Giller Prize

The Giller Prize (sponsored as the Scotiabank Giller Prize), is a literary award given to a Canadian author of a novel or short story collection published in English (including translation) the previous year, after an annual juried competition between publishers who submit entries. The prize was established in 1994 by Toronto businessman Jack Rabinovitch in honour of his late wife Doris Giller, a former literary editor at the Toronto Star, and is awarded in November of each year along with a cash reward (then CAN$25,000).[1]

Giller Prize
Awarded for	English-language Canadian fiction including translations
Country	Canada
Presented by	Scotiabank and the Giller Prize Foundation
First awarded	November 1994 (1994)
Website	scotiabankgillerprize.ca

From 1994 to 2004, the prize included a bronze figure created by artist Yehouda Chaki.[2] The current prize includes a trophy designed by Soheil Mosun.[3]

On September 22, 2005, the Giller Prize established an endorsement deal with Scotiabank, a major Canadian bank. The total prize package for the award was increased to $50,000, with $40,000 presented to the winning author and $2,500 each for the other four shortlisted nominees. The award's official name was also changed at that time to the Scotiabank Giller Prize.

In 2006, the prize instituted a longlist for the first time, comprising no fewer than 10 and no more than 15 titles. In 2008, the prize fund was increased to $50,000 for the winning author and $5,000 for each of the authors on the shortlist. In 2014, the prize package was expanded further, to $100,000 for the winning author and $10,000 for each of the shortlisted authors.[4] In 2015, the jury was expanded from three to five people.[5]

Over the years, the Giller Prize has run different promotions to extend its recognition and support of Canadian literary talent[6] to highlight all Canadian fiction eligible for the prize in a given publishing year. For example, the Craving CanLit feature (previously called Crazy for CanLit), which highlights the initial list of all titles that are under consideration for the award's longlist and shortlist nominations, seeks to publicize Canadian literature by engaging readers and writers through social media tools. Another online initiative started in 2021, the Giller Book Club, featuring virtual author readings and interviews, got off to a bumpy start when the inaugural offering was the victim of zoombombing.[7]

Since its inception, the Giller Prize has been awarded to emerging and established authors from both small independent and large publishing houses in Canada.

Since Rabinovitch's death in 2017, the Giller Prize Foundation is now overseen by his daughter Elana Rabinovitch.[8]