Monica Hughes Award for Science Fiction and Fantasy

The Monica Hughes Award for Science Fiction and Fantasy, established in 2011 and scheduled to be first awarded in 2012, honours excellence in Science Fiction and Fantasy writing for children and adolescents. The prize is awarded annually with a cash prize of $5,000. To be eligible, the book must be an original work in English, aimed at readers ages eight to 16 and written by a Canadian or a Permanent Resident of Canada. The award is sponsored by HarperCollins Canada in memory of the late Monica Hughes.

Monica Hughes was the author of over forty books, many of them works of Science Fiction and Fantasy for young readers. She received numerous literary awards, including, in 1982 and 1983, the Governor General’s Award for Children’s Literature (then called the Canada Council Children’s Literature Award). In 2002, Monica was made a member of the Order of Canada. She passed away in March 2003.

"There is a gentleness to her books that is rare... The hairsbreadth escapes, the exotic flora and fauna,... the villains and the heroes all are enclosed in one overriding concern, subtle but ever present: the value of kindness. This theme seems rather a nonrobust one... But Monica Hughes manages to clothe the homey quality in flesh and blood ... to give it strength and resilience."
- Sarah Ellis, The Horn Book magazine

CRITERIA AND SUBMISSION INFORMATION

Eligibility:

• Author and illustrator must be a Canadian citizen or landed immigrant.
• Books must be originally published between January 1 and December 31 of the previous year.
• Books must not have been previously published.*
• Books must be in English.
• Translations are eligible, provided the translator is a Canadian citizen or landed immigrant.
• The book should be aimed at young readers aged eight to 16 years old.
• Graphic novels are eligible.
• Picture books are not eligible
• Stories must be original; while stories inspired by classic works such as fairy tales are permissible, retellings of original stories are not.
• Books written as part of a series or published in serial form will be judged as separate entries and must function as a stand-alone story.
• Self-published books are eligible for submission provided they have a valid ISBN.

* New editions of previously published works are not eligible for submission. This includes titles that were previously published by foreign publishers. For example, if the title you intend to submit was published in 2011 by your publishing house, but it was previously published by a foreign publisher in 2010 or 2009, etc., it is not eligible for submission. This rule does not apply to translated works.

Criteria:

The Monica Hughes Award honours exceptional writing in the Speculative Fiction Genre, which the Canadian Children’s Book Centre describes in two categories: Science Fiction and Fantasy, as defined below:

• Science Fiction literature includes stories of time travel, alternate or re-imagined histories, dystopias and utopias, alien contact and/or invasion, steampunk, and space operas.
• Fantasy literature includes domestic, heroic, and urban fantasies, and can include stories of the paranormal, domestic magic, faeries, and talking animals or animate toys.
• The book must be of high literary quality and the story must be believable according to the rules/conventions/criteria of the story's world/setting; the plot must be comprehensive and consistent.
• The story must have well-developed and complex characters whose actions are consistent with their personalities.
• The story should cover new and interesting topics, or familiar topics covered in new ways, demonstrating a rich imagination.

Juror Information:

• There will be a total of three jurors. For the purposes of continuity in adjudication, each juror will normally serve a three-year term. In the initial year of the jury, by lot, one juror will be selected to serve a one-year term and a second juror will serve a two-year term.
• No authors of books in contention may serve as jurors.
• Jurors will be chosen from among booksellers, reviewers, educators, librarians, consultants, authors and other experts in the field of literature for children and adolescents.

Submission Information:

The deadline for submissions to the 2012 Monica Hughes Award for Science Fiction and Fantasy was December 9, 2011. The CCBC is no longer accepting submissions for 2012.

If you have any questions regarding the Monica Hughes Award for Science Fiction and Fantasy please contact Meghan Howe at 416.975.0010 ext. 222.