Allana Stuart has made the 2021 CBC Poetry Prize longlist for The End of the Line.

The winner of the 2021 CBC Poetry 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 Nov. 18 and the winner will be announced on Nov. 24.

If you're interested in the CBC Literary Prizes, the CBC Nonfiction Prize opens in January and the CBC Poetry Prize opens in April.

Allana Stuart was once a CBC Radio journalist and is now a writer of poetry and fiction. She is also the producer of the podcast Rx Advocacy. She was born and raised in Thunder Bay, Ont. and at her family's cabin in northwestern Ontario. She spent several years in northern British Columbia and currently lives in Ottawa with her husband and two children. Her poetry has been published in Goat's Milk Magazine and Orangepeel Literary Magazine. When Stuart's not writing or reading, you can find her rollerskating in her basement.

"Family, legacy, storytelling, trapping, beavers"

"This poem began as a lecture I gave to my children when they were complaining during a short snowshoeing trip last winter. I reminded them that my Grandad had started trapping when he was even younger than my eldest, often spending days snowshoeing alone through the wilderness.

"I began jotting down some of the imagery that brought to mind, interspersed with my own memories of my grandfather. I had made a radio documentary about him back in 2006 and I started listening to my audio files of our conversations again for inspiration.

"A creative writing instructor I was learning from at the time suggested incorporating some of Grandad's words as quotations within the poem. The result is, I hope, a piece that paints an accurate picture of him, demonstrates how deeply he was loved, and explores the complexities of loss and legacy."

as a little girl I watched you
split fur from flesh
knife blade sharpened on the
beaver tail
you kept in the freezer

you sat with your stretching boards
wool socks and work boots
planted firmly on the floor
greasy cap at a jaunty perch
long-ashed cigarette
dangling from your lips

The winner of the 2021 CBC Poetry 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 2022 CBC Nonfiction Prize will open in January. The 2022 CBC Poetry Prize will open in April.