Ontario book news, interviews and more

Mentorship: Part I

I’m deep in the weeds on a WIP and have been struggling to figure out what it needs, and what I need to get it to where it needs to be. My writing group is amazing, and I’m so grateful to my beta ...

Read an Excerpt from Summer in Furnished Rooms by Marc Plourde

People and places may come and go in our lives, but their imprint lasts long, and can sometimes linger and evolve in peculiar and interesting ways. In the new collection Summer in Furnished Rooms (Cormorant ...

Marc Perez Follows the Paths of Strangers and Wanderers in Dayo

Identity, language, and self are all at play in Dayo (Brick Books), the new collection of poetry from Marc Perez. It's a striking debut from the author, and one that explores what it truly means to ...

Ellen Chang-Richardson Confronts the Past and Perseveres in Their Debut Poetry Collection

While an author may carry scars from the past, and from wrongs done to their family and ancestors, they are not always visible or clear. Sometimes, they even become so familiar that the author finds them ...

"Try to Enjoy the Small Moments of Magic" - Kate Hilton and Elizabeth Renzetti Talk About a Writing Life and Their New Mystery Novel, Bury the Lead

In Bury the Lead (House of Anansi Press), mystery abounds when big city journalist Cat Conway moves to a small town in cottage country, and begins to uncover secrets lurking below the surface in the ...

The Collected Essays in Work to be Done Share Remarkable Insights Into Fifty-Years of Literary Criticism and Analysis

Bruce Whiteman is an accomplished poet, translator, and scholar who has shown a vast scope of knowledge over his literary career. His essays have been published far and wide, and have provided valuable ...

Jody Chan's New Poetry Collection Challenges Systemic Failings in Community Care

Writer and therapist Jody Chan has had plenty of experience with systems of mental health treatment in Canada, and the ongoing shortcomings in care for citizens who are ill and look to these entities ...

Read an Excerpt from A Darker Shade of Blue: A Police Officer's Memoir by Keith Merith

At just 16 years old, Keith Merith was pulled over by a white police officer only to be berated and degraded with no cause. After being exposed to this abuse of power, Merith vowed to one day to join ...

Mylène Goupil Explores the Difficulties that Come With Change in Taming Papa

What does a young girl do when a parent comes into her life suddenly, and everything changes?This question is at the heart of Taming Papa (Groundwood Books) by Mylène Goupil (translated from French ...

On Finding Inspiration Through Deconstruction

In my last column, I talked about the unexpected rewards of returning to the same themes and subject matter in your work. But there’s a related facet to this that I feel deserves its own examination—the ...