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September 25, 2018YOSS in 2018—and Beyond
It amazes and annoys me that short stories don’t get more respect.There is a certain face that too many literary agents and publishing people make when you mention short-story collections.<iframe ...
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March 13, 2017My final two columns: Part One
After nearly a decade, my time as a columnist for Open Book comes to a close. According to my email folder, it was May 2009 when Amy Logan Holmes first approached me with the idea of submitting pieces ...
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September 08, 2020Picture Book Magic
People are often surprised to learn that a picture book begins with the words. But every children’s book editor I’ve met has preferred to read a picture-book manuscript without any images. A good ...
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January 19, 2018Ele Pawelski on the Most Surprising, Awkward, and Delightful Parts of Publishing for the First Time
Ele Pawelski's debut novella, The Finest Supermarket in Kabul (Quattro Books), follows three characters in the aftermath of an explosion at the titular shop - a real event that occurred in 2011. Merza ...
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February 20, 2025Author Megan Pomper and Illustrator Maia Hoekstra Talk About What Makes a Bird?
The natural world and its wildlife, from the exotic to that which we see everyday, can be fascinating to young readers. And, some of the best picture books involving these topics find ways to engage with ...
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September 06, 2017The Word on the Street interview, with Judge and Children's Author Manjusha Pawagi
We at Open Book are excited to partner again this year with Toronto's most unique literary festival, The Word on the Street, which takes place this year on Sunday, September 24. We've had the chance to ...
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May 15, 2018Daniel Scott Tysdal & Priscila Uppal on the Strange Magic of Teaching Creative Writing
How best to teach creative writing? It's a question that inspires strong opinions amongst writers, students, and instructors. Many writers acknowledge professors and mentors as instrumental in their success ...
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April 26, 2022"This is the First Time I’ve Kissed a Girl" Meet Sophie Labelle's Nonbinary Teen Protagonist in an Excerpt from Wish Upon a Satellite
Sophie Labelle, creator of the popular web comic Assigned Male and an acclaimed writer, activist, and artist, has created a memorable, witty, and vibrant nonbinary protagonist in Ciel, the teenage ...
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January 05, 2021Erin Silver's What Kids Did Shares Inspiring Stories of Kids Fighting the Pandemic in Big and Small Ways
The COVID-19 pandemic has wrecked worldwide havoc. Even for those lucky enough to stay healthy, the economic, personal, and emotional repercussions have been huge. It's incredibly heartening, amidst all ...
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April 24, 2015
On Being Led by a Poem
Yesterday evening, a friend emailed me a copy of Jan Zwicky’s “The Geology of Norway” from the collection Songs for Relinquishing the Earth (Brick Books, 1998). I’d never read the poem before, ...
