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CBC Nonfiction Prize

A project of CBC Books (see other related projects).

About

This prize is awarded once a year to the best original, unpublished, work of nonfiction that is submitted to the competition. All Canadians can participate. The CBC Nonfiction Prize includes memoir, biography, humour writing, essay (including personal essay), travel writing and feature articles. The work should be accessible to a general reading audience (i.e., not written for a specialized or academic audience). The Grand Prize winner will receive a cash prize, courtesy of the Canada Council for the Arts, and will have his/her story published on the CBC Books website. They will also be awarded a two-week writing residency.

Fees Notice: This project charges fees (or requires purchases) for all submissions.
The fee is CAD $25 (average for contests).
Limited Demographic: Submissions are restricted to Canadians.

Country of Publication

Canada

Publication Medium & Contest Frequency

Electronic Publication Electronic Publication
Awarded 1 x per year

AI Policy

Unknown AI policy

Statistics Synopsis

Slower
CBC Nonfiction Prize's overall average response time is slower than most contests.

Nonfiction Temp Closed

Dates:

Will be open to submissions from 01 January 2027 3:00 AM EST (in 111 days) through 01 March 2027.

1

Audience:

Canadians.

Lengths:

Article: Up to 2,500 words.
Essay: Up to 2,500 words.
Narrative Nonfiction: Up to 2,500 words.

Styles:

Open to all/most Styles, including: Humorous, Literary, Mainstream, Personal.

Topics:

Open to all/most Topics including...
Memoir.
Travel.

Winner's Prize:

Professional payment (5 or more US cents per word) Professional payment. Details: CAD $6,000 for first prize.

Submissions:

Method: Submittable submission manager.
Reprints: Reprints are NOT allowed.
Simultaneous submissions: Unknown.
Multiple entries: Multiple entries are allowed.
Media: Text.

Always check guidelines for details and restrictions. If you aren't familiar with these terms, see our glossary.

CBC Nonfiction Prize Submission Statistics

The statistics in this section are compiled from submission reports sent to us through our submission tracker. They are not provided by the publication's editors/staff or by Duotrope's admins. Information in this section is updated a few times per day. Learn more about the statistics.

This project ranks among the 25 Slowest Nonfiction Publishers in our database.
Filter:
Accuracy
We have received 9 reports from 8 different members within the past 12 months, not including pending responses (see below). The more responses reported, the more accurate the information.
Days Reported
193 min | 195.4 mean avg | 196.0 median | 232 max days (12.4 std dev)
Pending
1 response is pending (219 days waiting). This only includes pending reports from people who have been active on Duotrope within the past 30 days

Other Information

The most common submission fee paid: CAD $25.00.
Most submissions are acknowledged on the same day.
Most recent response reported was received on 10 Sep 2026.
Responses have been received for submissions sent as recently as 01 Mar 2026.
Date compiled: 11 Sep 2026 23:43 UTC (less than a minute ago).
View report of recent responses from this project

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Your Submissions

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Canadian Broadcasting Company (CBC) DNQ
CBC Poetry Prize  Charges fees for all submissions
CBC Short Story Prize  Charges fees for all submissions

Before Submitting

We cannot guarantee that the information on this page is correct. It is not unusual for publications to evolve or close without notice. We do our best to keep up, but it isn't always possible. Duotrope listings do not imply endorsement or recommendation of the project being listed. Before submitting, you should use your own judgment to determine whether the project meets your standards.

  • Always read the full guidelines provided by the publisher.
  • Try to read at least one previous publication to get a better idea of what the editor would like to see.
  • Unless the publisher's guidelines state otherwise, always use industry standard manuscript formatting.
  • Be professional, patient, and persistent.

Dates

Last Updated: 28 Apr 2026

We check their guidelines for changes every four weeks, and we audit the listing twice a year.

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