Finalists to be honoured the evening of November 9 at Cabaret Lion d’Or
The Quebec Writers’ Federation is delighted to announce the finalists for the 2026 QWF Literary Awards.
38 finalists have made the shortlists across eight categories: first book, translation, fiction, non-fiction, poetry, playwriting, spoken word, and children’s and young adult literature.
The winners of these prestigious prizes will be announced at the 2026 QWF Literary Awards Gala on Monday, November 9 at Cabaret Lion d’Or (1676 Ontario St. E.). The ceremony begins at 8:00 p.m., preceded by a cocktail reception from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. The event will be hosted by writer, podcaster, and professor Linda Morra.
Each award includes a cash prize of $3,000. For the Ian Ferrier Spoken Word Prize, the cash prize will be split between one to three winners.
The 2026 QWF Literary Awards Finalists
Concordia University First Book Prize
- Michael Eddy, Koh-i-Noor (Book*hug Press)
- Arizona O’Neill, Opioids and Organs (Drawn & Quarterly)
- Chanel Sutherland, Layaway Child (House of Anansi)
Janet Savage Blachford Prize for Children’s and Young Adult Literature
- Isabelle Arsenault, Tom’s Wild Ride (Tundra)
- Sandra Dumais, The Mountain That Wouldn’t Move (Owlkids Books)
- Anne Renaud, illus. Ohara Hale, Mr. Kuroki’s Garden (Crocodile Books)
- Todd Stewart, Little Moments in a Big Universe (Owlkids Books)
Prix de traduction de la Fondation Cole
- Vicky Bernard, Le trou dans le ciel (Éditions du Noroît)
Traduction de Letters in a Bruised Cosmos par Liz Howard (McLelland & Stewart) - Catherine Leroux, Étude pour l’obéissance (Alto)
Traduction de Study for Obedience par Sarah Bernstein (Granta Books) - Marie C. Scholl-Dimanche, Quand tombent les aiguilles de pin : Une histoire de résistance Autochtone (Éditions du Remue-ménage)
Traduction de When the Pine Needles Fall: Indigenous Acts of Resistance par Katsi’tsakwas Ellen Gabriel et Sean Carleton (Between the Lines) - Olivia Tapiero, Arabes comme il faut (Groupe Nota bene / Éditions Triptyque)
Traduction de The Good Arabs par Eli Tareq El Bechelany-Lynch (Metonymy Press)
A. M. Klein Prize for Poetry
- Gwen Aube, Missed Connections with Tall Girls (LittlePuss Press)
- Kaie Kellough, Interposition (McClelland & Stewart)
- Misha Solomon, My Great-Grandfather Danced Ballet (Brick Books)
QWF Prize for Playwriting
- Shahrzad Arshadi and Anna Chatterton, Children of Fire (Book*hug Press)
- Marie Leofeli Barlizo, The Healing (Marie Barlizo)
- Gillian Clark, Adventures (Imago Theatre/Keep Good Theatre Company)
- Rachel McCrum and Amélie Prévost, La Belle-mère / The Stepmother (Les éditions de l’Hexagone)
- Jovanni Sy, The Tao of the World (Stratford Festival)
Mavis Gallant Prize for Non-Fiction
- Natalie Doonan, Eating the Urban Wild: Food and Foraging in Montreal (McGill–Queen’s University Press)
- Kathryn Jezer-Morton, The Story of Your Life: How Social Media Shapes the Way We Experience Everything (Random House Canada)
- Anita Slominska, Other Endings: Organ Transplantation and the Burdens of Hope (McGill–Queen’s University Press)
- Mary Soderstrom, Before We Forget: How Remembering Will Get Us Through the Next 75 Years (Dundurn Press)
Paragraphe Hugh MacLennan Prize for Fiction
- Michael Carin, Edisson and Jeremiah (Guernica Editions)
- Brenda Hartwell, No Wrong Seasons (Inanna Publications)
- Kevin Jagernauth, The Longest Death (House of Anansi)
- Zeenat Nagree, My Summer Vacation (Véhicule Press)
- Chanel Sutherland, Layaway Child (House of Anansi)
Ian Ferrier Spoken Word Prize
- BarbedWire, “My Desire for You Is Resistance”
- Emma Beko, “Promise/I bark at the moon so the sun knows I’ve held on”
- Silas James, “Space Is a Vacuum”
- B. Lovingkin, “Finality Looms in the Air…”
- Caitlin Murphy, Terrible Fish (excerpt)
- Tracey Steer, “Hot”
- Romel Sylne, “From The Top”
- Deb Vanslet, “Fancy Man”
Spoken Word Prize Showcase
A showcase featuring the eight finalists for the Ian Ferrier Spoken Word Prize will be held on Friday, October 30, 3–5 p.m. ET, at Concordia University’s 4TH SPACE and livestreamed on Zoom and YouTube. The event, which is part of QWF’s Words & Music series, is free and open to all and will be hosted by poet and professor Jason Camlot. Visit the event page to learn more or to register to attend online.
Other Awards at the Gala
The 2026 QWF Literary Awards Gala will also unveil the winners of the 2026 College Writers Award and the 2026 carte blanche Prize and honour the recipient of the 2026 Judy Mappin Community Award.
The College Writers Award, which is supported by Champlain, Dawson, Heritage, John Abbott, Marianopolis, and Vanier colleges, will go to the best English-language poem, short story, or work of non-fiction submitted by a student from one of the sponsoring colleges. The award includes a prize of $1,000 and publication in QWF’s online literary journal carte blanche.
The carte blanche Prize, sponsored by Mark Gallop, will award one winner with a cash prize of $500 and a one-of-a-kind trophy, the “Lori,” created by Montreal sculptor Glen LeMesurier. First and second runners-up will receive $200 and $150, respectively.
Finally, the honorary Judy Mappin Community Award will be bestowed upon someone who has contributed to the advancement of Quebec’s English-language literary community. The recipient will be announced later this month and honoured at the gala. The award will include a $1,000 cash prize and a trophy by Glen LeMesurier.
The finalists for the College Writers Award and carte blanche Prize and the recipient of the Judy Mappin Community Award will be announced in the coming weeks ahead of the gala.
Attending the QWF Literary Awards Gala
The 2026 QWF Literary Awards Gala will take place on Monday, November 9 at Cabaret Lion d’Or (1676 Ontario St. E.).
The public is invited to a cocktail reception with the finalists preceding the Gala from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. Tickets to the reception are $60 ($40 for full-time students) and include two glasses of wine, beer, or non-alcoholic drink; hors d’oeuvres; and admission to the awards ceremony, which begins at 8:00 p.m.
Tickets for the ceremony alone are $25 ($10 for full-time students). Doors for the ceremony open at 7:30 p.m.
The theme of this year’s gala is “Fancy Schmancy.” Attendees are invited to get in the spirit of the theme by dressing extravagantly, luxuriously, or with unapologetic flair. Come in a black tie or ballroom gloves. Wear a regal cape or your tallest top hat. Don’t be afraid to think outside the box: Formal attire is not required. Dressing to the theme is optional but welcome.
All tickets can be purchased online via Zeffy. Tickets can also be purchased through the QWF office by appointment (514-933-0878, zac@qwf.org, 1200 Atwater Avenue, Room 3).
For more information about the event, visit the ticketing page on Zeffy or email zac@qwf.org.
Media Inquiries:
John Wickham, Communications Manager
(514) 933-0878
john@qwf.org