‘The energy is eclectic’: Concordia poet triumphs at the Quebec Writers' Federation Awards

The province’s English-language literary community came together last night to honour its brightest and best at the 2014 Quebec Writers’ Federation (QWF) Awards.

A November 18 gala at the Corona Theatre in Little Burgundy, Montreal, celebrated well-known and upcoming writers with a particular focus on “Great Women of Words.”

With its proud tradition in creative writing, it came as no surprise that Concordia made its presence felt at the event. As well as sponsoring the Concordia University First Book Prize, the institution’s faculty and alumni garnered nominations in three of the eight QWF award categories —two of its writers, Sina Queyras and Allegra McKenzie, came home victorious.

Queyras, a professor in the Department of English, won the A.M. Klein Prize for Poetry. She was nominated for MxT (Coach House Books), a book of poems about death and grief. “MxT” stands for “Memory x Time.”

The QWF gala also saw the presentation of the CBC’s 2014 Quebec Writing Competition awards. Concordia grad Allegra McKenzie (BA 08, MA 12) won the top prize for her short story “The Glass Man.”

Another key moment was the awarding of the Concordia University First Book Prize.

Mikhail Iossel, an associate professor in the Department of English, introduced the prize, which was established three years ago and recently renewed for another three years.  The 2014 nominees were Anna Leventhal (Sweet Affliction, Invisible Publishing), Sean Michaels (Us Conductors) and Caroline Vu (Palawan Story, Deux Voiliers Publishing).

Leventhal won. In her acceptance speech, she described writing her first book as “a strange thing.”

“It’s like a first relationship,” she said.

In his introduction, Iossel spoke about the strength of Concordia’s Creative Writing program and how it continues to attract talented writers from across North America. This sentiment was echoed by the university’s QWF nominees.

Sze attributed much of the Creative Writing program’s success to its “steller faculty.” Fiorentino described the program as “diverse, challenging, and consistently innovative.”

“I'm lucky to be a small part of it,” he said.

Winners of the 2014 Quebec Writers Federation (QWF) Awards

Concordia University First Book Prize

Anna Leventhal, Sweet Affliction

QWF Prize for Children’s and Young Adult Literature

Monique Polak, Hate Mail (Orca Book Publishers)

Paragraphe Hugh MacLennan Prize for Fiction

Sean Michaels, Us Conductors

Mavis Gallant Prize for Non-Fiction

Chantal Hébert with Jean Lapierre, The Morning After: The 1995 Quebec Referendum and the Day that Almost Was (Knopf Canada)

A.M. Klein Prize for Poetry

Sina Queyras, MxT

3Macs Carte Blanche Prize

“It’s Late, Doctor Schweitzer” by Didier Leclair

Translated by Elaine Kennedy and Sheryl Curtis

2014 Quebec Writing Competition

First Prize: Allegra McKenzie for “The Glass Man”

Second Prize: James Dunnigan for “Open Bay”

Reader’s Choice Award: Josée Lafrenière for "Breath"

Judy Mappin Community Award

Elizabeth Macdonnell

Find out about the four Concordians who took home prizes at last year’s Quebec Writers’ Federation Awards.