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September 01, 2022The Joy of Building a List
Early on, when I still thought I’d be a writer rather than work in publishing, I remember coming across a lovely quote from Toni Morrison saying something along the lines of “If you can’t find the ...
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March 15, 2022Why Canada Reads Needs Unhappy Narratives
Each year on Canada Reads, five books of fiction and nonfiction are chosen by Canadian celebrities who advocate for their book of choice as one that “all of Canada should read.” One book is voted ...
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December 12, 2017Publishers and Awards
Though fall isn’t quite as busy a time for children’s literature awards as it is for the adult side of CanLit, the two most prominent prizes, the Governor General’s Literary Awards for text and ...
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May 16, 2024Naseem Hrab and Kelly Collier Share a Conversation About Otis and Peanut Forever and Ever
Collaborating on a series of picture books or graphic novels is quite the task, but some of the finest KidLit out there comes from these fruitful partnerships between talented authors and illustrators.This ...
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July 20, 2022Joyce Grant on Helping Young People Spot Fake News & Dubious Claims in an Ever-Changing Online Landscape
There are plenty of things that never change when it comes to being a parent. Parents throughout history have probably been charmed by a baby giggle, excited to see their kids master skills, and worried ...
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August 18, 2023Picture Book Trends
Picture books, like all art forms, are subject to trends and shifts in theme, style and format. I don’t necessarily recommend writing to trend, but it’s always good to be familiar with what’s working ...
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June 01, 2022Excerpt: Merilyn Simonds Explores the Spectacular Life of Louise de Kiriline Lawrence, a Woman Ahead of Her Time, in a Meditative New Biography
There are some lives that are so fantastical, so packed with passion and strange turns and reinventions, that they are hard to summarize. Such is the life of Louise de Kiriline Lawrence, a Swedish aristocrat ...
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June 28, 2017Writing for the Public, Writing for the Self
“Literature is the art of writing something that will be read twice; journalism what will be grasped at once, and they require separate techniques.”I’m still on about the long-gone British critic ...
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July 22, 2016A Defence of Plagiarism That I Totally Stole from Kenneth Goldsmith
Avant-garde poet and literary provocateur Kenneth Goldsmith has dedicated himself to what he calls “uncreative writing” – that is, creating art out of found texts he copies out whole. His book Day, ...
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July 31, 2025How to Give Useful Writing Feedback
Many writers have friends who are also writers, and sometimes those friends ask us to give feedback on their work. Yay! We get to help our friends succeed! However, there can also be anxiety behind it. ...
