The finalists for the second annual Indigenous Voices Awards were announced May 13. The prizes, which support the work of emerging writers, are administered by the Indigenous Literary Studies Association.

This year, 17 finalists in seven categories were selected by jurors Jordan Abel, Jeannette Armstrong, Joanne Arnott, Warren Cariou, Margery Fee, Gabrielle L’Hirondelle Hill, Francis Langevin, and Jean Sioui.

The crowdfunded awards were initiated by Toronto lawyer Robin Parker in 2017, after several media professionals joked on Twitter about backing a prize for cultural appropriation in literature. A total purse of $14,000 will be presented to the winners on June 4 at a ceremony at the First Nations House of Learning in Vancouver, on unceded Musqueam (xʷməθkʷəy̓əm) territory.

Published Prose in English

• Lindsay Nixon, nîtisânak (Metonymy Press)
• Tanya Tagaq, Split Tooth (Viking Canada)
• Joshua Whitehead, Jonny Appleseed (Arsenal Pulp Press)

Published Poetry in English

• Wanda John-Kehewin, Seven Sacred Truths (Talonbooks)
• Jules Koostachin, Unearthing of Secrets, Gathering of Truths (Kegedonce Press)
• Smokii Sumac, You are Enough: Love Poems for the End of the World (Kegedonce)

Published Works in French

• Joséphine Bacon, Uiesh, Quelque Part (Mémoire d’encrier)
• Pierrot Ross-Tremblay, Nipimanitu (Prise de parole)

Work in an Indigenous Language

• Francine Merasty, Iskotew Iskwew

Unpublished Prose in English

• Francine Cunningham, selection from “Teenage Asylums”
• Brittany Johnson, “Transit”
• Blair Yoxall, “Little Bull”

Unpublished Poetry in English

• Craig Commanda, “My Ghosts Roam this Land” and other poems
• Elaine McArthur, “Brush of a Bustle”
• Autumn Schnell, “FemmNDN Commandments”

Works in an Alternative Format

• Mich Cota, “Wàsakozi”
• Tasha Spillett (with Natasha Donovan), “Surviving the City” (HighWater Press)