The Indigenous Voices Awards are a Canadian literary award program, created in 2017 to honour Indigenous literatures in Canada."New literary prize for Indigenous writers to offer $25K in awards". CBC News, October 19, 2017. It is administered by the Indigenous Literary Studies Association, a non-profit organization that promotes the production, study and teaching of Indigenous literatures.
The awards grew out of a 2017 controversy, when a group of Canadian writers were criticized for campaigning on Twitter in favour of a prize supporting cultural appropriation."Crowdfunded Indigenous Voices Awards formally launches, with focus on emerging talent". Quill & Quire, October 30, 2017. In response, Toronto lawyer Robin Parker launched a crowdfunding campaign to create a new prize for First Nations, Métis and Inuit writers in Canada. The crowdfunding campaign was set with a goal of $10,000, but ultimately attracted over $140,000 in donations.
The awards honour both published and unpublished work by Indigenous writers in Indigenous languages, English and French. The first winners were announced in May 2018."Billy-Ray Belcourt, Aviaq Johnston among winners of 2018 Indigenous Voices Awards". CBC Books, May 31, 2018. On National Indigenous Peoples Day, June 21, 2022, IVA announced that an anthology of selected works by the finalists will be published by Penguin Random House Canada in 2023 to celebrate the 5th anniversary of the award.
Recipients +Indigenous Voices Awards winnersYearCategoryAuthorTitleAward2018Alternative FormatMusical SelectionsWinnerNipê WânînWinnerKeith BarkerThis is How We Got HereFinalistCliff CardinalHuff & StitchFinalistEnglish PoetryThis Wound Is a WorldWinnerTenille K. Campbell#IndianLovePoemsFinalistJoshua WhiteheadFull-Metal Indigiqueer FinalistEnglish ProseThose Who Run in the SkyWinnerCarleigh BakerBad EndingsFinalistDawn DumontGlass BeadsFinalistJoanne RobertsonThe Water WalkerFinalistFrench ProseDe VengeanceWinnerNaomi FontaineManikanetishFinalistUnpublished English Poetry#haikuaday and other poemsWinnerDavid Agecoutay Poetic SelectionsFinalistBrandi BirdTwo PoemsFinalistFrancine Merasty Poetry of a Northern Rez GirlFinalistUnpublished French PoetryUashteuWinnerUnpublished ProseQueen BeeWinnerTreena Chambers Hair RaizingFinalistNazbah Tom The Hand TremblerFinalistAmanda PetersPejipug (Winter Arrives)Finalist2019"Tanya Tagaq and seven other writers take home prizes at Indigenous Voices Awards". CityNews, June 5, 2019.Alternative Format and Natasha DonovanSurviving the CityWinnerKìzis WàsakoziFinalistEnglish PoetryYou are Enough: Love Poems for the End of the WorldWinnerWanda John-KehewinSeven Sacred TruthsFinalistJules Arita KoostachinUnearthing of Secrets, Gathering of Truths FinalistEnglish ProseSplit ToothWinnerLindsay NixonnîtisânakFinalistJoshua WhiteheadJonny Appleseed FinalistFrench ProseUiesh, Quelque PartWinnerPierrot Ross-TremblayNipimanitu – L’esprit de l’eauWinnerIndigenous LanguageFrancine MerastyIskotew IskwewWinnerUnpublished English PoetryBrush of a BustleWinnerAutumn SchnellFemmNDN CommandmentsFinalistCraig Commanda My Ghosts Roam this Land and other poems FinalistUnpublished English ProseTeenage AsylumsWinnerBlair YoxallLittle BullFinalistBrittany JohnsonTransitFinalist2020"Winners Announced for 2020 Indigenous Voices Awards". Open Book, June 22, 2020.Alternative FormatElizabeth Dances Pow-wowWinnerPhyllis WebstadPhyllis's Orange Shirt FinalistEnglish PoetryKiskajeyi—I am ReadyWinnerDisintegrate / DissociateWinnerBrandi BirdI Am Still Too Much FinalistFrancine CunninghamOn/MeFinalistEnglish ProseFrom the AshesWinnerHelen KnottIn My Own MoccasinsFinalistKaitlyn PurcellʔbédayineFinalistFrench PoetryBréviaire du matricule 082WinnerChauffer le dehorsWinnerFrench ProseShuni — Ce que tu dois savoir, JulieWinnerJ. D. KurtnessAquariumsFinalistIndigenous LanguageInjichaag: My Soul in StoryWinnerDakwäkãda WarriorsWinnerUnpublished Poetry in EnglishTwo Little Foxes, Buttertown Beach, and I Will Never Be HappierWinnerDavid AgecoutayWillow A QuartetFinalistCorri DanielsA Memory of MaryFinalistUnpublished Prose in EnglishHalf-Bads in White RegaliaWinnerTreena ChambersForest Fires and Falling StarsFinalistSteven HallGatzi NakaFinalist2021English ProseGhost LakeWinnerJenn AshtonPeople Like FrankFinalistMichelle GoodFive Little IndiansFinalistMichael HutchinsonThe Case of the Missing AuntieFinalistKatłįà Land-Water-Sky Ndè-Tı-Yat’aFinalistEnglish Creative Nonfiction and Life-WritingGenocidal LoveWinnerKaren Pheasant-NeganigwanePowwow: A Celebration through Song and Dance FinalistMichelle PorterApproaching FireFinalistEnglish Poetryit was never going to be okayWinnerNorma DunningEskimo Pie: A Poetics of Inuit IdentityFinalistshalan joudryWaking Ground FinalistTyler PennockBones FinalistFrench PoetryFif et sauvageWinnerFélix PerkinsBoiteur des bois FinalistFrench ProseOkinumWinnerJocelyn SiouiMononk JulesFinalistGraphic Novels, Comics, and Illustrated Books with Nahanni Shingoose, Neal Shannacappo (illus.)If I Go MissingWinnerLisa BoivinI Will See You AgainFinalistTasha Spillett, with Natasha Donovan (illus.)From the Roots Up: Surviving the City Vol. 2FinalistIndigenous Language with Megan Kyak-Monteith (illus.)The Shaman's Apprentice: InuktitutWinnerUnpublished Poetry in Englishthe indian (adultery) act & other poemsWinnerBrandi BirdOde to DiabetesFinalistErica Violet LeeA Manifesto for the Morning and Forever AfterFinalistShaya MacDonaldShe Said to MeFinalistUnpublished Prose in EnglishWaiting for the Long Night MoonWinnerTroy SebastianThe MissionFinalistDeanna M. Jacobson Hockey and Hot ChocolateFinalist2022English ProseBrian Thomas IsaacAll the Quiet PlacesWinnerSheryl DohertyFinding IzzyFinalistEnglish PoetrySelina BoanUndoing HoursWinnerTenille K. Campbellnedí nezųFinalistDallas HuntCreelandFinalistDiana Hope TegenkampGirl runningFinalistFrench LanguageÉdouard Itual GermainNi kistisin / Je me souviensWinnerAndrée Levesque Sioui Chant(s)FinalistDaniel SiouiIndien stoïqueFinalistGraphic Novels, Comics, and Illustrated Books Aimée CraftTreaty Words: For As Long As the Rivers FlowWinnerLisa BoivinWe Dream Medicine DreamsFinalistTeoni Spathelfer with Natassia Davies (illus.)White Raven FinalistIndigenous Language Brittany Luby with Joshua Mangeshig Pawis-Steckley (illus.) and Alvin Ted Corbiere (trans.) and Alan Corbiere (trans.) Mii maanda ezhi-gkendmaanh / This Is How I KnowWinnerJodie Callaghan, with Georgia Lesley (illus.) and Joe Wilmot (trans.)Ga’s / The Train FinalistSharon KingAmik FinalistUnpublished Prose in EnglishLeslie ButtTankedWinnerDavid Agecoutay It's For the BestFinalistJenn Ashton Hail Mary, Mother of PearlFinalistBianca MartinPaqt’sm / I Was Born with the Spirit of the WolfFinalistUnpublished Poetry in EnglishMeghan Eakermistahi maskikiyWinnerBrandi BirdA DawnFinalistJacqueline Gibbontante ohci kiya / Displaced Métis IskwewFinalistSamantha Martin-BirdPoems for White MenFinalist2023English Prose Cody Caetano Half-Bads in White Regalia Winner Francine Cunningham God Isn't Here Today Finalist Frances Koncan Women of the Fur Trade Kim Spencer Weird Rules to Follow Chelsea Vowel Buffalo Is the New Buffalo Joshua Whitehead Making Love with the LandFrench Prose Carole Labarre L'Or des mélèzes Winner J. D. Kurtness Bienvenue Finalist Jocelyn Sioui Frétillant et agileEnglish Poetry Emily Riddle The Big Melt Winners Matthew James Weigel Whitemud Walking Justene Dion-Glowa Trailer Park Shakes Finalist Ashley Qilavaq-Savard Where the Sea Kuniks the Land Délani Valin ShapeshiftersFrench Poetry Maya Cousineau Mollen Enfants du lichen Winner Rita Mestokosho Atik u utei FinalistIndigenous Language Solomon Awa Animals Illustrated: Narwhal Winner George Paul, Loretta Gould, Barbara Sylliboy The Honour Song FinalistUnpublished prose in English David Agecoutay "Frank" Winner Brandi Bird "Home" Finalist Kerissa Dickie "Seh Woo – My Teeth" Henry Heavyshield "Settler Birds and Social NDNs in the City" Scarlet Scott "In the Morning"Unpublished poetry in English Cooper Skjeie "Scattered Oblations" Winner Leah Baptiste "Rez Girls Are Forever" Finalist Kelsey Borgford "Once the Smudge Is Lit" Kaitlyn Purcell "A Child Called Dream"Graphic novels Samantha Beynon, Lucy Trimble Oolichan Moon Winner Raeann Brown Bedtime in Nunatsiavut Finalist Babah Kalluk Niitu and Chips Cole Pauls Kwändǖr Willie Poll with Chief Lady Bird Together We Drum, Our Hearts Beat as One2024 English Prose Alicia Elliott And Then She Fell Winner Caleigh Crow There is Violence and There is Righteous Violence and There is Death or, The Born-Again Crow Finalist Michelle Good Truth Telling Peggy Janicki The Secret Pocket Tiffany Morris Green Fuse Burning Angela Sterritt Unbroken English Poetry Brandi Bird The All + Flesh Winner Jesse Rae Archibald-Barber The Star Poems Finalist Jamesie Fournier Elements Cara-Lyn Morgan Building a Nest from the Bones of My People French Prose J. D. Kurtness La vallée de l’étrange Winner Georges Pisimopeo Piisim Napeu Moira-Uashteskun Bacon Envole-toi, Mikun Finalist French Poetry/Drama Soleil Launière Akuteu Winner Alexis Vollant Nipinapunan Émilie Monnet Marguerite, le feu Finalist Unpublished Prose Dennis Allen Kristopher with a K Winner Jenn Ashton Hungry Henry Heavyshield Our Rez Anomaly Kaitlyn Purcell łuk'é náte Unpublished Poetry Leah Baptiste Coming of Age Winner Hannah Big Canoe Nanabush Trails and Four Others sakâw laboucan styrofoam love Jordan Redekop-Jones On the Threshold, I Taste Lightning2025 English Prose Wayne K. Spear, Georges Erasmus Hòt’a! Enough!: Georges Erasmus's Fifty-Year Battle for Indigenous Rights Finalist Jennifer Leason Hummingbird/Aamo-binashee Trina Rathgeber Lost at Windy River: A True Story of Survival Joelle Peters Niizh Tanya Talaga The Knowing English Poetry Kenzie Allen Cloud Missives Finalist Kelsey Borgford Once the Smudge Is Lit Aedan Corey KINAUVUNGA?/ᑭᓇᐅᕗᖓ Rosanna Deerchild She Falls Again E. McGregor What Fills Your House Like Smoke French Prose TBA French Poetry/Drama TBA Unpublished Prose Jesset Karlen Archive of Forever Winner Kieran Rice Intertribal Chantal Rondeau White Ash Falling Nolan Schmerk Life Is Water Jennifer B.S. Williams Selected Stories from ‘K’wootxw’ Unpublished Poetry Henry Heavyshield houses made of pollen & other poems Winner aleria mckay Homecoming Dawn Amber Tonks And Then Kevin Wesaquate Shapeshifter
See also Burt Award for First Nations, Inuit and Métis Literature PMC Indigenous Literature Awards McNally Robinson Aboriginal Book of the Year Award
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