9 emerging Canadian writers shortlisted for $10K RBC Bronwen Wallace Awards
The prize recognizes writers for poetry, short fiction and creative nonfiction
The Writers' Trust of Canada has revealed the 2025 finalists for the RBC Bronwen Wallace Award. The prize recognizes emerging Canadian writers for poetry, short fiction and creative nonfiction who are unpublished in book form.
This is the first year that the prize is extended to include writers of creative nonfiction. The winner of each prize will receive $10,000. Each finalist will receive $2,500.
This prize was established in 1994 to honour the life and career of Bronwen Wallace, a poet and short story writer who felt that writers should have more opportunities for recognition early in their careers.
Cicely Grace, Nicole Mae and Dora Prieto are the finalists for the poetry prize.
Grace is shortlisted for her poem Rather Her Clean. She is a Vancouver writer who holds a degree in English literature from University of British Columbia. She was a finalist for the 2024 CBC Poetry Prize for There is no neutral way to say I was fourteen. Her writing has appeared in Contemporary Verse 2, The Garden Statuary, The Foundationalist and Pulp Literature.
She was awarded second place in the Foster Poetry Prize and first runner up in the Magpie Award for Poetry.
"Simmering with mirthy sexuality and posing undeniable questions, Rather Her Clean is driven by Grace's unabashed, unsparing voice," said the jury, composed of writers Dallas Hunt, Matt Rader and Sanna Wani, in a press statement.
Mae is a finalist for their poem Prairie Bog. They are an interdisciplinary artist who lives in Regina. Mae is a poetry teacher, a writing workshop host and a book publicist for River Street Writing.
They also run Love Letters, a multimedia art subscription.
"With a voice that ripples across the page, Mae crafts a vision of queer and trans lifeworlds that proliferate even in the most unforgiving spaces," said the jury in a press statement.
Prieto made the shortlist for her poem Loose Threads. She previously made the Bronwen Wallace poetry shortlist in 2023 and participated in the 2024 Writers' Trust Mentorship program.
Her work has been published in Acentos Review, Capilano Review and Catapult. Prieto won the 2022 Room Poetry Contest and was longlisted for the 2024 CBC Poetry Prize. She lives in Vancouver.
"Prieto's Loose Threads tests the integrity of poetry to hold what it promises against the gales of migration, gender, race, climate change, and the nation," said the jury.
Jess Goldman, Alexis Lachaîne and Hana Mason are the finalists for the fiction prize.
Goldman is a finalist for their story Tombstone of a Tsaddik. Their work has been published in Maisonneuve, CBC and Room.
They graduated from the University of British Columbia's creative writing MFA program and they live in Vancouver.
"Jess Goldman's Tombstone of a Tsaddik sparkles with freshness, strangeness and precision, immersing readers in an unforgettable depiction," said the jury, writers Jean Marc Ah-Sen, Baharan Baniahmadi and Shashi Bhat, in a press statement.
Lachaîne is shortlisted for his story Three New France Suicides. He is a Franco-Ontarian historian and holds a PhD from York University. His work has appeared in The Dalhousie Review and Grain. Originally from Kingston, Ont., he currently lives in Toronto.
"With a period-specific voice that is by turns contemplative and elegiac, Lachaîne's Three New France Suicides evokes the insuperable weight of history bearing down on existence," said the jury.
Mason is recognized for her story Training the Replacement. Her work has appeared in Room, carte blanche and Minola Review. She was a finalist for the Writers' Trust McClelland & Stewart Journey Prize, the Pushcart Prize and a National Magazine Award.
Mason was previously the editor-in-chief of This Side of West and Over/Exposed Lit. She holds an MFA from the University of Victoria and lives in Victoria.
"Through bold prose, Mason's gripping Training the Replacement weaves a haunting tale that explores the complexities of identity and the act of disappearing without a trace," said the jury.
Huyền Trân, Phillip Dwight Morgan and Graham Slaughter are the finalists for the inaugural creative nonfiction prize.
Trân is shortlisted for Where Do Mothers Go. She is a Vietnamese Canadian writer and poet. Her fiction has appeared in Writer's Digest and Kitchissippi Times. She has a degree in journalism from Carleton University and works in communications, marketing and public relations.
Trân is currently working on a short story collection. Born in Ottawa, she now lives in Toronto.
"Stylistically and thematically, Trân offers an astonishing work innovative in form and memory," said the jury of writers Omar Mouallem, Alessandra Naccarato and Lindsay Wong. "She is one to watch."
Morgan is a finalist for White Trucks and Mergansers. He is a first-generation Canadian writer of Jamaican heritage. His work has been published on CBC News and in Maclean's and The Walrus. Morgan is currently working on an essay collection. He lives in Toronto.
"White Trucks and Mergansers establishes Morgan as a vital voice in the urgent work of witness and truth-telling today," said the jury.
Slaughter is recognized for Breach. His work has been shortlisted for PEN Canada's New Voices Award and longlisted for The Masters Review Novel Excerpt Contest. His journalism has been published in Toronto Life, Toronto Star and Canadian Geographic. Slaughter also has a short story forthcoming in Bodega Magazine.
He holds an MFA from the University of Guelph in creative writing. He splits his time between Toronto and rural Quebec.
"Slaughter offers a beautifully crafted, vulnerable essay that lingers in the mind, marking him as a writer of immense depth, skill, and courage," said the jury.
The 2025 winners will be announced at a Toronto event on June 2. Their work can be found on the Writers' Trust website or on Apple Books.
Last year's winners were Nayani Jensen and Faith Paré.
Michael Crummey was the first writer to receive the prize. Other past winners include Maria Reva, Jeramy Dodds, Alison Pick and Alissa York.
The Writers' Trust of Canada is a charitable organization that seeks to advance, nurture and celebrate Canadian writers and writing. Its programming includes 11 national literary awards, financial grants, career development initiatives for emerging writers and a writers' retreat.
