Submitted by the Muskoka Novel Marathon
In a year where most other events were forced to cancel, the Muskoka Novel Marathon forged ahead, pivoting from an in-person experience to an online July weekend of fundraising, networking, fun, and of course…writing.
This past weekend saw the writers come together on Zoom again to celebrate their accomplishments, reveal the award winners, and to discover the result of their fundraising efforts to date.
Krystyne Taylor-Smith of St. Catharines, the committee member responsible for leading the event towards its new platform, was appropriately chosen as the recipient of the ‘Techie Award’ by her peers.
“It was definitely a challenge to take the whole marathon online and stay true to what the writers were expecting,” said Taylor-Smith. “Ultimately, with a lot of ideas and feedback along the way, I was able to figure it out. We actually experienced very few hiccups during the event.”
The award winners for Best Novel were announced: Roy Sarkar of Ottawa won Best Adult Manuscript for his story One Night and the Station. Sharon Frayne from Niagara-on-the-Lake won Best YA/Juvenile Manuscript for the second year in a row with her story The Sound of a Rainbow. Both Best Novel winners will have their manuscripts submitted to a Canadian agent or editor for consideration and feedback.
Frayne was also the winner of the Most Prolific Award, writing more than 40,000 words/207 pages over the course of the weekend event, and shared the infamous B.I.C. (Bum In Chair) Award with MNM alum Kate Arms of Ajax.
Toronto-based writer Colum McKnight and Jacqui DeBique of Ajax scored an equal number of votes from their peers and shared the Spirit Award, a coveted award given to the writer who best embodies the spirit of the event. The Rookie Award, another peer-voted trophy, was virtually presented to Adrian Lowell who joined the online event all the way from Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
KM Wehrstein of Huntsville, current co-convenor and MNM alum of over a decade, noted the change in program as a positive experience. “Normally our event is like going away from your regular life into a different world. You’re in a different building with different people. We tried to replicate that by doing as much as we could—i.e. social/meal times, the beloved midnight reading—by the same schedule through the weekend, recreating MNMland as a whole other world. Based on the feedback, it was a success.”
Wehrstein added, “Of course the other other world that writers go into—their imagination and the world of their stories—was the same as always.”
When asked about the future delivery of the marathon, Taylor-Smith offered: “Now that the infrastructure is in place for online events, writers can look forward to new additions to our event calendar throughout the year. Things like writing sprints, panels with Q&A, writing workshops, and a short-story marathon are all ideas we have in the works. We will also be able to continue to fundraise for adult literacy year-round.”
The current total raised for adult literacy by the 2020 Muskoka Novel Marathon is $5,055. Funds raised by the Marathon go to YMCA Literacy and Employment Services in Huntsville specifically for literacy and literacy-related programming.
The 2021 Muskoka Novel Marathon marks the 20th anniversary of the event. It is scheduled to take place at the Active Living Centre on July 16-19, 2021.
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