The Alice B Readers Award[1] is given annually to living writers of lesbian fiction whose careers are distinguished by consistently well-written stories about lesbians. Named for Alice B. Toklas, the award is given once, only, in appreciation of career achievement. In addition to the medal, each recipient is given a lapel pin and a significant honorarium.
| Alice B Medal | |
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 Alice B Medal Awarded Annually | |
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The Award was founded by Roberta "Sandy" Sandburg, who died of cancer at the age of 72 on June 16, 2009. Sandburg envisioned the Alice B Awards a decade or so ago, and in 2004 decided to make the awards a reality by committing funds from "an anonymous donor". A lifelong reader who was passionate about lesbian fiction, Sandburg wanted to thank and reward the authors who had given her so much joy, and she did so by establishing the Alice B fund and gathering a group of women who became the Alice B Readers Appreciation Committee.
In addition to Alice B Medals, until 2016 the Committee awarded Alice B Lavender Certificates to up-and-coming authors who do not yet have a body of work but who have published a remarkable work or two deserving of notice. Winners of the certificate received an honorarium of $50. After 2016, the Lavender Certificate was suspended. Due to the overwhelming number of debut writers, the committee was no longer able to read so many debut books.
By 2021, the Committee acknowledged that so many lesbian books were being published each year that they could no longer keep up and came to believe they were missing writers of great merit. In 2021, the committee began inviting readers, publishers, and authors to submit any book that they believe is a "Best Work of Fiction" by an author and representative of the author being named as deserving of a medal for lifetime achievement.[2]
Significance of the award
editHistorically, lesbians have rarely had their voices heard in the fiction or nonfiction of modern society,[3] (except perhaps as footnotes in medical journals regarding pathology). As Bertha Harris, author of many novels including Lover, once wrote: "Between the time of Sappho and the birth of Natalie Clifford Barney lies a 'lesbian silence' of twenty-four centuries."[4] It was not until the 1970s and the establishment of Naiad Press (after the Stonewall riots in 1969), that books by, for, and about lesbians began to be regularly published. Still, it was a long hard road with little recognition and to this day, considerable difficulties and discrimination face authors of lesbian works.
The Alice B Award is one small contribution toward overcoming discrimination. As Martha Nell Smith wrote:[5]
The trajectory of lesbian literature for the first two-thirds of the twentieth century can be described as a movement from encrypted strategies for expressions of the love that dare not speak its name to overtly political celebrations of woman-for-woman passion that, by the late 1960s, refused to be denied, denigrated, or expunged.
The Alice B Award exists to honor and recognize forerunners of modern lesbian fiction including Ann Bannon, Jane Rule, Marijane Meaker, Sandra Scoppettone, Katherine V. Forrest, and Lee Lynch, as well as to the new voices who are providing information, entertainment, and enlightenment to lesbians around the world.
The Alice B Awards Committee
editThe Alice B Awards Committee is an anonymous group of avid lesbian readers located around the US. The award is made possible by an anonymous donor. The donor and committee share a common goal: to reward and thank writers of lesbian fiction for their contribution to lesbian community, culture, and identity.
At least two Medals are given out annually. Selections are made from lists compiled by the committee members’ to include their all-time favorite living authors currently publishing and also those with a substantial body of excellent work, even if they are not now publishing.
Winners of the Alice B Award
edit2024
edit- Nat Burns
- Carolyn Gage
- Tracey Richardson
- Brey Willows
2023
edit2022
edit2021
edit- Jae
- Malinda Lo
- Caren J. Werlinger
2020
edit- Lynn Ames
- Penny Mickelbury
- Jeanette Winterson
2019
edit- Dorothy Allison
- S. Renée Bess
- Fletcher DeLancey
- Mary Wings
2018
edit- Penny Hayes
- Barbara Johnson
- Rachel Spangler
2017
edit- Melissa Brayden
- Jaye Maiman
- Ann McMan
2016
edit- Justine Saracen
- Carsen Taite
- Pat Welch
2015
edit- Carol Anshaw
- Randye Lordon
- D Jordan Redhawk
2014
edit- Marianne K. Martin
- Susan X. Meagher
- Ann Roberts
2013
edit- Robin Alexander
- Sandra Scoppettone
- Linda K. Silva
2012
edit- Saxon Bennett
- KG MacGregor
- Gill McKnight
2011
edit- Erin Dutton
- Fran Heckrotte
- Ali Vali
2010
edit- Catherine Friend
- JM Redmann (also known as Jean M. Redmann)
- Kate Sweeney
2009
edit- Gun Brooke
- Jane Fletcher
- Nicola Griffith
- Lesléa Newman
2008
edit- Ann Bannon
- Kim Baldwin
- Cate Culpepper
- Lauren Wright Douglas
- Jennifer L. Jordan
- Val McDermid
- Joanna Russ
- Therese Szymanski
2007
edit- Alison Bechdel
- Gerri Hill
- Lori L. Lake
- Lee Lynch
- Marijane Meaker
- Jane Rule
2006
edit- Jennifer Fulton
- Claire McNab
- Ann Allen Shockley
- Sheila Ortiz-Taylor
2005
edit- Sarah Dreher
- Katherine V. Forrest
- Ellen Hart
2004
edit- Peggy J. Herring
- Karin Kallmaker
- Radclyffe
Winners of the Lavender Certificate
edit2005
edit- Jaime Clevenger for The Unknown Mile
- Gabrielle Goldsby for The Caretaker's Daughter
- C. Paradee for Deep Cover
2006
edit- Cynthia Tyler for Descanso
2007
edit- Brenda Adcock for Pipeline
2008
edit- L-J Baker for Broken Wings
- Catherine Friend for The Spanish Pearl
- Nairne Holtz for The Skin Beneath
2009
edit- Del Robertson for Taming the Wolff
- Gill McKnight for Falling Star and Green-eyed Monster
2010
edit- DL Line for On Dangerous Ground
- Colette Moody for The Sublime and Spirited Voyage of Original Sin
- Carsen Taite for truelesbianlove.com
2011
edit- Amy Briant for Shadow Point
- Nat Burns for Two Weeks in August
- Gina Noelle Daggett for Jukebox
- D. Jackson Leigh for Bareback and Long Shot
- Kristin Marra for Wind and Bones
- Amy Dawson Robertson for Miles to Go
2012
edit- Regina Hanel for Love Another Day
- Cari Hunter for Snowbound
- Ann McMan for Jericho
- AJ Quinn for Hostage Moon
- Pol Robinson for Open Water
2013
edit- Andrea Bramhall for Ladyfish
- Maggie Morton for Dreaming of Her
- Jenna Rae for The Writing on the Wall
- Robin Silverman for Lemon Reef
- Rebecca Swartz for Everything Pales in Comparison
2014
edit- Miriam Ruth Black for Turtle Season
- Lea Daley for Waiting for Harper Lee
- M E Logan for Lexington Connection
- Diane Wood for Web of Obsessions
2015
edit- Marie Castle for Hell's Belle
- Jaime Maddox for Agnes
2016
edit- Jean Copeland for The Revelation of Beatrice Darby
- Jenny Frame for A Royal Romance
- Sophia French for The Diplomat
- Brandy T. Wilson for The Palace Blues
References
edit- ^ Home - Alice B Awards - The Website for the Alice B Reader's Appreciation Committee
- ^ Alice B Readers. "History and Organization: Submission of Worthy Books". Retrieved 21 July 2021.
- ^ Alice B Awards Winners. Retrieved on 2008-05-31.
- ^ Bold Strokes Alice B Award Winners Archived 2008-05-13 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved on 2008-05-31.
- ^ Alice B Award Winner Lori L. Lake. Retrieved on 2008-05-31.
Notes
edit
1. The Lesbian History Portal. Retrieved on 2008-05-31.
2. Bertha Harris on glbtq.com Retrieved on 2008-05-31.
3. American Literature: Lesbian, 1900-1969. Martha Nell Smith. Retrieved on 2008-05-31.
4. The Alice B Medal Current Winners Biographical page. Retrieved on 2014-02-14.
5. The Alice B Medal Past Winners Page. Retrieved on 2014-02-14.
External links
edit- Alice B Awards
- Bella Books which assumed the mantle from Naiad Books.
- GLBTQ.com Literary Section
- About the founder of the award
- Alice B Awards Facebook Page established 2021.