Each year, the Short Works Prize literary contest is an opportunity for Redeemer students and alumni to get their work recognized and to connect with the Hamilton literary scene. The prize is offered in partnership with a number of organizations central to the arts in Hamilton: Bryan Prince Bookseller, the Hamilton Public Library and Hamilton Arts & Letters magazine.
This fall, Elise Arsenault, a Redeemer English and international studies student and senior reporter for The Crown, received an honourable mention in the youth category for her piece of creative nonfiction, “I Heard God in a Moon Shower”.
Brent van Staalduinen ‘01, an alumnus of and a part-time instructor in the English department, served as a Short Works Prize juror. Van Staalduinen won the City of Hamilton Ward 1 Fiction Prize for his short story “Mom 2 Mom” last year. He presented this year’s prize to Amanda Leduc for her story “Graduation”, a subtle portrait of a married couple and their houseguest.
The Short Works Prize partners with Hamilton universities, including Redeemer University College, to offer named prizes to emerging, unpublished writers in Hamilton. This year, Andrew Lee took home the Redeemer University College Prize for Writing for work of fiction “Jamal and the Sea”. Suzanne Foreman won for her creative non-fiction story “Emerson and The Rain Drums”.
John Terpstra, well-known Hamilton author and cabinetmaker, received the top nonfiction award for his piece “Daylighting Chedoke”. This exploration of the Chedoke watershed was central to his talk with Dr. Darren Brouwer and Dr. Edward Berkelaar at the sustainability workshop they hosted for the Hamilton community in March 2016.
Redeemer will have the opportunity to hear more about Terpstra and van Staalduinen’s latest work at their book launch, hosted on campus on November 24.