Creative Writing Awards

Applications for the following prizes are now open. All submissions should be sent to the department assistant no later than 4:00pm on October 21st, 2024.

Please ensure that the documents submitted contain no identifying information and that you include a separate document containing your name, address, student number, and the prize(s) for which you are applying.

Creative Writing:
Lucy H. Bertschinger Memorial Prize
This prize was established by Gladys Mellon of Sarnia, Ontario in loving memory of her sister. It will be awarded on the recommendation of the Department of English to a student who reveals an unusual capacity for written expression in English and who intends to write creatively in the future. General and Honours program students are eligible.

Submit 50 pages of poetry or 100 pages of prose (fiction or creative nonfiction) or any combination of these genres that equals a comparable weight to the department assistant by 4:00pm on October 21st, 2024.

Mr. and Mrs. ONG Hoo Hong Emerging Writers Prize
This prize will be given to students who have an interest or declared major in English at the University of Winnipeg. The purpose of this prize is to encourage talented creative writing students to pursue their passion for writing. This prize can be received multiple times by an individual; first year students are eligible. Recipients must have a 2.60 cumulative grade point average or higher.

Submit 10-12 pages of poetry, prose (fiction or creative nonfiction) or a combination of these genres, plus a max-1200-word essay about your current writing experience and plans for future writing to the department assistant by 4:00pm on October 21st, 2024.

Writers Circle Prize for Original English Fiction, Drama, or Poetry
Candidates must be registered in at least one credit course at the University of Winnipeg during the session in which an item is submitted. Work which has been awarded a prize in another competition is not eligible.

Submit a short piece of prose (fiction or creative nonfiction) of no more than 3000 words or poems making up no more than 300 lines in length to to the department assistant by 4:00pm on October 21st, 2024.

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Winners of the 2022-23 Awards:  
Writer’s Circle: Jessica Finkel for “The Avalanche Phenomenon”
Bertschinger Memorial Prize: Jay Stefanik for “Traders, and Other Poems”
Hong Emerging Writers’ Prize: Aisha Abdullahi for “A Message, Echoed”