PhD Candidate Nayani Jensen has been named one of this year's winners of the prestigious $10,000 RBC Bronwen Wallace Award for emerging Canadian writers. Sponsored by the RBC Foundation, this annual award celebrates writers who have been published but have not yet published a book.
Nayani Jensen's short fiction piece, "Like Rabbits," earned her the short fiction prize. According to CBC Books, in her acceptance speech Jensen shared insights into her creative journey, saying:
"I've been working on these sort of historical science and fiction stories for a little while and trying to figure out how to talk about how we did science, how we got here, how we do it now. And sometimes these pieces end up feeling a bit like, genre-wise, Frankenstein's monster. So it's been really wonderful to have this kind of support and encouragement at this stage in the process."
Her work, described by jurors Jessica Johns, Maria Reva, and Jack Wang, as "historical fiction at its most intimate and convincing," explores the golden age of Dutch science, exploring themes of ambition, discovery, and personal sacrifice.
We extend our heartfelt congratulations to Nayani for this well-deserved recognition and look forward to witnessing her continued contributions to the literary world.
You can read the official announcement and jury citation on the Writer’s Trust Website.