The 10 winners have been selected for the 39th annual Whiting Awards, sponsored by the Whiting Foundation and recognizing "excellence and promise in a spectrum of emerging talent, giving most winners the chance to devote themselves full time to their own writing, or to take bold new risks in their work."
The winners, each of whom receive $50,000, comprise six women and four men, and significant ethnic and geographic diversity. Four were born outside of the U.S.--in Korea, India, El Salvador, and Botswana. The others are from Maryland, Philadelphia, Ohio, Washington, D.C., the Bronx, N.Y., and Texas. They are:
Aaliyah Bilal (fiction)
Yoon Choi (fiction)
Shayok Misha Chowdhury (drama)
Frances Ya-Chu Cowhig (drama)
Elisa Gonzalez (poetry)
Taylor Johnson (poetry)
Gothataone Moeng (fiction)
Charif Shanahan (poetry)
Javier Zamora (nonfiction and poetry)
Ada Zhang (fiction)
For more about the award and about the winners, click here.
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The Romantic Novelists' Association released shortlists in 10 categories for this year's Romantic Novel Awards, which "celebrate excellence in romantic fiction in all its forms." The awards are judged by readers, without input from industry professionals. Winners will be named during the RNA's Romantic Novel Awards ceremony, set for May 20 in London. See the complete RNA shortlists here.