The lovely Amanda Leduc included me on her list of Canadian Up-and-Coming Writers to Watch, which she wrote in response to other, more recognized lists, like the ones put up by CBC Books and the Globe and Mail. Amanda’s list was dedicated to writers who have yet to publish their first book, and it listed some amazing writers I know (through Twitter and literary magazines) like Kris Bertin, Alex Leslie, Will Johnson, Erin Frances Fisher and Trevor Corkum, and others I didn’t know like Braydon Beaulieu, Cody Klippenstein and Marjorie Celona. I was proud and honoured to be on it,…
Teaching at The University of Toronto’s School of Continuing Education
I am excited to be teaching a course at the University of Toronto’s School of Continuing Education this summer. The course is Introduction to Creative Non-Fiction; it begins on July 4th and will go over eight weeks. There are still some spaces left, so if you’re interested in Creative Non-Fiction you can sign up here. I promise it’s going to be fun times!
The Writer‘s Studio Guide to Publishing in Literary Magazines and Entering Contests
I’ve been asked by a lot of people lately where they can find the The Writer‘s Studio Guide to Publishing in Literary Magazines and Entering Contests so I decided to repost it. The guide has been recommended by The New Quarterly Blog and by The Canadian Writer’s Journal. Here’s the original post: When I was Wayde Compton’s mentor assistant in SFU’s Writer’s Studio I offered free consultations to students about how to submit to literary magazines. I figured I knew what I was talking about judging by the pile of rejection letters I’ve received. One student, to whom I showed my geeky, colour…
Teaching a Fiction Workshop at CanWrite
I’m excited to be teaching a fiction workshop next weekend (May 17th to 21st, 2012) as a part of the Canadian Authors Association’s Conference that will be taking place in Orillia. The workshop is titled: The Rules of Fiction (and How to Break Them), and it’s a topic that is close to my heart. I have a complicated relationship with rules (any rules, really, but fiction rules in particular) and last year I wrote an essay about my journey with the rules of fiction for my MFA plenary course. Maybe I’ll post excerpts from it here one day…. Here’s the…
Reading at Draft on Sunday, April 22nd
On Sunday, April 22nd I’ll be participating in the Draft Reading Series. It’s an afternoon event, starting at 2:00 PM (and I’m reading first!) at the S. Walter Stewart Branch of Toronto Public Library (170 Memorial Park Ave.1 block north of Mortimer Ave, 2 blocks west of Coxwell). I’ll be reading with my lovely and talented friend Eufemia Fantetti (who recently won second place in Accenti Magazine writing contest!), as well as Susan Glickman, Amy Lavender Harris, and Lola Lemire Tostevin. April 22nd also happens to be the anniversary of my father’s death, and I can’t think of a better thing to do on that day.…
Every Year is the Year of the Short Story
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…
Interview with Shalom Life
I had a smooth landing in Toronto, and though it didn’t really make my goodbyes any easier or less sad, I am happy to be home. My Pivot reading went well: Sandra Ridley and Rebecca Rosenblum both gave fantastic readings, and I finally got to meet my new best friend whom I met on Twitter recently, fabulous fiction writer and avid blogger Amanda Leduc who shares my book-birthday-season: her novel will be coming out with ECW in Spring 2013! I also had my first official interview the other day and it’s already up on ShalomLife.com. I think I managed…
Two Readings in Toronto
My time in Israel is getting shorter and I’m starting to feel sad about saying goodbye to my family and friends. Every visit is the same: my departure date sneaks up on me, so I end up spending my last week running around the city with a sense of urgency, trying to cram as much quality time with loved ones as possible into my day. Luckily, I have two readings to look forward to in Toronto. On March 21st I’ll be reading at the Pivot Reading Series at the Press Club on Dundas, with Sandra Ridley and Rebecca Rosenblum (great company!)…
Granta 118 Launch in Tel Aviv
Yesterday I went to Granta magazine’s launch in Tel Aviv. When I first heard about it, it felt a little bit like worlds colliding. A few months ago I went to a Granta launch in Toronto; the issue then – Ten Years Later – featured a beautiful story by a friend, Kathryn Kuitenbrouwer, and the bookstore in which it was held, Type Books on Queen Street (my favourite bookstore in Toronto) was so packed that we had to stand at the top of the stairs, leaning against the door, and listen to the readers without actually seeing them. Kathryn wrote a…
Readings in Vancouver (Also: a Love Song to East Van)
I love Vancouver. I lived in this city for eleven years, eight of them in East Van. There is nothing quite like East Van anywhere, and for someone like me, that sense of community and belonging in a city half a world away from my home was not something to take for granted. My life in Vancouver was very contained: I worked on Commercial Drive (at Yogis, then at Clove), met Sean on the Drive (drinking coffee and smoking outside Napoli cafe), lived off the Drive (Charles Street, William Street, Napier Street, and Semlin Drive). My favourite coffee shop had…