New Hobby by Kat Shermack
CBC Books | Posted: April 5, 2023 1:30 PM | Last Updated: April 5, 2023
2023 CBC Short Story Prize longlist
Kat Shermack has made the 2023 CBC Short Story Prize longlist for New Hobby.
The winner of the 2023 CBC Short Story Prize will receive $6,000 from the Canada Council for the Arts, have their work published on CBC Books and win a two-week writing residency at Artscape Gibraltar Point. 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 12 and the winner will be announced on April 18.
If you're interested in the CBC Literary Prizes, the 2023 CBC Poetry Prize is open for submissions until May 31.
About Kat Shermack
Kat Shermack is a writer based in Toronto. She has a degree in political science from the University of Ottawa and a diploma in journalism from Humber College. Her journalism has appeared in Toronto Life and the Globe and Mail. In 2015, she was nominated as one of Canada's Best New Magazine Writers by the National Magazine Awards for an investigative piece called Tenant From Hell. She is currently working on a novel.
Entry in five-ish words
"Internet trolls walk among us."
The story's source of inspiration
"This story is inspired by my fascination with internet trolls. What makes someone go online and say hateful things? Are they depressed? Sad? Lonely? All of the above? How do they have so much time to spend on social media? Don't they have jobs? This story is my attempt to figure out why internet trolls exist and whether they can be redeemed."
First lines
At 4:30 in the morning, Amanda's alarm went off. By 4:45 she was out the door, ready to start her 12-hour shift at the hospital. As she drove away, her husband Ryan was fast asleep, barely disturbed by her alarm. He had been up late, looking for jobs. That's what he told his wife at least. You can only look for jobs for so long.
When he finally woke up at noon, he immediately grabbed his phone and opened Twitter.
About the 2023 CBC Short Story Prize
The winner of the 2023 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 Artscape Gibraltar Point. 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 Poetry Prize is currently open until May 31, 2023 at 11:59 p.m. ET. The 2024 CBC Short Story Prize will open in September and the 2024 CBC Nonfiction Prize will open in January 2024.