The Writers' Collective

The Winnipeg Free Press and the Writers’ Collective of Manitoba are pleased to announce the winners of the 2013 non-fiction and poetry writing contests. Entrants followed the theme: “An Unfamiliar Place.”

“One of the most important aspects of writing is its ability to take us to an unfamiliar place and help us experience and understand it,” said Writers’ Collective board president Hilary Friesen. “It’s clear from our judges’ commentary that all our winners, in both nonfiction and poetry, achieved this goal. Bringing new voices and unfamiliar places into the world through writing is one of the reasons The Writers’ Collective is committed to supporting emerging writers.”

Nonfiction Awards
1st – The City Dressed in Night and Rain by Lawrence M Pinsker, Winnipeg, MB. Prize: $500
2nd – Couchsurfing in a Retirement Residence by Amy Attas, Pinawa, MB. Prize: $300
3rd – Open a Window by Tom Reynolds, Windsor, ON. Prize: $100
Honourable Mentions – Grey by Robert King, Winnipeg, MB and
Me, God and Blisters on the Camino de Santiago by Donna Warenko, Pinawa, MB

Poetry Awards
1st – A Killdeer Calls by Helma Rogge Rehders, Winnipeg Beach, MB.
Prize: $150
2nd – River’s Edge by Jo-Anne Strong, Rapid City, MB. Prize: $100
3rd – r(Evolution) by Maya Thau-Eleff, Vancouver, BC. Prize: $50
Honourable Mentions – Side Street Blues by Judith Johanson, Fort Francis, ON, and
The Tree House at Baba’s by Daye Irving, Winnipeg, MB

Winning entries will be published in the Winnipeg Free Press December 26, 27, 28, 30, and 31

The Winnipeg Writers’ Collective would like to thank the Winnipeg Free Press, the Winnipeg Public Library; Manitoba Culture, Heritage and Tourism, and our judges: Julie Carl, Anne Mahon, Shereen (Kitty) Ramprashad, Kellie Kamryn and Katherena Vermette.

For those who requested evaluations, this year they are being completed by Kateri Akiwenzie-Damm, an Anishinaabe writer of mixed ancestry from the Chippewas of Nawash First Nation. Her publications include a CD of spoken word poetry and music, a collection of poetry, a collection of short stories. She work has appeared in various anthologies, journals, and magazines in Canada, the U.S., New Zealand, Australia, and Germany.

Congratulations to our honourees, and to all who entered! As Jodi Carmichael, Writers’ Collective board secretary recently said, these are stories only you can tell. Thank you for sending them out into the world; to us.

Next up: our annual Winnipeg Free press/Writers’ Collective Short Fiction Contest. Watch this space for details.