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Sarah-Marie Scale, a first-year student in Humber Polytechnic’s Bachelor of Creative and Professional Writing program, was named one of three recipients of the 2026 Giller Mantella Scholarship.
The Giller Mantella Scholarship, a partnership between The Giller Foundation and the Mantella Corporation, supports Black, Indigenous and racialized students pursuing post-secondary studies in English literature, writing, and creative writing.
Each of the 2026 recipients received $10,000 towards their education and will be honoured at the Nov. 16 Giller Prize ceremony at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel. The other winners are Sofia Cina, a first-year English Literature student at the University of Toronto, and Audrey Gignac, a fourth-year in English Language and Literature and Concurrent Education student at Brock University.
Elana Rabinovitch, executive director of the Giller Prize, said the announcement affirms the importance of emerging Canadian writers. The organization said the scholarship comes at a time when the provincial government is cutting OSAP support for students.
Scale's professor, David Brock, said that she has the qualities which make up a good writer.
"The same qualities that can make for a good writing student make for a good writer," he said. "Asking questions, experimentation, and a sense of creation as play. Sarah-Marie certainly has these qualities. Doing the work can take any writer far, both within a program of study and out in the world, and this award is a fine example that Sarah-Marie is not afraid to do the work."
Sylvia Mantella, vice president of marketing, sponsorship and philanthropy for Mantella, said the recipients have important perspectives to share “and honouring them at the Giller Prize sends a clear message: your voice matters, your stories belong, and there is a community that believes in your future.”
For Scale, the recognition represents more than financial support. It is an opportunity to pursue a passion for storytelling that began in childhood, shaped by a family of avid readers and years of encouragement from her mother and father.
“I have always loved telling stories. My dad was a librarian, and we had books that filled our house,” she said. “We grew up with bedtime stories, so it made me love to tell stories.”
Scale said she began sharing her stories with her parents at a young age, often finding opportunities to tell them while the two completed household chores.
She initially found writing down her ideas too time-consuming. Over time, however, her ideas developed, and her mother encouraged her to take her passion seriously.
“One time it came to this moment where my mom said, ‘enough was enough,’” she said. “She said I needed to write these ideas down.”
Her family’s Christian faith also played an important role in her decision to write. Scale said her mother encouraged her to trust in her abilities and view storytelling as a purpose worth pursuing.
“My mom said, ‘You love writing. If you think that God is giving you a dream to write, and if you think that this is your dream, then why don't you believe that he can help you succeed in it?’ It was like a really life-changing moment for me,” she said.
The encouragement helped Scale take her first steps towards becoming a writer.
“At the time, I had spent like a couple of hours on my porch kind of painstakingly spelling, misspelling, erasing. And then I came up with a story called Bend the Pony and I showed it to her, and that was like from that moment I was hooked. It was my whole dream,” she said.
Scale said she once struggled to envision writing as a financially sustainable career.
“I couldn't see myself doing anything else. But growing up, I always thought that writing wasn't a career that could be profitable. It's like something that you can only dream of and not actually do,” she said.
As she considered her future, Scale explored several career paths, including wildlife cinematography and opportunities in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
Her educational journey also differed from that of many Canadian students.
Scale was homeschooled from Junior Kindergarten through Grade 8, before transitioning to virtual schooling. She is now experiencing an in-person post-secondary environment at Humber’s Lakeshore campus.
One of seven siblings, Scale said she valued sharing her homeschooling experience with her brothers and sisters and having her parents serve as her teachers. However, she also remembers wanting to experience the traditional school environment.
Scale’s path to Humber was guided by her desire to find a program that would allow her to develop her writing skills while gaining practical industry experience.
She said she had been researching writing programs since Grade 11 before deciding to pursue the field professionally. Humber stood out because of its early emphasis on specialized writing courses and hands-on learning setting.
Scale said she appreciates the program's interdisciplinary approach, which combines writing with social media, photography and exposure to the publishing industry.
“I think that's really valuable for a writer to be able to get all that broad experience that will actually help you in your future career,” she said. “And I really like that it was all hands-on and it had a work-integrated learning placement in third year.”
She also has begun building professional experience through freelance writing for a Christian magazine. She recently completed an internship as part of her co-op experience. The storytelling allows her to connect with young people navigating their faith and identity.
“Sometimes churches are full of older populations who don't really seem to get it, and just to be a teenager in this generation, while also still trying to be Christian, it gives me slightly of a different perspective than Canadian generations going back,” she said.
The news of her scholarship came while she was working in the library on her co-op placement.
Scale said she was surprised when she opened an email from Humber and saw the word “congratulations.”
She immediately called her mother to share the news.
The scholarship, she said, has given her a sense of momentum as she works towards establishing a career in writing.
It has also strengthened her desire to use storytelling to contribute to her community and connect with people who share similar experiences.
Scale's professor, Meaghan Strimas, said she is an exceptional student and writer.
"She’s a joy to teach, and her curiosity and openness to learning will take her far. While Sarah-Marie has talent to spare, we all know that so much about "making it" in creative industries also depends on an individual’s tenacity," she said. "Sarah-Marie has it all: vision, talent, and determination. I am so glad she decided to come to the Bachelor of Creative and Professional Writing program.
Strimas said she looks forward to seeing what the future holds for Scale.
"I can’t wait to see her writing career blossom," she said. "I’ll support her in any way I can. This award is so richly deserved.”
Scale said she hopes to reach all marginalized communities with her storytelling skills.
“Being able to do creative and professional writing to develop my storytelling skills is nice because I am able to share the experience on a larger basis with other marginalized people,” she said.
