Dartmouth Book Awards

Established in 1988, the Dartmouth Book Awards honour Nova Scotia literature and recognize the valuable contribution writers make to our cultural heritage.

News & Events

Call for Submissions

Books are now being accepted for the Nova Scotia Book Awards. Publishers have until November 1, 2024, to submit books for the 2025 awards. Books of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry by Nova Scotian writers are eligible.

Because the Nova Scotia Book Awards brings together awards administered by two different nonprofit organizations, please take care to submit to the right organization.

  • Novels published between Nov 2, 2023, and Nov 1, 2024, by Nova Scotian authors may be eligible for the Dartmouth Fiction Award, a $2,000 prize. Please submit to the Dartmouth Book Awards.
  • Debut novels published between Nov 2, 2023, and Nov 1, 2024, by Nova Scotian authors may be eligible for the Margaret and John Savage First Book Award (Fiction), a $2,000 prize. Please submit to the Dartmouth Book Awards.
  • Debut nonfiction books published between Nov 2, 2023, and Nov 1, 2024, by Nova Scotian authors may be eligible for the Margaret and John Savage First Book Award (Nonfiction), a $2,000 prize. Please submit to the Dartmouth Book Awards.
  • Nonfiction books published between Nov 2, 2023, and Nov 1, 2024, by Nova Scotian authors that inspire others and challenge the status quo may be eligible for the George Borden Writing for Change Award, a $2,000 prize. Please submit to the Dartmouth Books Awards.
  • Nonfiction books published between Nov 2, 2023, and Nov 1, 2024, by Nova Scotian authors may be eligible for the Evelyn Richardson Non-Fiction Award, a $2,000 prize. Please submit to the Writers’ Federation of Nova Scotia.
  • Books of poetry published between Nov 2, 2022, and Nov 1, 2024, by Nova Scotian authors may be eligible for the biennial Maxine Tynes Nova Scotia Poetry Award, a $2,000 prize. Please submit to the Writers’ Federation of Nova Scotia.

Complete submission details are available for each award by the organization noted.

Save the date! The Nova Scotia Book Awards will take place at 7 pm on Monday, June 2, 2025, at Brightwood Golf and Country Club in Dartmouth.

2024 Nova Scotia Book Awards ceremony

The Nova Scotia Book Awards ceremony will be presented on Monday, June 3, at Brightwood Golf & Country Club in Dartmouth in a ceremony hosted by spoken-word artist and author Andre Fenton.

Shortlists for 2024 Dartmouth Book Awards

Dartmouth Book Award (Fiction)
Charlene Carr, Hold My Girl (HarperCollins)
Leo McKay Jr., What Comes Echoing Back (Vagrant Press)
Amanda Peters, The Berry Pickers (HarperCollins) 

George Borden Writing for Change Award (Nonfiction)
Ray Cronin, Alan Syliboy: Culture is our Medicine (Gaspereau Press)
Heather Fegan, Gutsy: Living My Best Life with Crohn’s Disease and Ulcerative Colitis (Nimbus Publishing)
Jen Powley, Making a Home: Assisted Living in the Community for Young Disabled People (Roseway Publishing) 

Margaret and John Savage First Book Award (Fiction)
Amanda Peters, The Berry Pickers (HarperCollins)
Shelley Thompson, Roar (Nimbus Publishing)
Michelle Wamboldt, Birth Road (Nimbus Publishing)

Margaret and John Savage First Book Award (Nonfiction)
Brandon Doucet, About Canada: Dental Care (Fernwood Publishing)
Heather Fegan, Gutsy: Living My Best Life with Crohn’s Disease and Ulcerative Colitis (Nimbus Publishing)
Karen Pinchin, Kings of Their Own Ocean: Tuna, Obsession, and the Future of our Seas (Knopf Publishing)

See the Nova Scotia Book Awards website for other shortlists in the 2024 Nova Scotia Book Awards.

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