Erin Pryce has made the 2021 CBC Short Story Prize longlist for Sound is No Home.

The winner of the 2021 CBC Short Story Prize will receive $6,000 from the Canada Council for the Arts, have their work published on CBC Books and have the opportunity to attend a two-week writing residency at the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity. Four finalists will each receive $1,000 from the Canada Council for the Arts and have their work published on CBC Books.

The shortlist will be announced on April 22 and the winner will be announced on April 29.

Erin Pryce writes short stories and novels at her home in Magrath, Alta. Her work has been published in Prairie Fire, where she received an honourable mention in the 2017 fiction contest. Erin works for the school division and learns more from her students than they could ever learn from her. When she isn't writing, Erin spends time with her family and enjoys everything southern Alberta has to offer.

"Finding cultural identity through love."

"Working in schools for over a decade, I've seen how important language and culture is for children and their success. When that cultural identity is missing for one reason or another, it leaves a wound that only a community can heal."

Grandma is kind; that much I know is true. Her strong arms shroud me in protection, squeezing me tight so there is no more room for fear. Her blue felt coat with the beads smells of coffee and smudge smoke and diesel fumes. Whenever I am afraid, I think of Grandma's arms around me.

I'm scared now so I breathe deep, trying to trick my mind into smelling Grandma's coat instead of the sour floor polish the janitor buffed into the beige tiles. The floor is slippery and shiny and leaves my palms sticky. Sunlight filters through the classroom window, pictures of happy pink children backlit by the sun hang from tape pressed against the glass. All of the chairs are empty in the unlit room.

I crouch behind Teacher's desk and shiver, sighing out the dark thoughts and letting two tears slide down my cheeks, one, two.

The winner of the 2021 CBC Short Story Prize will receive $6,000 from the Canada Council for the Arts, have their work published on CBC Books and attend a two-week writing residency at the Banff Centre for the Arts and Creativity. Four finalists will each receive $1,000 from the Canada Council for the Arts and have their work published on CBC Books.

The 2021 CBC Poetry Prize is open for submissions until May 31, 2021. The 2022 CBC Short Story Prize will open in September and the 2022 CBC Nonfiction Prize will open in January 2022.