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September 04, 2018
Shauntay Grant Brings an Important Chapter of Black Canadian History to the Page for Children
Africville was once a vibrant community in Halifax. For over 150 years, it was home to Black Nova Scotians. Due to neglect and targeting by the city government however, the community eventually shuttered ...
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September 02, 2018
Show Me the (Writing-Grant) Money!
Hello, and Happy September! Thanks to the excellent folks at Open Book for inviting me here, and thanks to you for tuning in, lovely readers-who-I’m-guessing-are-mostly-also-writers.All right, let’s ...
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August 31, 2018
On the future of Canlit
You guys, this is my last Open Book column.I have been writing this column for a year now and I’ll admit I didn’t know what I was going to write about when Holly Kent and Kevin Hardcastle asked me ...
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August 30, 2018
Meet our September 2018 writer in residence, short fiction wizard Jessica Westhead!
A Jessica Westhead short story is a magical thing. Her darkly funny, heartfelt stories of misfits, loners, and compelling weirdos have racked up numerous honours, including nominations for the ReLit ...
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August 27, 2018
An Open Letter to the Stranger Who Asked Me, “How Did You Write That Book for Children If You Don't Have Children?”
Dear Stranger,I realize that writing a book is kind of a self-important undertaking. When I write, I sometimes imagine that there are people out there who might actually enjoy reading my words and letting ...
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August 23, 2018
"I am Story": Getting to know GG Nominee Harold R. Johnson, Author of a Stunning, Genre-Defying New Memoir
Governor General’s Literary Award nominee Harold R. Johnson's newest book combines his expertise in fiction and non-fiction, in a genre-blending work that is being hailed as the crown jewel of an already ...
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August 21, 2018
"The Words Felt Right and Honest" Deep Underwater author Irene Luxbacher on Finding Her Way Through Tough Times with Writing
Irene Luxbacher's Deep Underwater (Groundwood Books) calls out to the wild imagination of young readers, those years when we were sure we could find mermaids, adventures, and secrets, if we could just ...
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August 21, 2018
THREAD! The Role of the Twitter Essay in CanLit
When most people think of Twitter, they think of the short and pithy 280-character messages that the platform is best known for. But perhaps the most interesting content on the social network is shared ...
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August 17, 2018
Form as Home
Every time I sit down to write, I find myself exasperated by the considerations. The considerations of who will be reading it, how it’ll be interpreted, if it’ll hurt someone within or outside my ...
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August 16, 2018
J.E. Barnard on Her New Mystery Series, Julius Caesar, & How Floods Change People, Towns & Stories
Everyone in J.E. Barnard's When the Flood Falls (Dundurn Press) is having a tough time. From ex-RCMP corporal Lacey McCrae and her old university roommate, Dee, to even the Calgary foothills town they've ...