The story of the week for January 22 to 26 is…

A Ring and a Letter by Deborah Tapper

Here are the twelve finalists for the 2023 Story of the Year award!

JANUARY: Your Umbrella by Caroline Ashley
FEBRUARY: The Invisible Girl by Nikki Davison
MARCH: Vernacular by Laura Besley
APRIL: Widowmaker by Tim Boiteau
MAY: Woman-ness by Kelli Short Borges
JUNE: The Librarian and the Time Machine by Chelsea Allen
JULY: I watch the bones sink to the bottom by J.C. Pillard
AUGUST: Monday Morning by Brian Maycock
SEPTEMBER: Blink by Keith J. Powell
OCTOBER: Desert Blues in a Minor Key by Jonathan Kosik
NOVEMBER: Medicinal by Meg Pokrass
DECEMBER: Keeping Up Appearances by Lynn Kozlowski

The winner, as chosen by editor Tim Sevenhuysen, will be announced on Sunday, January 28!

The prize for the Story of the Year winner is:

• $50 (Canadian)
• Enshrinement in the 50WS Hall of Fame

Let everyone know your favourite story in the comments!

Throwback: In 2014, Bob Thurber won the Story of the Year award with his piece The Mapmaker’s Calligraphist Daughter. In 2015, Guy Preston took the prize with One Job Away From Retirement. The 2016 winner was Jennifer L. Freed, for Aunt Peg. In 2017, Constellations by Jonathan Kosik won the award. In 2018, Bob Thurber won his second Story of the Year award for The Summer of Sweet Mary (circa 1972). In 2019, Evan McMurry won the Story of the Year for After the Water. The 2020 story of the year was Your Pills by Jennifer L. Freed, for her second win. For 2021, N. West Moss won Story of the Year for A man (not her husband). The 2022 story of the year was Cherry Blossom by Tim Boiteau.

The story of the week for January 15 to 19 is…

Emergency Contact by Addison Hammond
and
The Trip of a Lifetime by Giulietta Nardone

The Story of the Month is chosen from the Story of the Week winners announced from the past month.

The finalists for December were:

Keeping Up Appearances by Lynn Kozlowski
The Kite by Janelle Seabock
Starlight by Tim Boiteau
The Shape Shifter at 50 by Michelle Wilson
Breakout by Deborah Tapper
Cutting Edge by KHOP Möricke

The winner of the December 2023 Story of the Month, and the $10 prize, is…

Keeping Up Appearances

The story of the week for January 8 to 12 is…

Reverie by Yash Seyedbagheri

The story of the week for January 1 to 5 is…

Toys by Tim Boiteau

The story of the week for December 25 to 29 is…

Cutting Edge by KHOP Möricke

The story of the week for December 18 to 22 is…

Breakout by Deborah Tapper

The story of the week for December 11 to 15 is…

The Shape Shifter at 50 by Michelle Wilson

The Story of the Month is chosen from the Story of the Week winners announced from the past month.

The finalists for November were:

Grandma Was A Child from the Black Forests of Germany by Bob Thurber
Medicinal by Meg Pokrass
Psychotherapist in Need of One by Kelsey Mathias
Anniversary by Cheryl Snell

The winner of the November 2023 Story of the Month, and the $10 prize, is…

Medicinal