I’ve been meaning to sum up my YoSS year (The Year of the Short Story) for a while, but have been too distracted by travel and writing and edits and life. It’s also possible that I’ve been slightly intimidated by writing anything that may resemble a book review. I admit: it’s a problem. I’m one of those silent members at Goodreads who rate books without ever saying a word about them. My friend, Jay, who is one of their top reviewers, actually threatened to unfriend me if I don’t start reviewing books. I promised to try. So far I’ve done…
Browsing CategoryFiction
Thanksgiving Published in iLit Remix: A Revolution of Text Forms
I am so excited, honoured and proud to be a part of this awesome English textbook. And I know, the words ‘awesome English textbook’ don’t sound quite right… There were definitely no awesome textbooks in my time. This one has graphic narratives and comics and lyric prose and postcard stories and Twitter fiction. I can see high school students actually enjoying their English classes with this one. It’s also an honour to be published along such accomplished authors as Heather O’neill, Kevin Chong and many others that I don’t know but probably should. Click here to read my teeny little…
Celebrating YoSS
YoSS. Not a short for Yossi, but the Year of the Short Story, which lucky for us, is this year, 2011. YoSS is the brainchild of three accomplished short-story writers, Jessica Westhead, Sarah Selecky, and Matthew J. Trafford, who felt it was time for the short story to get some good press. From their website: “Yoss aims to unite fellow writers and readers everywhere in one cause—to bring short fiction the larger audience it deserves.” If there’s ever been a revolution I wanted to take part in is this one. (Okay, there are a couple other revolutions I’d really like…
My Story Casualties on PRISM’s Short Fiction Shortlist
My story Casualties is on PRISM International’s short fiction shortlist. I am so honoured! I happen to know that it has not won (no official announcement yet), but I’m thrilled to have made it on to the shortlist. Looking forwards to reading the winning stories!
Read My Short story Warplanes in Grain Magazine
I love Grain Magazine and not just because they’ve published my short story Warplanes in their recent ‘All Over the Place’ Issue. I love the new and fresh direction the magazine has taken under editor Sylvia Legris and their sleek new look. The issue is in stores now. You should check it out. Read the story here.
Gurjinder Basran: Winner of the Great BC Novel Contest
My friend Gurjinder Basran, a fellow Writer’s Studio graduate, wrote a beautiful first novel about a young second-generation Punjabi girl growing up in BC. The novel was shortlisted for Amazon.com’s 2008 search for the Next Breakthrough Novel and earned her a place in the Vancouver Sun’s annual speculative arts and culture article, “Ones To Watch”. I read an earlier version of the novel and loved it. I think we could use more second-generation narratives in Canadian literature. A few months ago I read about a Mother Tongue Publishing Search for the Great BC Novel Contest, and e-mailed Gurjinder the link. I…