Nominees announced for the 2021 Doug Wright Awards

Nominees for the 2021 Doug Wright Awards, which honor “the best work and most promising talent in Canadian comics,” were announced this week.

Drawn & Quarterly received four nominations, while Renegade Arts Entertainment received two. Self-published books were also very well represented.

This year’s judges include Steven W. Beattie, Claudia Dávila, Jenn Haines, Paul G. Hammond, Brett Lamb, Shauna McCabe, Sylvia Nickerson, Emily Pohl-Weary, Sarah Sawler, Jonathan Valelly and Frank Viva. The 2021 Doug Wright Awards will be broadcast as a pre-recorded livestream on Facebook and YouTube at 8 p.m. Eastern May 8, hosted by Don McKellar. 

The nominees in each category are:

The Doug Wright Award for best book

Lonely Boys
S. Bédard 
Pow Pow Press

Familiar Face
Michael DeForge
Drawn & Quarterly

Constantly
GG
Koyama Press

Paul at Home
Michel Rabagliati
Drawn & Quarterly

Wendy, Master of Art
Walter Scott
Drawn & Quarterly

The Nipper: The Doug Wright Award for emerging talent

Adam de Souza
A Gleaming No. 2
Self-published

Kimberly Edgar
The Space In Between
Self-published

Courtney Loberg
We Don’t Go Through the Angelgrass I
Self-published

Veronica Post
Langosh & Peppi: Fugitive Days
Conundrum Press

Shannon M. Reeves
Restless Bones
Gytha Press

The Pigskin Peters: The Doug Wright Award for best small- or micro-press book

The Noiseless Din
Scott Carruthers
Popnoir Editions

The Desecration
Scott Carruthers and Sally McKay
Self-published

A Gleaming No. 2
Adam de Souza
Self-published

The Space In Between
Kimberly Edgar
Self-published

Awkward Pause
Ryan Harby
Renegade Arts Entertainment

The Egghead: The Doug Wright Award for best kids’ book

A Slug Story
Mandi Kujawa, Hana Kujawa, Claude St. Aubin, and Lovern Kindzierski
Renegade Arts Entertainment

The Little Ghost Who Was a Quilt
Riel Nason and Byron Eggenschwiler
Tundra Books

Okay, Universe: Chronicles of a Woman in Politics
Valérie Plante and Delphie Côté-Lacroix
Drawn & Quarterly

Grandmother School
Rina Singh and Ellen Rooney
Orca Book Publishers

Swift Fox All Along
Rebecca Thomas and Maya McKibbin
Annick Press

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The Doug Wright Awards also announced that this year’s “Giants of the North” nominee — their version of a hall of fame — is Fred Kelly, a writer and artist best known for his work with Bell Features and creating the character Mr. Monster. Kelly passed away in 2005.