The Sunburst Award for Canadian Literature of the Fantastic is an annual literary award given for a speculative fiction novel or a book-length collection, first awarded in 2001. A young adult category was created in 2008, to differentiate from adult works; and a short fiction award as well. The award was on hiatus between 2020 and 2024 and has returned for the 2025 award.
History
The name of the award comes from the title of the first novel by Phyllis Gotlieb, Sunburst (1964).
The first award was given out in 2001. The award consists of a cash prize ( for novel length work, and for short stories) and a medallion. The winner is selected by jury; a new jury is struck each year.
On 2 June 2020, the Sunburst Award Society announced the awards were going on a hiatus due to impacts related to COVID-19.
In December 2024, the return of the award for 2025 was announced. The cash price was changed to for a novel length work.
Winners
General
Prior to 2008, the Sunburst Award was presented in a single category. In later years, it was broken down into two or three categories, including adult, young adult, and short story.
After the 2020-2024 hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the award seems to have returned to a single category.
{| class="wikitable"
|+General Sunburst Award winners
!Year
!Author
!Result
!Result
!Ref.
|- style="background:#cddeff"
!2001
|
|Galveston
|Winner
|
|- style="background:#cddeff"
!2002
|
|When Alice Lay Down with Peter
|Winner
|
|- style="background:#cddeff"
!2003
|
|Skin Folk
|Winner
|
|- style="background:#cddeff"
!2004
|
|'
|Winner
|
|- style="background:#cddeff"
!2005
|
|Air
|Winner
|
|- style="background:#cddeff"
!2006
|
|In the Palace of Repose
|Winner
|
|- style="background:#cddeff"
!2007
|
|Fabrizio's Return
|Winner
|
|- style="background:#cddeff"
! rowspan="5" |2025
|
|Blackheart Man
|Winner
|
|-
|
|Mood Swings
|Finalist
|
|-
|
|Bird Suit
|Finalist
|
|-
|
|Code Noir
|Finalist
|
|-
|
| A Seal of Salvage
|Finalist
|
|}
Adult
{| class="wikitable sortable mw-collapsible"
|+Sunburst Award for Adult Book winners and finalists
!Year
!Author
!Result
!Result
!Ref.
|- style="background:#cddeff"
!2008
|
|'
|Winner
|
|- style="background:#cddeff"
! rowspan="5" |2009
|
|'
|Winner
|
|-
|
|Night Child
|Finalist
|
|-
|
|
|Finalist
|
|-
|
|
|Finalist
|
|-
|
|Makers
|Finalist
|
|-
|
|Watch
|Finalist
|
|-
|
|Chimerascope
|Finalist
|
|-
|
|Blackdog
|Finalist
|
|-
|
|Eutopia: A Novel of Terrible Optimism
|Finalist
|
|-
|
|Over the Darkened Landscape
|Finalist
|
|- style="background:#cddeff"
! rowspan="5" |2015
|
|'
|Winner
|
|-
|
|
|Finalist
|
|-
|
|Station Eleven
|Finalist
|
|-
|
|
|Finalist
|
|-
|
|Signal to Noise
|Finalist
|
|-
|
|'
|Finalist
|
|-
|
|Sleeping Giants
|Finalist
|
|-
|
|American War
|Finalist
|
|-
|
|Sputnik’s Children
|Finalist
|
|-
|
|Sodom Road Exit
|Finalist
|
|-
|
|Armed in Her Fashion
|Finalist
|
|-
|
|Shout Kill Revel Repeat
|Finalist
|
|- style="background:#cddeff"
! rowspan="5" |2009
|
|Little Brother
|Winner
|