City of Calgary W.O. Mitchell Book Prize

The City of Calgary W.O. Mitchell Book Prize is awarded in honour of acclaimed Calgary writer W.O. Mitchell and recognizes literary achievement by Calgary authors. Established in 1996, the W.O. Mitchell Book Prize is coordinated through a partnership between The City of Calgary and the Writers' Guild of Alberta, which administers the award as part of the Alberta Literary Competitions.

Entries are judged by an independent jury recruited by the Writers' Guild of Alberta. Shortlisted authors have an opportunity to deliver a reading. The winning author receives a $5,000 cash prize and receives the award at the Calgary Awards Presentation in June.

Sharon Butala's Season of Fury and Wonder

Eligibility criteria

  • Eligible books must have been published anywhere in the world between January 1 and December 1, 2024.
  • The author must have lived (permanent address) in Calgary for a minimum of two years, as of December 31st, 2024.
  • The following types of writing are eligible: fiction, poetry, non-fiction, children’s literature or drama.
  • Self-published books with an ISBN are eligible.
  • The following types of writing are not eligible: multi-author anthologies, cookbooks, guidebooks, textbooks, technical manuals, bibliographies and works of purely academic or scholarly nature. Books of fewer than 48 pages (except children’s literature), books that are not written in English or French, multi-authored books (if any one of the authors is not a Calgarian), and reprints or new editions of previously published books are also not eligible.
  • If, in the opinion of the jury, no work in this competition merits an award, no award will be given. In all cases the jury’s decision is final.

Submission details

Submissions for The City of Calgary W.O. Mitchell Book Prize are accepted in accordance with the Alberta Literary Competitions timelines, which run September through December for the award year

  • Entry forms must be submitted online at Writers’ Guild of Alberta no later than December 2, 2024. Printed forms may be requested if entrant is unable to access the online form.
  • A $35 fee per title must accompany submissions. Credit card payment is available through the online form, or cheques payable to the Writers’ Guild of Alberta are accepted. 
  • Five copies of each book entered must be mailed to The Writers Guild of Alberta, postmarked no later than December 2, 2024
  • Entries may be submitted by authors, publishers, or any interested parties.
  • Ineligible material will not be returned.

Send books and cheques (if applicable) to:

The Writers’ Guild of Alberta
Percy Page Centre, 11759 Groat Road NW
Edmonton, AB T5M 3K6

2024 Recipient

The City of Calgary and the Writers’ Guild of Alberta are pleased to announce the recipient for The City of Calgary W.O. Mitchell Book Prize, one of 12 Calgary Awards: Cantata and The Extinction Therapist by Clem Martini

 

Cantata and The Extinction Therapist

Clem Martini

Durvile & UpRoute

Clem Martini’s award-winning play, Cantata: Rumours of My Crazy, Useless Life provides a window into the experience of people going through the hidden, high-stakes struggles of elder care and mental illness.

In The Extinction Therapist, Dr. Marshall’s therapeutic practice offers group support to those threatened with extinction including a woolly mammoth, a testy short-eared shrew, the uncompromising smallpox virus, an insecure tyrannosaurus rex They all convene to receive therapy, in an attempt to come to terms with the complicated, volatile feelings associated with their life-and-death circumstances.

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