Kobo Emerging Writer Prize

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The Kobo Emerging Writer Prize is a Canadian literary award, presented since 2015 by online e-book and audiobook retailer and eReader manufacturer Rakuten Kobo. [1]

Contents

Until 2024, awardees received a $10,000 prize, which was increased to $20,000 in 2025. Winners are also provided with support in marketing their books. [1] Three prizes are awarded each year to debut books published in the prior calendar year in literary fiction, non-fiction, and one of 3 genre fiction categories. Each year a different genre is honoured in the genre fiction category, rotating between mystery, romance, and speculative fiction. Since 2023, the genre fiction category has been open to books published since the prize last accepted submissions in that genre.

Winners

YearAuthorTitleGenreReference
2015 Claire Battershill CircusLiterary fiction [2]
Sam Wiebe Last of the Independents: Vancouver NoirMystery
Robyn Doolittle Crazy Town: The Rob Ford Story Nonfiction
2016 Irina Kovalyova SpecimenLiterary fiction [3]
Nicola R. White Fury’s KissRomance
Wab Kinew The Reason You WalkNonfiction
2017 Lynne Kutsukake The Translation of LoveLiterary fiction [4]
Dee Willson A Keeper's TruthSpeculative fiction
Teva Harrison In-Between DaysNonfiction
2018 Omar El Akkad American War Literary fiction [5]
Sheena Kamal The Lost OnesMystery
Maria Qamar Trust No AuntyNonfiction
2019 Nora Decter How Far We Go and How FastFiction [6]
Julie Evelyn Joyce Steeped in LoveRomance
Kate Harris Lands of Lost BordersNonfiction
2020 Zalika Reid-Benta Frying PlantainFiction [7]
J. R. McConvey Different BeastsSpeculative fiction
Jesse Thistle From the Ashes Nonfiction
2021 Michelle Good Five Little Indians Fiction [8]
Emily Hepditch The Woman in the AtticMystery
Eternity Martis They Said This Would Be Fun: Race, Campus Life and Growing UpNonfiction
2022 Pik-Shuen Fung Ghost ForestFiction [9]
Damhnait Monaghan New Girl in Little CoveRomance
Jesse Wente Unreconciled: Family, Truth, and Indigenous ResistanceNonfiction
2023 Erica McKeen TearFiction [10]
K.S. Covert The Petting ZoosSpeculative Fiction
Harrison Mooney Invisible Boy: A Memoir of Self-DiscoveryNonfiction
2024 Jamaluddin Aram Nothing Good Happens in Wazirabad on WednesdayFiction [11]
Keziah Weir The MythmakersMystery
Jérémie Harris Quantum Physics Made Me Do It: A Simple Guide to the Fundamental Nature of EverythingNonfiction
2025 Scott Alexander Howard The Other ValleyFiction [12]
Leanne Toshiko Simpson Never Been BetterRomance
Anh N. Duong Dear Da-Lê: A Father's Memoir of the Vietnam War and the Iranian RevolutionNonfiction

References

  1. 1 2 Ryan Porter (May 2, 2019). "Tanya Tagaq, Kate Harris, and Uzma Jalaluddin among shortlisted authors for Kobo Emerging Writer Prize". Quill and Quire .
  2. ↑ Conan Tobias (July 8, 2015). "Battershill, Wiebe, Doolittle win inaugural Kobo Emerging Writer Prizes". Quill and Quire .
  3. ↑ Becky Robertson, "Awards: Kinew, Kovalyova, White win Kobo Emerging Writer Prizes". Quill & Quire , June 22, 2016.
  4. ↑ Becky Robertson, "Teva Harrison, Lynne Kutsukake, Dee Wilson awarded Kobo Emerging Writer Prizes". Quill & Quire , June 28, 2017.
  5. ↑ Samraweet Yohannes (June 19, 2018). "Omar El Akkad, author of American War, among winners of $10K Kobo Emerging Writer Prizes". CBC News .
  6. ↑ "26 Canadian books that won awards in the first half of 2019". CBC News . July 8, 2019.
  7. ↑ Sue Carter, "Jesse Thistle, Zalika Reid-Benta, J.R. McConvey win Kobo’s Emerging Writer Prizes". Quill & Quire , June 25, 2020.
  8. ↑ Deborah Dundas, "Michelle Good wins Kobo Emerging Writer fiction prize — making it three wins for the three noms she got on that big day in May". Toronto Star , June 22, 2021.
  9. ↑ Cassandra Drudi, "Jesse Wente, Pik-Shuen Fung, Damhnait Monaghan named winners of 2022 Kobo Emerging Writer prizes". Quill & Quire , June 23, 2022.
  10. ↑ Bridget Raymundo, "Erica McKeen, Harrison Mooney and K.S. Covert win $10K Kobo Emerging Writer Prizes". CBC Books , June 28, 2023.
  11. ↑ "Toronto author Jamaluddin Aram among winners of $10K Rakuten Kobo Emerging Writer Prize". CBC Books , June 19, 2024.
  12. ↑ "Anh Duong, Scott Alexander Howard and Leanne Toshiko Simpson win $20K Rakuten Kobo Emerging Writer Prizes". CBC Books , June 17, 2025.
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