books on thelonglist for 2024 Giller Prize.

Prairie Edgeby Conor Kerr

Isidore "Ezzy" Desjarlais and Grey Ginther live together in Grey's uncle's trailer, passing their time with cribbage and cheap beer. Grey iscynical of what she feels is a lazy and performative activist culture, while Ezzy is simply devoted to his distant cousin. So when Greyconcocts a scheme to set a herd of bison loose in downtown Edmonton, Ezzyis along for the ride one that has devastating, fatal consequences.

• How an escaped Albertan bison herd inspired Conor Kerr's latest novel about resisting colonial structures

Conor Kerr is a Mtis/Ukrainian writer who hails from many prairie towns and cities, including Saskatoon. He now lives in Edmonton. A2022 CBC Books writer to watch, his previous works include the novelsOld GodsandAvenue of Champions, whichwaslonglisted for the 2022 Scotiabank Giller Prize, andwon the ReLit award the same year. Kerr currently teaches creative writing at the University of Alberta.

Prairie Edgeis also on thelonglist for 2024 Giller Prize.

LISTEN | Conor Kerr discusses Prairie Edge on The Next Chapter:

The Next Chapter18:53Bison roam Downtown Edmonton in Prairie Edge

Mtis-Ukrainian author Conor Kerr's latest novel takes inspiration from a real-life news story. In Prairie Edge, two distant Mtis cousins release bison into Edmonton's urban green spaces in an act of reclamation.

Code Noir by Canisia Lubrin

The Code Noir, or the Black Code, was a set of 59 articles decreed by Louis XVI in 1685 which regulated ownership of slaves in all French colonies. In her debut fiction work, Canisia Lubrin reflects on these codes to examine the legacy of enslavement and colonization and the inherent power of Black resistance.

• The inherent power of resistance: How Canisia Lubrin's debut novel Code Noir reflects on postcolonial agency

Lubrin is a Canadian writer, editor and academic who was born in St. Lucia and currently based in Whitby, Ont. Her debut poetry collectionVoodoo Hypothesiswas longlisted for the Gerald Lampert Award, the Pat Lowther Award and was a finalist for the Raymond Souster Award. Her poetry collectionThe Dyzgraphxstwon the2021 OCM Bocas Prize for Caribbean Literature. It alsowon the 2021 Griffin Poetry Prizeand wasa finalist for the 2020 Governor General's Literary Prize for poetry.

LISTEN | Canisia Lubrin discusses the postcolonial agency in her novel Code Noir:

The Next Chapter16:17Acclaimed Canadian poet and writer Canisia Lubrin feels at home making her fiction debut

Canisia Lubrin is an award-winning Canadian poet, critic and academic. She first gained acclaim for her works of poetry, but always knew she would eventually enter the world of fiction writing. Her experimental novel debut is titled Code Noir a series of connected stories that range in style and tone to reflect on postcolonial agency and autonomy.

Hi, It's Meby Fawn Parker

InHi, It's Me,Fawn returns to her mother's farmhouse after her death one that is also inhabited by four other women with interesting and strange beliefs. As she lives in her mother's room and tries to figure out what to do with her possessions, she becomes obsessed with archiving her mother's writing and documents, teaching her more and more about the woman she thought she knew so well.

• Lisa Alward and Fawn Parker among winners of the 2024 New Brunswick Book Awards

Fawn Parker is an author and current PhD student at the University of New Brunswick. Her novelWhat We Both Knowwaslonglisted for the Scotiabank Giller Prize in 2022. Her poetry collectionSoft Inheritancewon the Fiddlehead Poetry Book Prize.

Batshit Sevenby Sheung-King

Glen"Glue" Wu has a general apathy toward his return to Hong Kong inBatshit Seven. As a lacklustre, weed smoking, hungover ESL teacher, Glue watches passively as Hong Kong falls into conflict around him. He cares only for his sister, trying to marry rich, an on-and-off-again relationshipand the memory of a Canadian connection now lost. Government control hardens, thrusting Glue into a journey that ultimately ends in violence.

Sheung-King's first novel,You Are Eating an Orange. You are Naked.,was a finalist for multiple awards, including the Governor General's Literary Award for Fiction and the Amazon Canada First Novel Award. It was also longlisted forCanada Reads2021. Sheung-Kin splits his time between Canada and China.

LISTEN | Sheung-King discusses the modern Hong Kong experience:

The Next Chapter15:21From foul language to QR codes, Sheung-Kings latest novel is an unexpected ode to modern life in Hong Kong

Sheung-King is the pen name of author Aaron Tang. His latest book follows a millennial living in Hong Kong, as he struggles to make sense of his identity and beliefs.