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October 05, 2021Poetry Should "Be Surprised By What it Says": David O'Meara on Why Poems Shouldn't Try to Be Poems
Canadian writers know Ottawa-based poet David O'Meara not only for his acclaimed collections but also his contributions to the community. From serving as the founding Artistic Director for VERSeFest ...
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October 21, 2021Read the Late, Great Don Domanski's Poem "Homeworld" from His Final, Posthumous Collection
Governor General's Literary Award winning poet Don Domanski, who passed away in 2020, is remembered for his ability to combine epic themes of environmentalism and metaphysics with his trademark intimate, ...
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April 14, 2022"The List/ of Things I’ve Done/ for My Body is Too Long" Read an Excerpt from Nisa Malli’s Bold Poetry Debut, Allodynia
Allodynia, Nisa Malli’s follow up to her bpNichol Award winning chapbook, Remitting, is a tense, powerful collection that grabs the reader with razor-sharp, elegant forays into themes of pain and ...
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June 23, 2022Cut Road Author Brent van Staalduinen on the Books That Became His "Masterclasses" in Writing
Hamilton author and writing coach Brent van Staalduinen has a long list of honours for his writing, with three novels under his belt and more than a decade of publishing short fiction in some of the ...
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November 02, 2022Do Kids’ Book Awards Matter?
It’s Moira Rose’s favourite season— (book) awards season! It feels like a new list of finalists is posted every day. And while there is lots to celebrate, it can be crushing to watch your book go ...
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August 10, 2023Book Therapy: Late-Summer Reading
We’ve now reached the point in the summer where my inner voice starts screaming “but there’s not enough time!” at full volume. With my genuine distaste for winter weather, summer is a precious ...
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October 25, 2023Governor General's Literary Award Finalists Revealed, with Nods for Suzette Mayr, Iain Reid, and More
Today the Canada Council for the Arts revealed the nominees for the Governor General's Literary Awards in both English and French. The seven categories for English nominees include 35 books, five in each ...
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March 24, 2025Finding a Press for Your Poetry Manuscript
In one of my first columns as an Open Book columnist, I shared my process of realizing I had a full-length poetry manuscript. Since then, I’ve written a number of columns about how to go about preparing ...
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March 26, 2025A Greedy Businessman Gets His Comeuppance in ICEMEN by Acclaimed Playwright Vern Thiessen
Governor General Award-winning playwright Vern Thiessen is up there with some of the most prolific artists in his field, with his plays being read and staged all over the world. The reasons for his continued ...
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April 23, 2026Pippa Mackie Brings the Climate Fight Home in HURRICANE MONA
A climate protester is forced to take the fight back to her childhood home in Hurricane Mona, a comedy that builds its tension in close quarters. In this captivating work, Mona, newly sentenced to house ...
