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2020 Story of the Year Finalists

So many great stories passed through the site in the past year. Let’s take a look at the twelve finalists for the Story of the Year award!

Here are the 12 Story of the Month winners for 2020.

JANUARY: Why I can’t go home again by Bob Thurber
FEBRUARY: Your Pills by Jennifer L. Freed
MARCH: Holes by Alison Carroll
APRIL: Beautiful Things by Jennifer L. Freed
MAY: Our Good Luck by Jennifer L. Freed
JUNE: In Memoriam by Thad DeVassie
JULY: Cracked Lives by Yash Seyedbagheri
AUGUST: I Point at the Shadows in Lieu of What I Dread by Graham Robert Scott
SEPTEMBER: Inbox Emptiness by Yash Seyedbagheri
OCTOBER: Mourning Mama by Yash Seyedbagheri
NOVEMBER: Extra Time by David Holloway
DECEMBER: The Gift Exchange by Zoe J. Walker

The winner, as chosen by editor Tim Sevenhuysen, will be announced on Sunday, January 31!

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 2015, Bob Thurber won the Story of the Year award with his piece The Mapmaker’s Calligraphist Daughter. In 2016, Guy Preston took the prize with One Job Away From Retirement. The 2017 winner was Jennifer L. Freed, for Aunt Peg. In 2018, Constellations by Jonathan Kosik won the award. In 2019, Bob Thurber won his second Story of the Year award for The Summer of Sweet Mary (circa 1972). In 2020, Evan McMurry won the Story of the Year for After the Water.

STORY OF THE MONTH: December 2020

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

The finalists for December were:

Playground by Claire Natale
A Temporary Interruption by Dick Narvett
A Chip Off the Old Block by Ben Mimmack
Consumed by Josie Cellone
The Gift Exchange by Zoe J. Walker

The winner of the December 2020 Story of the Month, and the $10 prize, is…

The Gift Exchange

I’m not sure whether I’ve chosen any holiday-themed stories for Story of the Month before, but this one is worth it! The idea of a “mythical” character being literally sustained by believers’ faith is pretty common, but the approach Zoe took to that idea, and the way she delivered it, warrants high praise.

STORY OF THE MONTH: November 2020

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

The finalists for November were:

Stress Turned My Soul to Copper and Steam by Maria Cargille
The Vagrant by Travis D. Roberson
Blowing Off the Dust by B.S. Roberts
Songs for the Light by Noriko Jayasekera
Extra Time by David Holloway
Let’s Pretend by Larissa Thomson

The winner of the November 2020 Story of the Month, and the $10 prize, is…

Extra Time

I loved the unique concept and fun approach to commenting on the fleeting nature of time, and the fact that we only have one life to live. David Holloway made me both laugh and introspect at the same time, a fine achievement.