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Submitted by the Muskoka Novel Marathon<\/em><\/p>\n 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.<\/p>\n 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.<\/p>\n 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.<\/p>\n “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.”<\/p>\n The award winners for Best Novel were announced: Roy Sarkar of Ottawa won Best Adult Manuscript for his story One Night and the Station<\/em>. 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<\/em>. Both Best Novel winners will have their manuscripts submitted to a Canadian agent or editor for consideration and feedback.<\/p>\n 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.<\/p>\n 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.<\/p>\n 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\u2014i.e. social\/meal times, the beloved midnight reading\u2014by the same schedule through the weekend, recreating MNMland as a whole other world. Based on the feedback, it was a success.”<\/p>\n