Carrie Mac of Vancouver, B.C. has won the 2015 CBC Creative Nonfiction Prize for "if you have a good seal, the chest will rise."

As the grand prize winner, Mac will receive $6,000 from the Canada Council for the Arts and her story will be published in the October edition of Air Canada enRoute magazine. She will also receive a 10-day writing residency at The Banff Centre.

The jury was composed of writers Kamal Al-Solaylee, Michael Harris and Merrily Weisbord. Here's what they had to say:

"'if you have a good seal, the chest will rise' is a startling, hard-hitting story that lets us ride along with a newbie paramedic. Written with crisis energy and a real vulnerability, this dramatic piece takes us to a place few writers can access... an affecting and mind-bending read."

Carrie Mac is the author of several novels for young readers, as well as literary short fiction. She lives with her partner and two children in East Vancouver, where she is working on a novel and a collection of short fiction.

"if you have a good seal, the chest will rise" is about Mac's eight years spent as a paramedic. During this time, she witnessed tragedy and chaos and tiny, shimmering moments that have inspired her writing ever since.

The French winner of the Prix du récit 2015 was also announced. You can read Chantal Garand's "Un hibou, un Égyption et l'étrangère" on: ICI.Radio-Canada/icionlit.