Cherrie Fielder has made the 2022 CBC Nonfiction Prize longlist for The Sleepover.

The winner of the 2022 CBC Nonfiction 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 Sept. 15 and the winner will be announced on Sept. 22

If you're interested in the CBC Literary Prizes, the 2023 CBC Short Story Prize is currently open for submissions until Oct. 31, 2022

Cherrie Fielder is a registered social worker who is self-employed in private practice. She holds an honours BA in English literature and women's studies from Trent University and a master of social work degree from the University of Toronto. She's always enjoyed reading and has dreamed of one day telling her story of adversity, resiliency and eventual achievement. The Sleepover is Fielder's first writing submission, completed while taking her first creative writing course this past January.

"Innocence comes to an end."

"The inspiration to write this story first came from the long-held dream of writing my memoir and then recently taking a memoir writing class to learn where to start. The message I received at 15 years old, that I was to blame for someone abusing me, stayed with me for many years. It impacted my self-worth and influenced choices I made, and how I allowed myself to be treated by others for many years afterwards. My hope is that one day my story will help others know that adversity does not have to result in a negative outcome, but instead can build resiliency and take them on a journey of growth and empowerment. This story will be the foundation of my memoir."

The bright July sun beats down on the blue waters of the in-ground pool. We're playing a game of tag and I'm 'it'. The pool is not ours. It belongs to Nick and Andrea. Mom and Nick spend a lot of time together, and they work at the same place. I'm starting to think there's something going on between them. Mom and Dad and Nick and Andrea bought brand-new houses across the street from each other. I don't think it's a coincidence. I'm pretty sure Dad and Andrea know what's going on, but nobody talks about it.

The winner of the 2022 CBC Nonfiction 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 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 2023 CBC Short Story Prize is currently open for submissions until Oct. 31, 2022. The 2023 CBC Nonfiction Prize will open in January 2023 and the 2023 CBC Poetry Prize will open in April 2023.