Ontario book news, interviews and more

The Writing Life

It’s late October and I’m writing this on a cold, rainy day after learning my friend, the writer Sylvia Fraser, has passed away.Such profoundly sad news.Sylvia was three decades older than me and ...

November Writer in Residence Helen Walsh on Gardening, Edinburgh, & Eating Dinner with Hans Gruber

Helen Walsh's Pull Focus (ECW Press) has something for everyone: thrilling intrigue, social commentary, film industry glamour, and a tough protagonist facing crises both personal and professional. The ...

Beverly's Blessing

Meegwetch, maarsii, thank you for being a part of my circle for the month of October and for welcoming me into the Open Book circle.  After my initial nervousness at clicking the ‘Send for publishing’ button, ...

Halloween Special: CanLit's Smart & Bold New Horror Queen, Erica McKeen, on Isolation, Manipulation, & Female Rage

It's spooky season and to pay tribute to the literary greats who have scared us over the years, we're speaking with one of Canada's newest and most exciting voices when it comes to creating tension and ...

On Being Creative

It’s my belief we are all born creatives. As soon as I remember being a child, I felt strong stirrings of creativity. It was constant. I was always colouring and drawing, exploring the many uses of ...

"The Millennium Scoop is Killing Children" Justene Dion-Glowa's Spectacular Debut Poetry Collection Shines a Light on Injustice

Justene Dion-Glowa's debut full length poetry collection, Trailer Park Shakes (Brick Books), is packed with finely balanced pieces that manage to be playful, dreamy, and even darkly funny at times, while ...

On Giving Yourself Room to Change (Or, Eros the Bittersweet)

A few months ago, I talked to someone on the phone. I didn’t know this person well and though I’d seen them over Zoom somewhat regularly for our work together, I never really noticed them too much. ...

Guest Essay: A.G. Pasquella on Slipstream, New Weird, and the Wonderfully Strange History of "Weird Fiction"

A.G. Pasquella knows weird. He can do straight-laced and tightly plotted fiction, like his celebrated Jack Palace noir series, but he's equally known for his experimental, offbeat, and wonderfully wacky ...

Rusted Development

For decades I’ve been cruising antique haunts and farm fields, stopping at those laden with dormant pieces of rusted equipment - harrows, cultivators, thrashers, sickle bars among them.  I’m drawn ...

Beatriz Pizano on Why Writing Fast Takes a Long Time & the Slow but Hopeful Evolution She Sees in Canadian Theatre

As a playwright, director, actor, and activist, Beatriz Pizano has made a name for herself creating theatre that is daring and emotionally complex. She's been highly decorated for her incisive, compelling ...