Speculative Literature Foundation Awards 2018 Older Writers Grants

The Speculative Literature Foundation has named J Tullos Hennig and Ann Dávila Cardinal winners of the 2018 Older Writers Grant. The $500 awards support any purpose the recipients choose to benefit their work.

J Tullos Hennig, who has always possessed inveterate fascination in the myths and histories of other worlds and times, has never successfully managed to not be a storyteller—ever—despite having maintained a few professions in this world, including equestrian, dancer, teacher, and artist. Her most recent work re-imagines the legends of Robin Hood, in a historical fantasy series featuring both pagan and queer viewpoints.

Ann Dávila Cardinal, a Latina novelist and Director of Student Recruitment for Vermont College of Fine Arts (VCFA), where she also earned her MFA in fiction, was raised surrounded by shelves full of speculative fiction thanks to her older brothers. Writing in this genre has always been her goal, and fighting bias against speculative and genre literature in the literary world is her ongoing quest—an issue that is dear to her heart. Her upcoming young adult horror novel, Five Midnights in July, will be released in June 2019 from Tor Teen.

The Speculative Literature Foundation created the Older Writers Grants to support writers who are 50 years of age or older at the time of their application, and who are just beginning to professionally publish their work. The awards are intended to aid older writers in overcoming barriers to writing speculative fiction professionally.

SLF’s Honorable Mentions for the 2018 Older Writers Grant are Kerry Rawlinson, Carolyn Charron, Laura Bailey, Vincent Czyz, and Sheelagh Brown “for their entertaining and thought-provoking submissions, which made the selection of the winners a pleasant and enjoyable process for our jurors.”