Christine Wu wins 2023 RBC/PEN Canada New Voices Award
TORONTO, Aug. 3, 2023 /CNW/ - Christine Wu has won the 2023 RBC/PEN Canada New Voices Award. For her winning submission, Hungry Ghosts, she will receive a $3,000 cash prize and mentorship from a Canadian author.
A distinguished jury of Canadian writers, including Jónína Kirton, Chelene Knight and Alexander MacLeod, chose Wu from almost 300 entries.
"Hungry Ghosts is a deeply moving and masterfully crafted collection of poems that surpasses the boundaries of memory, love, family, and personal growth," reads the jury citation. "The writer's exquisite precision and grace, infused with profound wisdom, skillfully navigates the delicate art of letting go, effortlessly weaving the tapestry of past and present."
Wu, a Chinese-Canadian poet living in Kjipuktuk (Halifax, Nova Scotia), has been published in several literary magazines. She holds a BFA from the University of Victoria, a MLIS from Dalhousie University, and a MA from the University of New Brunswick.
The jury also selected four finalists: Lindsay Foran (How to Build a Bomb), Catherine St. Denis (The Essential Involvement of the Harpist), Luka Poljak (Ares of Dalmatia and Blue Sea) and Sharlene Lazin (A Widow's Notebook). Excerpts from their submissions are available on pencanada.ca.
Now celebrating its 10th anniversary, the RBC/PEN Canada New Voices Award encourages new writing and provides a space for unpublished Canadian writers, aged 17 and over. Previous winners include Fareh Malik, Emily Dial and Deepa Rajagopalan.
The award is funded by the RBC Emerging Artists Program, which supports the arts and the role they play in building vibrant communities and strong economies. Since its inception, the program has supported over 35,000 emerging artists across the globe.
PEN Canada is a nonpartisan organization that celebrates literature, defends freedom of expression, and assists writers in peril at home and abroad. The English-language Canadian centre was founded in 1983 and is proud to be one of over 100 chapters of PEN International.
SOURCE PEN Canada
Media contact: Eilish Waller, Communications Coordinator, PEN Canada, [email protected]
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