Ontario book news, interviews and more

Governor General's Literary Award Winners Revealed with Wins for Sheila Heti and Eli Baxter

This morning, the Canada Council for the Arts revealed the 2022 winners of the Governor General’s Literary Awards (now branded as GGBooks). The English language winners are Sheila Heti for fiction, ...

Laurence Beaudoin-Masse's YA Debut Thoughtfully Explores the Toxic Pressures of the Influencer Lifestyle

Instagram influencers and thoughtful conversations don't necessarily sound like they'd go hand in hand. But debut young adult writer Laurence Beaudoin-Masse uses the strange, surreal backdrop of the ...

The Marketing Salsa

You’ve finished a book. Congrats! Now, you’ve got a book deal, decided to self-publish or signed with a hybrid publisher (the ‘pay to play’ option, which provides some editorial and marketing ...

We Will Ever Eat Cheese on Mars? Read an Excerpt from Food Scientists Lenore Newman & Evan D.G. Fraser's Dinner on Mars

We've put a man on the moon, but will we ever make cheese there? It may seem like a silly question, but the real possibility of settling other planets and satellites is becoming less and less the stuff ...

Read an Excerpt from Kim Conklin's King of Hope, a Gripping Tale of Small Town Environmental Exploitation

In Kim Conklin's debut novel, King of Hope (Palimpsest Press), Hartley Addison is so beloved in the small town of Port D'Espere that he keeps getting elected mayor – without even running. But what ...

How to tame your nerves at a live/online reading

The other week, I stood on the edge of a stage down at Harbourfront, waiting for my cue. I wasn’t nervous about reading. After a year of online events, I was excited to read to a live audience, but ...

How To Cook a Book

This failsafe recipe will transform your bottom drawer of manuscript pages into a tasty treat for readers everywhere. Meatier than paleo, the steps below will spice up your journey from secret writer ...

Acclaimed Calgary Author Suzette Mayr Wins 2022 Scotiabank Giller Prize for Her Sixth Novel

Suzette Mayr, a critically acclaimed Calgary-based novelist and poet, was announced yesterday evening as the winner of the 29th annual Scotiabank Giller Prize. The prize, worth $100,000, was awarded to ...

"I Had Never Heard His Voice, and Yet I Knew it Right Away" Read an Excerpt from Silence to Strength: Writings and Reflections on the Sixties Scoop

For any parent, the idea of having a child removed from you without your consent is the stuff of nightmares. But for many Indigenous families, that nightmare became a reality in communities across Canada. ...

Characters That Capture the Imagination

I visited the wonderous Borghese Gallery and gardens in Rome this summer for the first time.Originally a powerful merchant family from Sienna, the Borgheses moved to Rome in the 16th century.Cardinal ...