WIBA 2019 Finalists Announced

Canadian Authors and Vivalogue Publishing have reviewed the shortlisted titles for this year’s awards and are happy to announce the six finalists for the 2019 WIBAS.

The fiction finalists are:

Edythe Anstey Hanen for Nine Birds Singing
Ann Shortell for Celtic Knot: A Clara Swift Tale
Diana Stevan for Sunflowers under Fire

The non-fiction nominees are:

Bill Arnott for Gone Viking: A Travel Saga
Tina Martel for Not in the Pink
Manuel Matas for The Borders of Normal

The fiction finalists will be judged by Evelyn Lauand Darcie Friesen Hossack. The non-fiction finalists will be judged by J.J. Leeand Susan Oakey Baker.

The winners will be announced at the Whistler Writers Festival‘s Literary Cabaret on Friday, October 18, 2019.

The Whistler Independent Book Awards provide independently published authors with a unique opportunity to have their work recognized through a juried process.

Non-shortlisted titles were assessed and reviewed by Canadian Authors Associationreviewers, so that every participating author will receive valuable, professional feedback on their submission. These authors will receive their evaluations by July 16, 2019.

WIBA 2019 Shortlist Announced

There were a large number of entries from all across Canada for this year’s Whistler Independent Book Awards. The overall high standard of the titles submitted reflects the professionalism of Canadian self-published authors, and competition in both categories was strong.  The evaluating committee reviewed all the entries and is pleased to announce the nominees for the 2019 WIBAs.

The fiction nominees are:

Mark Cameron for 17 Weddings
Neil Chase for Iron Dogs
Maggie Dwyer for What the Living Do
Edythe Anstey Hanen for Nine Birds Singing
Bretton Loney for The Last Hockey Player
Ann Shortell for Celtic Knot: A Clara Swift Tale
Diana Stevan for Sunflowers under Fire

The non-fiction nominees are:

Bill Arnott for Gone Viking: A Travel Saga
Jacqueline Carmichael for Tweets from the Trenches
Anna Dopico for To Make Riders Faster
Tina Martel for Not in the Pink
Manuel Matas for The Borders of Normal
Jarem Sawatsky for Healing Justice: Stories of Wisdom and Love
David Wilding-Davies for My Cattle Look Thin

The shortlisted nominees will be judged by Canadian Authors members and the finalists will be announced July 16, 2019.

Every book submitted was professionally read and assessed. Authors not shortlisted will receive their evaluations by July 16, 2019.

The Whistler Independent Book Awards provide independently published authors with a unique opportunity to have their work recognized through a juried process.

Winners will be announced at the 18th Whistler Writers Festival, 17–20 October, 2019.

2017 WIBA Finalist Patricia Sandberg shares her story

I always thought it cool to say I grew up at a uranium mine. In July 2014, I decided to preserve family memories of the town that came to life during the Cold War to supply uranium for the American arms race. I began by mining my mother’s memory bank then, urged on by a former Gunnar resident, decided to write a book. I eventually found and interviewed over one hundred former residents who reached back into their lives to share their personal triumphs and tragedies.

Deciding to self-publish was easy. I felt tremendous urgency to gather surviving residents’ memories and publish the book in time for them to read it. Traditional publishing was therefore not an option, and I self-published in September 2016.

Sun Dogs and Yellowcake won two U.S. awards. It was a finalist for the Whistler Independent Writers Award for Non-fiction and the Canadian Authors – Fred Kerner Award. Sun Dogs and Yellowcake: Gunnar Mines – A Canadian Story is available through Amazon and patriciasandberg.com.

Writing is  a lonely world, so two organizations proved exceptionally valuable to me. I  joined the Canadian Authors Association (CAA), now in its ninety-eighth year of helping Canadian writers, to network and learn with other writers in my community.

I also belong to The Writers Union of Canada (TWUC) because it fights to protect copyright and is helping modernize Canada’s copyright legislation. Among other benefits, TWUC is committed to diversity and offers programs and resources to help writers in all aspects of their careers. As a self-published author, I appreciate the backing of an organization that protects my rights and treats me as a professional. I am grateful to both TWUC and CAA for championing self-published authors.

The Whistler Independent Book Awards (WIBAs) are sponsored by The Writers’ Union of Canada.

Canadian Authors Associationis proud to partner with Vivalogue to produce the WIBAs. It is also hosting CanWrite 2019  in Vancouver, May 16-19.