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April 07, 2017
Ordering a Poetry Manuscript
There are a lot of steps to writing and publishing a book of poetry, well beyond the obvious writing of the poems. You have to be able to describe your manuscript (for grant applications and submissions), ...
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December 20, 2023Get Cozy with Open Book: The Open Book Team on Our All-Time Coziest Reads
As the end of a busy year full of ups and downs approaches, we decided to focus on cozy comfort for our 2023 holiday feature – to share the books that bring us calm, comfort, and peace. We hope this ...
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May 11, 2021"Characters are Complicated, Just Like People" Bruce McDougall on How to Build Authentic Characters
Bruce McDougall's writing career has spanned more than three decades and generated more than twenty books of nonfiction, covering biographies, sports, and more. But in 2014, he turned his talents to fiction, ...
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September 09, 2025Read an Excerpt from ACCIDENTS AFTER HAPPENING, the New Poetry Collection by Robert Priest
Robert Priest returns with Accidents After Happening (ECW Press), a bold and expansive new poetry collection that explores the complicated beauty of what it means to feel, fully and completely. With ...
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June 17, 2021"I Don’t Think I’ve Ever Been More Vulnerable in My Life" Brent LaPorte on His Raw, Moving Memoir & His Father's Difficult Legacy
CW: abuse, suicide, substance abuseSometimes, even questions without answers need to be voiced — to be heard and acknowledged, if only as a cry of the heart. Such is Brent LaPorte's wise, difficult, ...
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February 23, 2018"True Stories are Always the Best Stories & They Can Be the Toughest to Write": The 2018 RBC Taylor Prize Finalists on Non-Fiction
On Monday, the 2018 RBC Taylor Prize for Non-Fiction will be presented to one of five shortlisted authors. This year's list is an eclectic one, making it tough to predict a winner in this strong crop ...
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May 25, 2021"I Felt Like I Had Found a Place" Poet Vanessa Shields on the High Highs and Low Lows of a Life Spent Writing & Publishing
Every family story contains at least one unforgettable character. A person who inspires those who come after with his or her strength, struggles, and legacy. For poet Vanessa Shields, it was her grandmother, ...
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June 09, 2020Kids Club: Cary Fagan and Milan Pavlovic on The Creative Process Behind Their Gorgeous New Picture Book
The young protagonist of award-winning author Cary Fagan's new picture book Son of Happy (Groundwood) might be the only little boy who doesn't like birthday parties.Why, you ask? His father, a professional ...
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April 01, 2025Green to Grey: An Environmental Anthology is an Eclectic Collection of Fiction and a Call to Action
There have been some excellent anthologies featured on Open Book, and many of those have had wide-ranging themes and focuses, from terrifying campfire tales by acclaimed Indigenous authors to erotic yarns ...
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December 14, 2021The Renaissance of Fanfiction
For those who have grown invested in any fanbase whether it be movies, musicians, anime, cartoons and, of course, books, it’s more than likely you’ve come across fanfiction at some point in your life. ...