Audible has created a literary award in honor of Audible employee Christopher Doheny, who suffered from cystic fibrosis and died earlier this year. The Center for Fiction will administer and confer the Christopher Doheny Award annually for "excellence in fiction or nonfiction on the topic of serious illness." Winners receive a $10,000 prize, along with publication and book and audiobook promotion.
Manuscripts both completed and in progress will be eligible for the award. Winners will be chosen who "demonstrate high literary standards while exploring the impact of illness on the patient, family and friends, and others."
At the age of seven months, Doheny was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis. He worked for Audible as an intern in the summer of 2002, and returned as an employee after graduating from Georgetown University in 2003. In 2010, he underwent a double lung transplant, and died this year on February 20.
"We hope that his prize will help talented writers who may be battling chronic or fatal disease tell their important stories," said Doheny's mother, Dana Dohery.
More information on the Christopher Doheny Award, including how to donate, can be found here.
