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VOLUME 42 | NUMBER 2

MAGAZINE OF THE WRITERS’ GUILD OF ALBERTA

APRIL–JUNE 2022

J. JILL ROBINSON

THANK YOU, ALBERTA I Became A Writer Because Of You

SHERI-D WILSON

NORMA DUNNING

MY WRITING My work

APRIL IS POETRY MONTH

MYRNA KOSTASH

“START WITH ‘LAND’” KALA GODIN

YA BOOKS WRITTEN BY AUTHORS LIKE ME… Are Almost Impossible To Find

MEGHAN EAKER

NEW VOICES IN ALBERTA

SHIFTING CREATIVE GEARS The 2022 Writers' Guild of Alberta hybrid conference will take place online and in-person at event hubs in Edmonton, Calgary, Fort McMurray and Lethbridge.

Opening Keynote with Ivan Coyote Friday, June 3rd, 2022 Main Conference featuring Alison MacLeod & Mariko Tamaki Saturday, June 4th & Sunday, June 5th, 2022 Full schedule and registration available at writersguild.ca

CONTENTS

WESTWORD VOLUME 42, NUMBER 2 | APRIL–JUNE 2022

6 Feature Articles

12 22 2

Raymond Gariépy

8 MY WRITING Norma Dunning

12 APRIL IS POETRY MONTH Three poets talk style

14 THANK YOU, ALBERTA J. Jill Robinson

Note From The Board

Blaine Newton

18 KEMOSA SCHOLARSHIP WINNERS

20 NEW VOICES IN ALBERTA Horizons Writers Circle and Own Voices Alberta

We gratefully acknowledge the support of the Alberta Foundation for the Arts; the Edmonton Arts Council; Calgary Arts Development; The City of Calgary; the City of Edmonton; Canada Council for the Arts.

ED’s Note

Giorgia Severini Carol Holmes

24 REJECTION = SUCCESS

Why Am I Telling You This?

Myrna Kostash

16 YOUNG ADULT BOOKS WRITTEN BY AUTHORS LIKE ME… Kala Godin

22 MARKETING YOURSELF Duane Radford

Editor’s Note

Write/Right: Law For Writers

Jeananne Kirwin, Q.C. In Memoriam

– Jan Truss WestWord Submission Guidelines The Community 26 Member News 27 New WGA Members 28 Donors & Sponsors

COVER PHOTOS NORMA DUNNING, PHOTO BY EMILY WELZ STUDIOS J. JILL ROBINSON, PHOTO BY EMMETT ROBINSON SMITH SHERI-D SMITH, PHOTO BY KIMBERLEY FRENCH MYRNA KOSTASH, PHOTO BY MARKIAN LOZOWCHUK KALA GODIN, PHOTO BY SWEET SHOTS BY LONI MEGHAN EAKER, PHOTO BY TAMARA EAKER COVER DESIGN BY JASON SCHEIBELHOFER

EDITOR’S NOTE

ON REJECTION. POETRY. STYLE We support and advocate for all writers and provide opportunities to grow and connect while enriching Alberta’s culture and economy. WestWord is published four times a year. ISSN: 0821-4203 © Writers’ Guild of Alberta, 2022 WGA Membership Rates $80/year; $50/seniors; $40/low income; free to post-secondary students until graduation. Membership is open to all writers resident or formerly resident in Alberta. WGA Executive President: Blaine Newton Vice President: Teresa Wouters Treasurer: Olga Krochak Sulkin Secretary: Lori Hahnel Members at Large: Dr. Kimberly Fraser Nicole Hill Moorea Gray Member at Large (Youth Rep): Sophie Pinkoski Past President: Carol Parchewsky WGA Staff Executive Director: Giorgia Severini Program and Events Coordinator: Jason Lee Norman Program Coordinator, Southern Alberta Office: Dorothy Bentley Communications and Partnerships Coordinator: Ellen Kartz Member Services Coordinator: Mike Maguire Project Assistant: Sadie MacGillvray WGA Contractor WordsWorth Director: Colin Matty Horizons Writers Circle Coordinator and Community Outreach Facilitator: Luciana Erregue-Sacchi WGA WestWord Editor: Raymond Gariépy Assistant Editor: Ellen Kartz Layout & Design: Jason Scheibelhofer Printing: Burke Group of Companies Please notify the WGA office immediately of any address change. Writers’ Guild of Alberta Percy Page Centre, 11759 Groat Road Edmonton, AB T5M 3K6 Ph: (780) 422-8174, Fax: (780) 422-2663 Toll-free: 1-800-665-5354 Email: mail@writersguild.ca Website: writersguild.ca Southern Alberta Office: #204, 223 12th Ave. SW Calgary, AB T2R 0G9 Ph: (403) 875-8058 Email: dorothy.bentley@writersguild.ab.ca Submission queries can be sent to: editor@writersguild.ab.ca

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THE WRITERS’ GUILD OF ALBERTA

RAYMOND GARIÉPY By the time I was fourteen, the nail in my wall would no longer support the weight of the rejection slips impaled upon it. I replaced the nail with a spike and went on writing. —Stephen King Reading the rejection notes and letters members submitted to WestWord (see page 24) reminded me of an article about poet Patrick Lane. Lane and his writer friends had a competition to see who would receive the most rejection letters over the span of a year. Lane won easily. When participants disclosed how many of their submissions were published that year, Lane won easily. My personal favourite rejection letter is from Coach House Press and signed by Michael Ondaatje, circa 1975. The letterhead featured the line drawing of a pig. I was honoured to have Ondaatje’s pig bestowed upon me, but disappointed he’d not appreciated my brilliant poetry. A negative response can be upsetting and tough to accept, but as Sylvia Plath observed, “I love my rejection slips. They show that I lived.” The world is never the same once a good poem has been added to it. —Dylan Thomas April is National Poetry Month (NPM)—a time to celebrate poetry and poets. NPM reminds us that poetry, with its origins in oral storytelling, is the great mother of all writing. Poetry’s inherent gifts are its durability over millennia, its popular appeal and accessibility (think lyrics, social media posts), its ability to soothe and to shock and, perhaps most significant, its ability to shape shift (think spoken word, sound poetry, concrete poetry, prose poetry, rap music, sonnet, haiku, and much more). Dedicating a month to poetry speaks to its significance and to the power of words. Harnessing its importance and energy could be put to good use right now, especially given recent book bans in the United States, accusations that the media lies, and the unconscionable imprisonment and disappearance of writers worldwide. Every day, poets, novelists, playwrights and journalists are incarcerated and murdered for what they wrote, and for what they said (visit PEN International for information, pen-international.org). Let’s not just “observe” National Poetry Month, let’s ensure we make changes by adding as many “good” poems to the world as we can. Style is knowing who you are, what you want to say, and not giving a damn. —Orson Welles Style is very personal. It has nothing to do with fashion. Fashion is over quickly. Style is forever. —Ralph Lauren Although the above two quotes do not relate to writing, per se, they give a different perspective of “style.” WestWord invited derek beaulieu, Sheri-D Wilson and Micheline Maylor, along with participants from the Horizons Writers Circle (Edmonton) and Own Voices Alberta (Calgary), to share with members their individual writing styles. Enlightening is how I’d describe their responses. Last, WestWord thanks Carol Holmes, WGA executive director, for her many contributions to the success of the magazine. It’s been a pleasure working with her. WestWord will miss her thoughts and insights at its editorial meetings. We wish her the best of everything as she tackles new adventures and challenges. I welcome your comments about this issue of WestWord magazine. You can reach me by email at editor@writersguild.ab.ca. 2

WHY AM I TELLING YOU THIS?

“START WITH �LAND�” MYRNA KOSTASH

or WestWord ’s inaugural opinion column, entitled “Why Am I Telling You This?” ( January-March 2018), I wrote “Cultural Appropriation: The Series.” I was in the throes of how to handle the issue as it applied to the project I was then working on, a play about two historical characters from events in 1885 at Frog Lake, Cree war chief Wandering Spirit and hostage Eliza McLean. In the end, I abandoned the playscript after the umpteenth draft, partly because I had finally realized no amount of rewriting in response to myriad dramaturgical suggestions brought me any closer to “getting” it. However, I am still determined to work with the material, this time as long-form creative nonfiction, a much more forgiving genre because it makes room for the writer’s narrative voice, not ventriloquizing through stage characters. And in that voice, I will eventually return to the “plot” of McLean’s and Wandering Spirit’s relationship as a figment of my imagination. But cultural appropriation writ large continued to challenge me as I worked on the final couple of drafts of my new book, Ghosts in a Photograph: A Chronicle (NeWest Press, November 2022). In 2018, I had written that I “resist” the term settler for myself as a non-Indigenous writer. (How many generations here in Alberta does it take to become a resident?) But as I kept working on the conclusion of Ghosts, not always sure where I was headed, I came to understand that the identity “settler” is a descriptive that contains multitudes of implications. Not least of these is the “appropriation” of land by—let’s make this personal—my immigrant grandparents who settled in Alberta in 1900–1912. It was the famous first wave of Ukrainians who surged over the western provinces in response to the lure of the Last Best West, where “Living is cheap; climate is good; education and land are free,” as promised by the brochures. The “free land” (vilni zemli in Ukrainian, and familiarized by J. G. Macgregor’s Vilni Zemli (Free Lands): The Ukrainian

Settlement of Alberta, McClelland & Stewart, 1969) became for me a sticking point in sorting out where I (almost literally) stood in the legacy of my forebears’ settling. On my paternal side, the Kostashes had homesteaded on the legendary 160 acres near Vegreville; on my maternal side, the Maksymiuks had settled in Edmonton on a city lot. Either way, the land had come their way, ceded by Treaty 6 in 1876, a “transfer” that had never been mentioned in family lore but which was the Canada the next generations called home, with its benefits and privileges. “Land,” said my editor, by way of a direction. “Start with ‘land.’” On September 30, 1976, I became the owner of a quarter-section almost six miles (as distances were still measured) due north of the town of Two Hills—containing 160 acres, more or less. Its attraction was a rustic one-room log shack, with a rigged-up rain barrel and wood-burning stove. I moved in for the rest of the season and, with a couple of kerosene lamps, a Coleman camping stove, and my portable typewriter, I began writing All of Baba’s Children. By the time the book was published in January 1978, I had a name for my estate after the ancestral village of the Kostashes, and I nailed a board to the outside wall by the door, inscribed in white paint, “TULOVA.” Forty-five years later, I can now appreciate what I had unknowingly done: brought into a single imagined space the two historical sources of my identity: a homestead on Treaty 6 Territory, and a village in Galicia circa 1900. Flash forward to 2021: At the Benedictine monastery in Saskatchewan, the noon meal is taken in silence. We fill our plates quietly and take our places while a monk reads aloud to us. It is something edifying, and Brother Kurt takes his time. He is reading from a “guide on justice and right relationship,” Listening to Indigenous Voices, 3

PHOTO AUTHOR BY MARKIAN LOZOWCHUK

a project of the Jesuit Forum for Social Faith and Justice. Published in 2021, it could not be timelier, and I’m listening. We hear the voice of writer and activist Jeannette Armstrong. In her Okanagan language, the word for “land” lies inside the word for human bodies; she speaks the word for “land,” and evokes its seamlessness with her own corporal being. Brother Kurt draws us into another voice, of writer and botanist Robin Wall Kimmerer (Citizen Potawatomi Nation, “Keepers of the Sacred Fire”). When land is understood to be sacred, she writes, “our sustainer, our pharmacy, our identity, our home, our library,” then we act as moral beings “in return for our very lives.” We diners stay quiet, cutlery laid down, mouths wiped, while Bother Kurt presses on, to the voice of Anishinaabe writer, Niigaanwewidam James Sinclair, who with the very word used by Treaty 6 commissioner Alexander Morris himself, gift, poses the challenge that the treaties still represent, the gift of the future, of relationship. It’s our choice. Embodied land, landfilled bodies, sacred land and sacred fires, gift, opportunity, responsibility, relationship, promises, the future… When I drove away from the monastery a week later, I had finished my book. Myrna Kostash is an acclaimed writer of literary and creative nonfiction based in Edmonton. Her new book, Ghosts in a Photograph: A Chronicle, will appear November 2022 from NeWest Press. For more information and news about her work, please visit myrnakostash.com. APRIL – JUNE 2022

ED’S NOTE

WORDS WILL ALWAYS BE IMPORTANT

A FINAL NOTE CAROL HOLMES

GIORGIA SEVERINI

It is the beginning of spring and with it changes at the Writers’ Guild of Alberta (WGA). We welcome Blaine Newton, president, Olga Krochak, treasurer, and Giorgia Severini, new executive director. It is an exciting time for our organization.

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

I’m excited to step into Carol’s shoes and continue her legacy, and to see how I can help shape the WGA’s future. It has been, and continues to be, a difficult time for the world, but it’s been amazing to see how Alberta writers continued their dedication and enthusiasm for their craft. With so much speculation and anxiety about what the world will look like in the years ahead, it’s clear that PHOTO BY MONIQUE DE ST-CROIX words will always be important, and every WGA member’s work reinforces the power of words.

I was inspired when I began work with the WGA by its vision to create a sense of community, not divisiveness, among writers, and to enable and encourage writers to live, in a full and valid way, the writers’ life. I am pleased to see the connections made and evidence of community in the Mentorship Program, Horizons Writers Circle, annual conference and Alberta Literary Awards program and gala, and that spirit continued as we ‘pivoted’ to work and meet online. Today, more than ever, a community is needed, and as the WGA moves to hybrid and in-person formats, I wish you all the best with your writing. Your words are needed to inspire, soothe, shake up, to advocate, to connect.

Some ideas on my mind are the need for Alberta writers to have more national and international recognition—we’ll be having a panel about this at the annual conference—and what we can do for writers at a stage in between the Manuscript Reading Service and Mentorship Program. But I would also love to hear what members have on their minds. Please get in touch.

Thank you all, board, staff, contractors, volunteers, WGA members, sponsors and donors. It has been a privilege to work with you!

Our conference, coming up June 3–5, has the theme of “Shifting Creative Gears,” reflecting where the literary world is at now. Instead of aiming to return to “normal,” we could reflect on what we have learned during our digital pivot through the pandemic and see what we want to take with us going forward, creating something new. We are experimenting with a hybrid format where participants can choose from a selection of online or in-person activities, hopefully providing experiences accessible to the most writers possible. We are also planning an in-person Alberta Literary Awards presentation in June, with a relaxed format to help ease the community back into in-person events. I’m flattered by the support I received from the WGA community when my new position was announced—thank you for trusting me with this immense responsibility, and I look forward to seeing what the future holds for Alberta’s literary arts.

THE WRITERS’ GUILD OF ALBERTA

NOTE FROM THE BOARD

TRANSITIONS AHEAD BLAINE NEWTON PRESIDENT OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Welcome to the president’s message—the section of WestWord most likely to get a “I don’t remember reading that” response from our reader surveys. In the roughly three months since my meteoric rise to ultimate power (assuming you’re reading this in April 2022 and not a dusty copy you discovered in the winter of 2058 under a pile of hoarded newspapers and real estate brochures as you started cleaning out your mother’s room above the garage to finally build that aviary), your Writers’ Guild of Alberta (WGA) Board of Directors has been busy with joyous and meaningful work. We interviewed many talented and progressive people for the executive director role, and both the hiring committee and the board were unanimous in their selection. “Who did they choose?” you ask, having not read the recent WriteClick announcement and incorrectly selecting the subjective rather than the objective form of the interrogative pronoun. Perhaps I’ll leave that to the executive director’s column in the magazine. Suffice it to say that the guild is in good hands once again. Ah, what the heck. I never could keep a secret. Giorgia Severini is the new executive director as of April 1. Giorgia is a theatre artist and current WGA program coordinator/operations manager with extensive experience with the WGA over the last dozen years, including program development, financial management, and membership outreach. The board is excited to support Giorgia in this leadership role. Please join us in welcoming her to her new position. And that leads us to our sad news. The WGA has been well served by Carol Holmes, our executive director for over 14 years, and now she has chosen to move on. Rumours that she is taking the apostrophe with her are scurrilous and possibly untrue. We cannot thank her enough for her calm and thoughtful stewardship over the years. I had the pleasure of being on the board when she first joined us, and it is with nostalgia and regret that I join you in bidding her farewell. I have nothing but the highest respect for what she has done for the guild. In concert with Giorgia and Carol, as part of our transitioning strategy, the board is also updating our strategic plan. This review will focus on program relevance, sustainability, and diversity. The strategic plan will give the board and staff renewed focus for the coming year and beyond. This is also the start of the literary prize season, as WGA juries go through the difficult process of selecting the best writing from stellar submissions. This will culminate in the gala in June. I hope you will attend in whatever form the gala takes in these hybrid times. As writers, it is essential that we celebrate what we do, and acknowledge those among us who excel. Amid the turbulent times of late, it is important to remember that it is art that sustains us, and that Alberta has an abundance of world-class writers. In closing, I’d like to thank the guild for this opportunity to serve again as president. It is a wonderful reminder to me of the good work the WGA does for writers and the larger community, the energy and ideas of our membership, the many members who volunteer their time, and our talented staff who make it all happen. Having said that, I look forward to the fall coup that will oust me ingloriously. Sic semper tyrannis. Blaine Newton is an Edmonton playwright, sketch and fiction writer, improviser and sometime engineer.

APRIL – JUNE 2022

WRITE/RIGHT: LAW FOR WRITERS

This information is of a general nature only. It does not constitute legal advice or create a solicitor-client relationship. The reader should seek advice from a lawyer pertaining to any particular fact situation.

s part of a project to update the Writers’ Guild of Alberta (WGA) website, I revisited the Intellectual Property FAQ page. While brevity is a virtue on any FAQ page, this column is a venue for more expanded explanations. In the next few Write/Right columns, I will focus on and update questions appearing on the WGA’s FAQ page. Here is the first set of questions, all related to copyright protection: 1. How do I protect my copyright? 2. I have an idea for a story. How do I prevent it from being stolen? 3. I will publish my writing in another country. Does Canadian copyright law apply? Copyright applies in Canada to protect creations, or works, that are • Original, • Fixed in a material form, • Literary, musical, dramatic and/or artistic (as well as performers’ performances, sound recordings and communication signals), and • Created by a person who is a citizen or subject of, or ordinarily resident in, Canada or any country which is a member of the same treaties to which Canada belongs. THE WRITERS’ GUILD OF ALBERTA

Copyright does not apply to • Creations that do not meet the above criteria, such as works that are not fixed or that do not require any skill or judgment to create, • Ideas, • Facts, and • Short titles. Copyright protects an eligible work the moment it is created and fixed. Registration is not required. Since Canada belongs to international treaties such as the Berne Convention, the Universal Copyright Convention and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Copyright Treaty, works protected by copyright laws in Canada are automatically protected by the laws in all countries that are treaty signatories, just as if those works were created in those countries. Although registration is not required, it is recommended. A certificate of copyright registration is evidence that copyright exists, and that the person shown as the owner indeed owns the copyright. This can be useful in a future infringement situation. The certificate acts to reverse the onus of proof in infringement litigation so that the defendant must disprove the copyright’s existence and ownership of the work in 6

question. The certificate of copyright registration also proves that the defendant could not have been an “innocent infringer,” since the work appears on a public and searchable register. Generally, courts award lesser penalties against innocent infringers. Copyright registration is simple and inexpensive. In Canada, copyright can be registered for a government fee of $50 online at canada.ca/en/services/ business/ip/copyright.html. Since no single international copyright registration system exists, creators could rely upon the international treaties and conventions to which Canada belongs to protect their works in other countries. However, if it is anticipated that a particular copyright work will be marketed or made available in a specific country, registration in that country is recommended. Copyright can be registered in the United States, for example, for a government fee of $45 (USD) online at copyright.gov/. Another way to protect copyright for both registered and unregistered works is to use the copyright symbol ©. Although Canadian law does not require such marking to protect the work, use of the © symbol is recommended for a few reasons: • It acts as an educational tool and deterrent to infringement, letting the

WRITING RIGHTS: LAW FOR WRITERS uninformed know that creative work cannot be freely copied. • If the symbol were used in connection with a work that is later infringed, the owner could assert in a lawsuit that the defendant could not be an innocent infringer. • Some jurisdictions require the © symbol. Therefore, using it would protect the work in those jurisdictions. To properly claim copyright, use the © symbol, followed by the year of creation, or if published, the year of first publication, and the owner’s name.

go further and register the work at the federal Copyright Office. In summary, a creator cannot control the actions of others and cannot prevent theft. However, a creator can take steps to protect their works.

I WILL PUBLISH MY WRITING IN ANOTHER COUNTRY. DOES CANADIAN COPYRIGHT LAW STILL APPLY? Canada is a signatory to the major copyright law conventions of the world. Generally,

therefore, the rights of authors and copyright owners protected by Canadian copyright law must be recognized by the other signatory nations which are also treaty members, just as if the work was covered by the law of the treaty member’s country. For more specific advice about the law in a particular country, it is best to consult a lawyer. Jeananne Kirwin, Q.C., a lawyer in Edmonton, practices in the areas of intellectual property and corporate/commercial law with an emphasis on trademark and copyright registration and enforcement (kirwinllp.com).

With this by way of background, here are the three FAQ page questions and their answers:

HOW DO I PROTECT MY COPYRIGHT? Copyright in a “work,” including a literary, musical, dramatic and/or artistic work, arises by virtue of creation, provided it is original and fixed, and so long as it is not merely an idea, fact or short title. Although not required by law, copyright could be protected two ways: • By marking all copies of the work with the © symbol, adding the year of creation (or publication, if published), and the owner’s name. This is called the copyright claim. • By registering copyright in the work in Canada at the federal Copyright Office. This is simple and inexpensive. Copyright can also be registered at copyright offices in other countries.

I HAVE AN IDEA FOR A STORY. HOW DO I PREVENT IT FROM BEING STOLEN? Copyright does not protect an idea. It only protects the expression of the idea, whether as a literary, musical, dramatic and/or artistic work. Copyright protects only fixed works, not unrecorded verbal descriptions. Therefore, the best way to prevent an idea from being stolen is to keep it a secret. If a story idea is disclosed, it should be in writing and marked with the copyright claim. The creator could 7

APRIL – JUNE 2022

FEATURE

THE WRITERS’ GUILD OF ALBERTA

PHOTO OF AUTHOR BY EMILY WELZ STUDIOS, EDMONTON

FEATURE Every word must stand on its own. Every sentence must hold value and contribute strategically to the story itself. Do I know how this is done? Not really.

NORMA DUNNING

MY WRITING My work

WRITING IS WORK. WRITING IS REWRITING. WRITING IS A SICKNESS. REAL WRITERS NEVER INTRODUCE THEMSELVES AS WRITERS. REAL WRITERS NEVER TALK ABOUT WHAT THEY ARE WORKING ON RIGHT NOW. REAL WRITERS DON’T WRITE FOR THEMSELVES. REAL WRITERS WRITE ON BEHALF OF THEIR PEOPLE. REAL WRITERS WRITE WHAT THEY KNOW.

have been fortunate in the recognition that my work, my writing, has received. I’ve been blessed by juries and the many readers who see value in my words. I would like to thank the jurors who fought for my books to be awarded. I’ve been a juror, and it is not easy work. It is not work that should be taken lightly. I know what it is to fight for the book that fell into my heart, but not anyone else’s. I know what it is to connect to other writers’ words and fall in love with their writing. My approach to my writing is based on truth. The truth of Inuit lives in Canada. The truth of my own life as an Indigenous, much older, female writer. I am not the horse a publisher should bet on. I am not young. I am not filled with endless energy. The energy required to travel or speak coherently on Zoom for hours. I am not a gorgeous little thing that an audience would fall in love with. I am only me. I believe real writers write endlessly. We can’t stop ourselves even on those days when the writing is not coming through the way we feel it should. It is our shared sickness. It is our shared vomitorium. Words replacing food with the need to empty ourselves. Writing short stories means you must write with constant care. Constant focus. 9

What I know, and what real writers know, is that feeling of being “on.” That feeling of “nailed it!” Along with real writers, shared sickness is the orgasmic euphoria of knowing when you’ve achieved something that you did not start out doing. That feeling of the words and the characters sitting in the driver’s seat and the real writer becomes entranced by them. It is an out-of-body experience. It is beautiful.

My approach to my writing is based on truth. The truth of Inuit lives in Canada. The truth of my own life as an Indigenous, much older, female writer. Indigenous people learn at a young age that what we do in this world during our time on this earth is not for ourselves. It is for the next generation. We are here. We have survived since before the inception of time. We should have died from one form of genocide or another. The real writer writes for the next generation. The real writer gives back to their people. The biggest act of resistance for an Indigenous person is to breathe. With each breath, we hold a responsibility to our children, our grandchildren, and our great grandchildren. They are the ones who will benefit from our work. If you are not writing for the next generation, don’t write at all. APRIL – JUNE 2022

FEATURE The worst question I get asked is, “What is your process?” I always feel like someone thinks I have the magic bean to publishing. I don’t. What I think I have learned and am always answering while I am writing is, “How is the reader taking this in?” When I am writing, I assume everyone on earth knows what I am writing about. I assume I don’t have to explain further. I also assume that I am brilliant. I am not. I often must remind myself to write slower. To take the time to flesh things out. I have to remember to bring my reader with me because I have the best story for them to read. This is where writing is really only rewriting and rewriting and rewriting. This is when we have to think of the importance of giving our readers the best part of ourselves. They deserve it.

I wonder if staring at it will cause me to stroke out. Writing is a gift. The time given over to writing is precious. I do not have an exact style. I am always stunned by how others see things in my writing that I do not. I am usually happy with what they see. I am grateful they see it differently than I do. I will say that I fall in love with my characters. My characters are real people to me. I am always sad when I finish a story, but I tell myself that I can always return to these beautiful people who take up physical space in my apartment and live inside of me. I want everyone to love them the way I do. At the end of every day, our lives are about gratitude. For everyone who writes, please remember to give thanks for the gift of writing. Give thanks to the readers. Give thanks to the agents and editors

The biggest act of resistance for an Indigenous person is to breathe. With each breath, we hold a responsibility to our children, our grandchildren, and our great grandchildren. They are the ones who will benefit from our work. If you are not writing for the next generation, don’t write at all. I’ve always been skeptical of the people who introduce themselves as writers. I’ve been in the company of writers who bemoan edits and deadlines over their accepted and contracted manuscript. I always think that this behaviour is spiked with arrogance. Writing is work. Do the work and do it well. I’ve never had the luxury of not working at least two jobs at once. Writing full time is for those who have a partner who is making six figures. I am alone. The tidbits of time I have in front of my laptop are cherished even on the days when I watch the cursor blink at me for two hours, while THE WRITERS’ GUILD OF ALBERTA

Norma Dunning is an Inuk professor, grandmother and writer. Her short story collection, Tainna (the unseen ones), received the Governor General’s Literary Award for 2021. Annie Muktuk and Other Stories received the Danuta Gleed award in 2018. Dunning’s first collection of poetry, Eskimo Pie: a poetics of Inuit Identity, was released in 2020. Her second collection of poetry, Akia (the other side), will be published in July 2022. Kinauva? (what’s your name?), Dunning’s first work of nonfiction, will release in 2023. She lives in Edmonton.

and publishers who believe in your words. They are our helpers. Give thanks to who you write for. Give thanks for being able to do work that you love. Give thanks for what you believe in.

HONOUR YOUR ANCESTORS. HONOUR YOURSELVES. HONOUR ALL OF THOSE WHO ARE WAITING TO COME TO US WITH YOUR BEST WORDS. 10

April is

National Poetry Month For information, visit the League of Canadian Poets website at poets.ca.

FEATURE

APRIL IS POETRY MONTH Three poets talk style WestWord invited Derek Beaulieu, Banff’s poet laureate, and Calgary’s former poets laureate Sheri-D Wilson and Micheline Maylor, to discuss their writing styles.

DEREK BEAULIEU

A ILLUSTRATION OF AUTHOR BY ANATOL KNOTEK

Poetry, for me, is the process of learning from the particles of language, from the words, the letters, the punctuation marks.

s I sit down to write, I remember how bpNichol referred to himself as being in an “apprenticeship to language,” always learning from the language itself. Poetry, for me, is the process of learning from the particles of language, from the words, the letters, the punctuation marks. I strive to imagine, make, build, engineer poems that treat each letter as a structural element. Like finely-wrought watch gears or delicatelymachined torsion springs; my concrete poems—usually made with Letraset—are delicate, balanced, radially symmetrical glyphs. Letraset was once found in most graphic design offices, classrooms and artist studios, but is now out of production except for small sheets designed for scrap bookers and plastic-model makers. Each letter, once placed on the page, is immoveable and irreplaceable; the visual equivalent of Allen Ginsberg’s dictum that “first thought, best thought.” In my latest book, Surface Tension (Coach House Books, Autumn 2022), those delicate symmetrical poems are now smeared and distorted, made liquid. Each poem has been “read” by a photocopier while I moved the poem across the copier’s platen into what looks like distorted reflections in the gutter of your local gas station. What were once watch springs are now tree rings and birch bark, echoes of a dream. Derek Beaulieu is the director of Literary Arts at Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, and Banff ’s poet laureate. He is the author or editor of over 25 collections of poetry, prose and literary criticism. His most recent volume of fiction, a, A Novel, was published by France’s Jean Boîte Editions. For more information about the author, visit derekbeaulieu.ca.

DEREK BEAULIEU Named Banff ’s Poet Laureate

he Banff Poet Laureate Committee is pleased to announce that Derek Beaulieu is Banff ’s new poet Laureate. Beaulieu’s two-year term began January 2022. Beaulieu says, “Banff has a long history of writing and art and I am eager to work with the town to explore the poetic possibilities of our home and community. Banff ’s previous laureates, Steven Ross Smith and Amelie Patterson, have left huge legacies of artistic engagement and

THE WRITERS’ GUILD OF ALBERTA

I thank them for all their creativity. I am so excited to share my enthusiasm for poetry with our town and guests. Banff ’s streets and pathways, schools and centres, have always inspired imagination; I look forward to being part of that ongoing dialogue. I am honoured to be chosen as Banff ’s newest poet laureate, thank you!” Derek Beaulieu is the author or editor of over 25 collections of poetry, prose, and literary criticism. His most recent volume of fiction, a, A Novel, was published by

France’s Jean Boîte Editions. His most recent volume of poetry, Surface Tension, is forthcoming from Coach House Books this fall. He has performed his work around the world and been published in translation in over a dozen languages. Beaulieu is the director of literary arts at Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity and has won multiple local and national awards for his teaching and dedication to students. He can be found online at derekbeaulieu.ca.

FEATURE

SHERI-D WILSON

he poem lives and breathes in the aether waiting to be heard—unearthed by poets—soul archeologists—who listen in—go deeper in—to receive cosmological transmission—even when the poem wakes the poet demanding to be heard at 4 P.M. (especially then). Fearless and filled with hope—poets are invited to interpret or translate a bazillion messages—filled with a multitude of senses (and nonsenses).

PHOTO OF AUTHOR BY KIMBERLEY FRENCH

Doulas of life and death—poets dare to see the invisible world—catch transformation mid-air—come unfurled—with every breath, whisper, gasp, and shriek.

Doulas of life and death—poets dare to see the invisible world—catch transformation mid-air—come unfurled—with every breath, whisper, gasp, and shriek. Poets are epiphany diviners—oblique, they listen for the poem to guide them to explore, discover—to speak truth & limerence. And the poems ask to be orated—will sing every sound, word, rhythm, nuance, and silence—to the poet. They are the poems that come from the body—memory (of this life and others) and when they are spoken, sometimes they shift the speaker, the listener, and the aether. They are the poems that may be edited aloud, from the voice. They are placed on the page to relay frequencies and tone like a score—so anyone that reads them may say them as the poet heard them. Sometimes with narrative, and revolution. Always of the body—music of the heart—duende—images—song of all souls. Sheri-D Wilson, Calgary’s poet laureate emeritus, is the award-winning author of 13 books, and a strong advocate for social change. She is fiercely editing an epic poem—to be published in 2022. For more information about the author, visit sheridwilson.com.

MICHELINE MAYLOR

he elegance of the contemplative seat

Sitting is more his speed, if that is the word for what he does or does not do.

From “Shoveling Snow with Buddha,” by Billy Collins.

AUTHOR PHOTO BY MARTY GERVAIS

The pandemic and poetry demand an unknowingness, a forward drive blindly into the dark of uncertainty.

The pandemic gifted us with more time to sit and contemplate every detail of our lives, from the superfluous to the necessary. In this way, my poetry, too, morphed. While The Bad Wife (UofA Press 2021) landed squarely in the confessional mode, a softness arrives in my new work: An arriving in the beautiful chaotic catastrophe of lock up and the stillness of less commuting, more sitting. Billy Collins reflects on this sort of arriving as he describes his perception of Buddha. Of course, my sitting was filled with the noise of the mind, but I arrived in the chair with a new wary curiosity. How does a poet revisit Keats’ notion of negative capability? The pandemic and poetry demand an unknowingness, a forward drive blindly into the dark of uncertainty. It’s there I find myself, sitting at a slower speed, contemplating uncertainty, and the ways poetry can contribute to understanding the world as we travel into a future no one could have envisioned, even five years ago. Now might be the time for a new cosmology, a new origin story, a new genesis with the first line that invites rather than constrains: In the beginning, the pandemic created lockdown, and politicians were without form, and void, and darkness was on the face of the deep... Micheline Maylor is a poet, academic, critic and editor. She is a professor in the English department at Mount Royal University, Calgary. Her fourth and latest poetry collection is The Bad Wife (2021). Maylor is Calgary’s former poet laureate (2016–18). For more information about the author, visit michelinemaylor.com.

APRIL – JUNE 2022

FEATURE

J. JILL ROBINSON

THANK YOU, ALBERTA I became a writer because of you

I’ve not found fame and fortune, but I know while that might have been nice, it isn’t the main reason I write. In the face of rejection, hopelessness, even despair, writing sustains me, gives me solace. AUTHOR PHOTO BY EMMETT ROBINSON SMITH

miss you, I’m thinking about you, and I want to tell you about the role you’ve played and will continue to play in my writing life. I became a writer in Alberta. It wouldn’t have happened otherwise, and I’ve much to be grateful for. When I moved to Calgary in 1979, I was almost 24, desperate to escape the meaningless, tangled, troubled life I was leading in the West Kootenays. I was drunk, rudderless, and desperately lonely. I’d been lost for several years by then: I dropped out of school after Grade 10, was pregnant at 15, worked in bars, lived with a violent and drunken man. And yet in this mess that was my life, something in me insisted I change my path, that I do something with my brain, which was aching to be used. I left Radium for Calgary in the spring, moved into an attic apartment on Broadview Road NW, and got a job cocktailing at the Hospitality Inn. Next, I gathered my courage and made an appointment with the dean of humanities at the University of Calgary (UofC), and humbly asked Dr. Schulz to let me in as a mature student. He did. I’m indebted forever to him for taking a chance on me and changing my life—the future could have been much darker otherwise. THE WRITERS’ GUILD OF ALBERTA

In my attic apartment, the fridge, like the bathtub, had been painted blood red. Inside that fridge, on good days, there were bottles of white wine. At night, after work, I wrote. I wasn’t writing to become a writer; I was writing to figure out myself, my life. I spilled my guts on the page using an old medical typewriter my dad lent me, because if I wrote by hand, I couldn’t read my handwriting in the morning! That was my first real connection to the page: the first time I established the conduit between my head, my heart, and the page that has served me all my writing life. I started at the UofC that fall, in drama and English, and earned a BA, then an MA. It was during my MA that I realized I wanted, above all, to be a writer. I’d read and analyzed countless novels, plays, poems, and essays, using various critical stances, but what I wanted to know was how the authors did it—how they achieved the effects they had on their readers. Then maybe I could do what they did. I wanted to be a creator, not a critic. In 1985, at 30, I quit drinking, finished my MA, got a dog, got married, and wrote in earnest. More kindness came my way: Elona Malterre, grad school colleague 14

and writer, was teaching a continuing ed creative writing course she invited me to attend. Her encouragement gave me the confidence to apply to the Banff Centre for the Arts in 1987. There, I revelled in the company of diverse people who also wanted to become writers. No one thought they were crazy, foolish, or laughable for pursuing this path. The academic route isn’t right for every wannabe writer, but it was for me. I appreciated the structure, the scaffolding that school provided. In 1988, I left Alberta, left Canada, and went up to Fairbanks, Alaska, to work towards an MFA in fiction. Why Alaska? Well, it’s an exotic locale, isn’t it? And nothing like 67 below Fahrenheit to keep you inside working at your craft. (Note: “craft” was a swear word to some, but I wanted, needed, to learn craft, and the program descriptions from the U.S. schools I investigated convinced me that was the way for me to go, that craft was what they taught. I learned so much about so many important aspects of writing fiction during that time: pacing, dialogue, point of view. Grad course lectures were given on the essence of the art of fiction, and visiting speakers from the Lower 48, like Robert Haas and Louise Erdrich, lectured on craft, on translation, on genre.)

FEATURE I came back from Alaska with a thesis that became my first book, Saltwater Trees. My first publication? In Secrets From The Orange Couch, a Calgary collective. My second? The NeWest Review, based in Edmonton. In my initial foray into the world of contests, I won the Prism International fiction contest. Talk about affirmation. Some people liked my work, a lot. That positive reinforcement was great and came at the right time! I was completely motivated, overflowing with desire and commitment and determination that took priority over every other part of my life. Nothing mattered as much as becoming a writer. Two more books of short fiction followed before I moved to Saskatoon. I didn’t return to Alberta (to Banff this time) until 2009. I stayed there until this year: I’d hoped to divide my time between British Columbia and Alberta indefinitely, but for now it isn’t meant to be. When I was living in Calgary, I became interested in my family history, and started using it in my writing. My mother’s family moved to Calgary in 1915, my father’s settled in Altario in 1907, and Banff in 1923. My novel More In Anger, which used my Alberta material, came out in 2012. (That novel is my most recent book.) Since then, for the past 10 years, I’ve worked on, abandoned, and resumed work on a companion novel. I’ve also completed a creative nonfiction manuscript, The Land of Not Knowing. In the 1980s, I immersed myself in the Alberta writing scene. I joined the Calgary Creative Reading Series, and came to understand how readings, mine and others’, are conducted. I was invited to join the group Second Wednesday, which taught me more about camaraderie among writers, and honest, kind feedback. Two members from that group remain my closest writing friends, Joan Crate and Roberta Rees. Going on for 40 years! Alberta has supported my writing through grants, teaching gigs at The Banff Centre, Red Deer College, The UofC, and Mt. Royal University, writer-in-residence stints, editing and mentorship opportunities. My

Alberta provided me with a writing community, with writing friends who remain my writing friends, with the first audience with whom to trust my newborn work. My first publications, grants, readings, opportunities to earn a living. Everything that laid the basis for my writing life to grow and mature. Thank you, Alberta. writing has been furthered by sojourns in the Leighton Studios at the Banff Centre, in self-directed residencies, and in retreats with friends. I say again: I couldn’t be where I am without the tremendous support I found in this province. I take the fruits of my experiences, my training, my opportunities, wherever I go. I try to share what I’ve learned with writers who come after me. I’ve not found fame and fortune, but I know while that might have been nice, it isn’t the main reason I write. In the face of rejection, hopelessness, even despair, writing sustains me, gives me solace. My writing continues to be autobiographical, and allows me an avenue to further understand myself, the world I inhabit, and the people around me. I’ve won awards for my books and not won awards for my books. I’ve been included in one desirable place and not in another desirable place. I’ve experienced 15

rejection of every single thing for five years in a row. I’ve lain on the floor of the Hemingway Studio in the Leighton Studios, sobbing and begging for help from the gods. But hey, that’s the way it goes. I bruise, I get sad, I might even cry, and then I write. I mean, what else? Desire. The deep desire to write has been at the heart of everything for me. It is desire that sustains me and the lack of desire that doesn’t. And yes, desire, by its very nature, ebbed and flowed. At its strongest, passionate desire drives me forward. The desire to figure things out, to understand why people did what they did, people I knew, and people I made up. At first, I relied too much on will: I tried too hard to make stories work. I had to learn to wait, to listen, to be both subjective and then objective. I had to learn to cultivate discipline, to understand the combination of imagination and invention. Now? I am more relaxed. Kinder to myself. More trusting of the process. I’ve wondered if I would keep writing if I knew I’d never be published again. Yes, I would. I don’t have the ambition and drive I did as a younger woman. There is still desire and hope, but I am easier on myself, and the writing comes more easily. On the good days. My roles outside writing have changed: as a mother, I am on the periphery of my adult son’s life; my role as someone’s mate is over, too. So who am I? Well, I’m not sure. But I know I’m still a writer. I’m a communicator. I write. To figure things out, and in the process, create vehicles to share what I’ve learned. Alberta provided me with a writing community, with writing friends who remain my writing friends, with the first audience with whom to trust my newborn work. My first publications, grants, readings, opportunities to earn a living. Everything that laid the basis for my writing life to grow and mature. Thank you, Alberta. Jill Robinson writes from Galiano Island, B.C. She has recently completed The Land of Not Knowing, a memoir in stories. For more information, visit en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/J._Jill_Robinson APRIL – JUNE 2022

FEATURE

KALA GODIN

YOUNG ADULT BOOKS WRITTEN BY AUTHORS LIKE ME… Are almost impossible to find AUTHOR PHOTO BY SWEET SHOTS BY LONI

o matter who you are, writing a book is hard. Publishing that book? That’s even harder.

Publishing is a little like fashion. People always ask the same questions. What’s trending? And, Where does this fit in the market? Let me give you some background here. I’m 24 and I live with a severe physical disability called Spinal Muscular Atrophy Type 2 (SMA). This means I am a quadriplegic and a wheelchair user. If you do not know what SMA means, that’s fine. I have no use of my arms or legs. Someone else has to help me with everything I do in my day-to-day life. I have always been a voracious reader. But the first time I read a book with a character similar to me was Me Before You by Jojo Moyes, published in 2012. I would have been around 14. Spoiler alert: the disabled character chooses Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID). I remember people’s outrage surrounding this book. Why would you have your disabled character choose to end his life? The author doesn’t have any experience with this. THE WRITERS’ GUILD OF ALBERTA

I never judged the book for either of these criticisms. A story was told, and it’s valid. The next book I read about someone like me was in 2019, Laughing at My Nightmare by Shane Burcaw, a memoir by a man living with SMA. This book is hilarious. It’s now 2022, and I haven’t read another book with a character like me, or anything written by somebody like me, not for lack of trying. Books with characters like me are hard to find. Books written by authors like me are almost impossible to find. Disabled writers are often pigeonholed as memoir writers, as though we don’t have other stories to tell. I’ve wanted to be an author since I read Twilight by Stephenie Meyer. That sounds cliché, but it’s true. I wanted to do what she had done. People cared about those characters so much. She also changed the YA genre. Things didn’t have to be the same as before. Vampires could eat animals instead. They could sparkle too, because, why not? Literature changes with time, just like everything else in life. Nosferatu and Dracula are incredibly different. Literature will always adapt. We’ve seen it. At 16

There’s more LGBTQ2S+ and BIPOC inclusion than ever before. And yes, there has been more inclusion of disabled people. However, few YA stories have characters who have severe physical disabilities. one time, women had to publish under more masculine pseudonyms. Now, they dominate YA. There’s more LGBTQ2S+ and BIPOC inclusion than ever before. And yes, there has been more inclusion of disabled people. However, few YA stories have characters who have severe physical disabilities. An article by Kelly Jensen, “20 Must-Read YA Books with Disabled

FEATURE Characters” Book Riot 2019, lists books with a disabled character: • A physical disability, not wheelchair dependent: 10 • A mental illness or neurodivergence: 8 • An allergy: 1 • Wheelchair users: 2 Source: bookriot.com/ya-books-withdisabled-characters/ A few of these overlap. Let me break down the two books with wheelchair users. One is the memoir that I mentioned. The second book has a character who has no legs, but has entire control of his upper body. Disclaimer: I’m not saying any of this to make anyone feel as though their disability is “less than.” That is not the case. Every disability is valid. I’m only breaking this down to show unequal representation. I went through 15 different other lists to find one that has a character or author in a wheelchair.

In 2020, The Publishers Association (UK) stated their disability and inclusion report had risen to eight percent (arkbound.com/disabilityrepresentation-in-the-publishingworkforce/). The Diversity Baseline (U.S.) in 2019 stated that 11 percent of people working in publishing selfidentified as disabled (blog.leeandlow. com/2020/01/28/2019diversity baselinesurvey/).

On social media platforms like Twitter and Instagram, people are open about their experiences with publishing, particularly the querying process. I’ve noticed that agents don’t want characters who are “too disabled.” They find the characters hard to relate to, specifically for the general public. They don’t know how to sell these stories and there’s no spot in the current YA publishing market. Simply because our stories haven’t been given a chance.

Breaking that down further, 22 percent of that 11 percent self-identify as physically disabled. What does that mean? That means that in the U.S., 2.42 percent of people working in publishing are physically disabled. Most of them are book reviewers.

Here’s the thing though: you can make a spot at the table for us. It’s as simple as taking a chance. Maybe we’ll even surprise you. Kala Godin is a 24-year-old author living with a physical disability (Spinal Muscular Atrophy Type 2) and is a wheelchair user. She's had two poetry collections published, as well as several short horror stories. Halloween is her favourite holiday. Godin likes tattoos, chocolate, and witchcraft.

These are incredibly low numbers. Yes, they have increased since previous years, but this still isn’t equality in the book publishing industry.

JOIN US April 29th - May 1st, 2022 The Sorrento Centre Sorrento, BC

ALBERTA MAGAZINES CONFERENCE 2022 SEPTEMBER 22 & 23

IT’S BEEN A MINUTE!

Sessions include both skill development workshops and open forums with presenters based on questions and answers in a relaxed and intimate setting.

Join us in person at Canada’s largest magazine media conference. Gain cutting-edge insights and learn how innovators are adapting to grow their brands and find success. CONNECT WITH PUBLISHING COLLEAGUES

HEAR GENIUS KEYNOTES CELEBRATE EXCELLENCE AT THE ALBERTA MAGAZINE AWARDS GALA

Kelley Armstrong Gail Anderson-Dargatz Anna Comfort O’Keeffe Norma Dunning Scott Fitzgerald Gray Anne Fleming Kat Montagu Ed Peekeekoot Jacqueline Turner Ian Weir and more Check website for updates

Expect to be encouraged, informed and thoroughly entertained.

SELECT FROM MULTI-TRACK BREAKOUT SESSIONS

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on the

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Find out what these published authors and industry professionals can do for you. Register at: www.wordonthelakewritersfestival.com #wolwriters

APRIL – JUNE 2022

FEATURE

Second Place ($2,000)

KEMOSA SCHOLARSHIP WINNERS ANNOUNCED Meet the 5th annual Kemosa scholarship winners for First Nations, Métis and Inuit Mothers Who Write

First Place ($3,000) Lareina Abbott, Pchit–Little One

JUDGES’ COMMENTS

he Writers’ Guild of Alberta and Dr. Nhung Tran-Davies are pleased to announce the winners of the 5th Annual Kemosa Scholarship for First Nations, Métis and Inuit Mothers Who Write. First established in 2017 by Nhung Tran-Davies in partnership with Tlicho Dene author Richard Van Camp, the Kemosa Scholarship offers an opportunity for First Nations, Métis and Inuit Mothers to obtain resources to help them complete the work on their writing—whether that be a novel, a collection of stories, poems, or whatever form their writing might take. This year, there were many amazing entries for the Kemosa Scholarship, and it was a challenge for the judges to choose the winners from among them. After much thought and careful deliberation, here are this year’s recipients, along with comments from this year’s jury. We would also like to thank this year’s jury: Richard Van Camp, Jacqueline Guest, and Nicole Harrish.

THE WRITERS’ GUILD OF ALBERTA

“ The first thing that struck me about this submission was the author’s ability to weave lyrical, poetic imagery into the genre. The line ‘and slowly she had been disappearing, not gently, but like a river, dropping into a sinkhole’ was particularly memorable. I also appreciated the pacing of the story and how the author used it to build suspense. A lot is accomplished in a small space. The symbolism in the story was also subtle. Overall, the themes of loss, family, and strength were developed insightfully.” Lareina Abbott is a Métis writer and mother who writes young adult speculative fiction and memoir. Her stories have a tie to the spiritual or natural world, and to ancestry, as she believes these connections are how we will heal as a people and reclaim what has been previously lost. She originates from a cattle ranch in northern British Columbia, but currently lives and writes in Calgary on Métis Local 87 and Treaty 7 territory. 18

Amber Boyd, Spirit Bead

JUDGES’ COMMENTS “ What I enjoyed about this story was its clear appeal to a young adult audience. The reference to Converse shoes and the beach party appeal to this demographic well. I also appreciated how the author coupled those references with more traditional, didactic knowledge for the readers. I also found the dialogue effective, particularly in the way the author developed a distinct voice for Coyote and Jinx. The story comes to a compelling moral, which is developed through thoughtful use of dialogue in the last sentence.” Amber Boyd’s short stories, “Life’s Nectar” and “Forevermore,” can be found in the Amazon number one best-selling anthology, Above and Beneath. Her other published short stories include “Howling at the Moon,” “The Arcane Protector,” “Time Ryder,” and “The Gift.” In 2019, her work took second place in the Kemosa Scholarship contest, and in 2021, her writing was shortlisted for the Constance Rooke CNF Prize and won her a spot to participate in the Audible Indigenous Writers’ Circle. Amber is a citizen of the Métis Nation of Alberta and is currently completing her MFA in creative writing at UBC.

Third Place ($1,000) Apryl Gladue,

the assertion of truth in our bones (and other poems)

JUDGES’ COMMENTS “ It’s hard for me to find words to describe these poems. Stunning and

FEATURE breathtaking come to mind, given how captivated I was when I read them. I am impressed with the way such profound themes and emotions are developed in such little space. This poet’s use of compelling imagery, along with the structural weaving of past and present in the first poem, were notable to me. The irony the poet captures in ‘A near panic attack on National Day for Truth and Reconciliation’ was also profound—this poem has been lingering with me since I first read it.” Apryl Gladue is an oft joyful displaced urban Cree (Woodland and Lubicon Lake) with settler genes twice married with three children writing about her identity but for colonial happenstance. In an alternate fate to being scooped, she was raised on her non-Indigenous grandparent’s farm while attending school a stone’s throw from St. Bernard’s Mission. While not battling demons or sporadically and vehemently writing, Apryl can be found volunteering, book-travelling, and being fiercely proud of her offspring. She writes to understand, heal, prove her existence and her family’s survival, and to remind her country that evil came dressed as law and policy. After 22 years of biding her time as a federal government solicitor and sojourning through intergenerational residential school trauma (published in a 1994 anthologized short story, a 2008 personal essay, and various workplace poetry readings), the final truths of colonial angst, blood memory and “what ifs” arrive through ancestors’ strength and are shared among her Cree/Métis/settler blended family of siblings, cousins, adult children, and many grandchildren all growing in their own journeys.

Honourable Mention ($500) Sandra Lamouche, Apakosis

JUDGES’ COMMENTS “ I really appreciated the allegorical nature of this one. The author does a great job of drawing attention to important issues, while still honoring the children’s fiction genre they are working with. The choice to organize chapters through animals is creative and provides an effective structure. I also appreciated the suspenseful ending the author left us with. Overall, the premise is engaging and I see lots of potential.” Sandra Lamouche is a Nehiyaw Iskwew (Cree Woman) from the Bigstone Cree Nation in Northern Alberta and married into the Piikani Nation in Southern Alberta and mother to two boys with braids. She completed her BA in Native American Studies from the University of Lethbridge in 2007. In 2021 she completed her MA thesis at Trent University, titled “Nitona Miyo Pimadisiwin (Seeking a Good Life) Through Indigenous Dance.” She is a storyteller in many ways, including as a champion hoop dancer, award winning Indigenous educational leader, two-time TEDx Speaker, artist, and writer.

Honourable Mention ($500) Shirley Cire,

Sleigh Ride (and other poems)

JUDGES’ COMMENTS “ The strength of these poems is their ability to capture particular memories/ moments that speak to essential human emotions, such as longing, nostalgia and comfort. I think the poet can continue to experiment with rhetorical devices and structural choices to amplify these themes even further.” 19

Shirley Cire resides on Treaty 6 territory, and was born and raised in Lac La Biche, Alberta. Cire identifies proudly as Nêhiyaw and Métis, her mother being from Beaver Lake Cree Nation and her father from a long line of Métis ancestry. Cire has a strong belief in storytelling and keeping, and has had a career working in the library. She is ever glad to bring library service to Maskwacis, as she believes in a welcoming library that should be accessible to Indigenous communities. Writing is a passion and provides her with an outlet, where she reflects on memory and tells her stories. Stories are sacred to her family and live on through words. This is her medicine.

Our Gratitude Thank you to the following for your generous donations to this year’s Kemosa Scholarship. • Pam Clark • Jacqueline Guest • Carol Holmes • Jeananne Kathol Kirwin • Brent McConnell • Elaine Morin • Pandemic School of Writing • Deborah Sword • Nhung Tran-Davies Last but not least, we wish to thank everyone who submitted their writing to this year’s Kemosa Scholarship. Thank you for sharing your words and stories. We hope that all of you will continue to write and to give voice to the stories and poems that you have to tell. For more information or media inquiries, please contact the Writers’ Guild of Alberta at mail@writersguild.ca. APRIL – JUNE 2022

FEATURE

NEW VOICES IN ALBERTA The beginning of literary journeys Horizons Writers Circle and Own Voices Alberta nurture writers at the beginning of their literary careers. Featured here are participants from both programs discussing their styles of writing.

Horizons Writers Circle

The Writers’ Guild of Alberta’s Horizons Writers Circle is a program for writers within the Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour community, ESL, and underrepresented writers who live in Edmonton and are at the beginning of their literary journey. The program runs for seven months and is fully subsidized, making it cost-free for successful applicants.

AUTHOR PHOTO BY TAMARA EAKER

PHOTO SUPPLIED BY AUTHOR

AUTHOR PHOTO BY ADRIANA ONIȚĂ

MEGHAN EAKER

DIANA GAVIRIA

CANDICE JOY OLIVA

s a mixed nehiyaw/white settler poet, my writing style is part critique, part manifesto, part defiance, part survival. it is my wild attempt to find a place to exist among the paradoxes. to keep myself and nowakamakanak (my relatives) alive in this world that is indescribably beautiful and simultaneously deeply disturbing. it reflects the fact that as a registered nurse, the best care i have ever given was a poem, and the best medicine i have ever tasted was a story. my writing style is explicitly feminist, nehiyaw, anti-capitalist, etc. and inspired by black, indigenous, queer, feminist poetics and philosophies.

meghan eaker (she/her) is a poet, registered nurse, and beading artist of mixed european and nehiyaw ancestry. she is a member of the woodland cree first nation in treaty 8 territory and grew up in and around amiskwaciy-wâskahikan. she is currently a phd student in nursing at the university of alberta.

THE WRITERS’ GUILD OF ALBERTA

y writing style is shaped by the belief that life’s most profound mysteries reveal themselves in the peaceful ordinariness of everyday living. It makes meaning of the lonesome cup of coffee in the middle of the night, two women gossiping in a dark corner, and things that go unsaid in a marriage. My narrative voice is conversational, insightful, and replete with imagery. Through my stories, my intention is to immerse the reader in an ordinary moment in time, and invite them into a character’s inner world: one that is always compelling in its complexity and contradictions. Diana Gaviria is a second-generation settler of Colombian heritage who lives in amiskwaciywâskahikan (Treaty 6 Territory) with her family and golden retriever, Drake. She speaks fluent English, Spanglish and a little Portuñol, and writes short fiction about intimacy, identity and the fragility of belonging. Gaviria can be reached at gaviriadm@gmail.com.

write as a reclamation of joy, in both name and life. Joy is the space I was afraid to take too much of on paper, from other people’s mouths and even my own. Joy is now remembering how to hold and be held by my ancestors. Joy is the silence compelling me to excavate and listen to my truths. Joy is the voice asking me to speak myself in the languages of my blood. Joy is a playfulness with the dis/ placement of words and stanzas. And what emerges (and decomposes) is poetry in English, sometimes in Tagalog and Bikol. Candice Joy Oliva (she/her/siya) is reimagining joyful spaces to sustain her multilingual poetry practice as a Pilipinx immigrant settler rewriting herself in amiskwaciy-wâskahikan on Treaty 6 Territory. Oliva’s recent works have appeared in decomp journal, Loves Me Zine and the Canadian Youth Anthology. IG: @candicejoyoliva

FEATURE

Own Voices Alberta

Own Voices Alberta is offered by the Alexandra Writers’ Centre in partnership with the Writers’ Guild of Alberta. The program is for writers within the Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour community, who live in Alberta and are at the beginning of their literary journey. The program runs for four months and is fully subsidized, making it cost-free for successful applicants.

AUTHOR PHOTO BY ADRIAN G DE LA PEÑA

AUTHOR PHOTO BY KERRILEE MCLEAN

AUTHOR PHOTO BY MARK STEPHENSON

SANDRO SILVA

ALLAN BRENT ROSALES

KIRTI BHADRESA

short- or long-form story must hook the reader’s heart and soul throughout the journey, like those days when one desperately needs that informal and or deep talk with a close friend, or perhaps actively listening to an anecdote while queuing to pay for groceries. A conversational approach inspired by two Brazilian authors. Machado de Assis showcases his skeptical and realistic tone, concise and perfect grammar. João Guimarães Rosa has a talent for showing off neologisms and often puts people into a magical context, as life is a miracle hard to perceive without a necessary pause.

Sandro Silva is an Edmonton-based filmmaker, the co-founder of Dona Ana Films & Multimedia, an emerging writer, and a 2021 Own Voices Alberta alumni. He is currently working on his first memoir. Before his career in media production, Silva was a copyright lawyer in São Paulo, his hometown.

llan’s poetry and spoken word performances spotlight the Filipinx-Canadian experience, anti-racism and life during the pandemic as a person of colour artist. Allan describes his writing style as picturesque, succinct, and straightforward. When he’s writing, images emerge, and he expresses himself most intimately through symbol and metaphor. Allan’s poems also tend to be brief; capturing relatable ideas or moments that his audience can resonate with or ponder about. Informal in tone, he prefers to write conversationally. Allan’s first language was English, but his parents were most comfortable speaking their mother tongues of Visayan and Ilocano. Plain language was most celebrated in his house growing up! Allan Brent Rosales is a second generation Filipinx-Canadian multidisciplinary artist. Born and raised in Mohkinstsis/Calgary, Rosales’ artist practice includes drawing, photography, painting, illustration, murals, poetry and spoken word. He has an MA in art therapy and has worked in artsbased organizations and community healthcare settings for over 15 years.

riting lets me be a magician. One who can ease time’s brisk movement and pause. I become witness to the unfolding quietness of otherwise-forgettable moments, the nuances that shape and transform us. Then I use this borrowed sorcery to dig around. Sifting through words until I find softness, stretching into the places where there is, at last, belonging. Working at my kitchen table, I ask the questions I most want to know. What is it to be alive and on this shared journey? What does it mean to be brave, in an ordinary way? Answers arrive knotted, slow to unfurl into story.

Kirti Bhadresa lives in Mohkinstsis/Calgary on Treaty 7 Territory with her husband, two kids, and two dogs. She has been recently published in the Quarantine Review, Short Edition’s short story dispensers, Thin Air Magazine, The Fiddlehead and Prairie Fire. Bhadresa has always wanted to be a writer.

APRIL – JUNE 2022

FEATURE

DUANE RADFORD

MARKETING YOURSELF It’s all about making connections PHOTO BY ADRIENNE RADFORD

A little bit of hustle goes a long way!

—Ambulance chaser adage

’m a former president of the Outdoor Writers of Canada and chairman of their board of directors. I’ve been writing travel articles for magazines and newspapers, as well as fish and wild game recipes and stories for outdoor periodicals, since 1995. I started from scratch and seldom wrote over 10 magazine or newspaper articles a year. I now have 1000+ magazine articles and nine books to my credit. I began freelance writing before I retired from my former day job by making connections with publishers beforehand, so I could subsequently contact them during their working hours. It’s practically impossible to make meaningful contacts if you’re working full time. I’ve long been a professional photographer, too. I made most of my income from the sale of images during my formative years, which drove my business as a freelance writer for several years. It’s easier to sell stories if you have good photo support. Showcasing my pictures in magazines led to several contract photo shoots. The outdoor articles generated a string of magazine cover photos that paid well. The articles and cover photos spawned paid speaking engagements and seminars. I’d get unsolicited queries for images—

THE WRITERS’ GUILD OF ALBERTA

which I sold for a fee—from people I did not know from all over North America. Publication of my images led to an offer to join a leading Canadian stock photo agency. I made money from sales before business crashed and the agency folded last year. The travel writing industry also nosedived. It used to be great but has all but disappeared. At one time, syndicated newspapers would pick up the same travel story for “second rights,” each paying publication fees. Life was good, but as the cliché goes, “all good things must come to an end.”

an “outdoor” writer, I am not bound by this genre. I’ve written scientific papers based on my connections and reports for government departments, all under contract thanks to my science background. I also have an extensive network of professionals who are a great source of information that can be factored into query letters. Further, I have a working relationship with many magazine editors across Canada—they’re my pipeline into the publishing world. I used to have a similar network with American publishers, but I’ve found they’re primarily focused on their

A competent writer should be able to write on any subject. While I’m an “outdoor” writer, I am not bound by this genre. It’s difficult for budding freelance writers to break into the market. I’ve had to adapt to ever-changing business opportunities. Income has shrunk. This was made worse because copyright royalties decreased by about 75 percent since 2012 because copyright rulings favoured educational institutions at the expense of creators. A competent writer should be able to write on any subject. While I’m 22

regional market, so I seldom bother approaching them anymore. If you’ve got a good story though, don’t overlook the American market, which pays well and in U.S. funds. I wrote 25 articles for The Canadian Fly Fisher magazine (now defunct). Ross Shickler, an American, subscribed to the publication. He liked my writing and approached me to co-author a book with him about fishing in northern Canada.

FEATURE I’d earlier co-authored Conservation Pride and Passion with Don Meredith, about the history of the Alberta Fish and Game Association. I knew how much work co-authoring a book amounted to. I declined Shickler’s offer because he lived in California, and I thought it would be a tough go. Sadly, he passed away. His widow, Merrie Lyn, asked me to finish his book. I couldn’t say no, and we published Fishing Northern Canada for Lake Trout, Grayling and Arctic Char. It’s all about connections—who knows you, more than who you know! Writing connections have a domino effect. A few years ago, a local publisher approached me to write a book, based on a referral from another publisher

I’d written magazine articles for. The magazine publisher gave the book publisher the names of three authors. After a luncheon interview, I got the job to write The Cowboy Way, one of the most enjoyable jobs I’ve experienced. This is another informal way to make connections. I’ve subsequently written several books for this same local press. If you want to become an author, you must make connections. Join organizations like the Writer’s Guild of Alberta, and sign up with LinkedIn to get your name out there. Attend media events hosted by travel agencies. Take advantage of media fam (familiarization) trips offered by Canadian tourism departments. Go to trade shows and

talk yourself up with vendors. Learn how to hustle! It’s all about marketing yourself—study market trends, develop story ideas and take advantage of opportunities as they arise. Good luck! A multiple award-winning writer and photographer, Duane Radford has written 1000+ magazine articles, newspaper travel articles, and fish and wild game recipes, plus nine books, five of which have won awards. His most recent book, Canadian Outdoor Survival Guide, was published in 2021. Radford started freelance writing and photography in 1995. He is a member of the Writers’ Guild of Alberta. Radford lives in Edmonton, Alberta, with his wife, Adrienne.

In Memoriam

JAN TRUSS

It is with deep sadness that we share the news of the death of Jan Truss. Jan was among the first 35 writers to gather at the University of Alberta on June 21, 1980, where the idea of creating the Writers’ Guild of Alberta (WGA) began (Source: “The Writer’s Life,” Alberta Views, 2001). Jan also served on the WGA board of directors in 1980-81 with inaugural president, Rudy Wiebe. The following is from Jan’s obituary:

JAN TRUSS, SPRUCE MEADOWS, CALGARY, 1988

An award-winning author, Jan taught literature, art and music to students in Alberta before she began writing her own stories. In 1972, she won the Alberta Search for a Novelist competition with Bird at the Window. A Very Small Rebellion was her second novel, originally published in 1977, and her third novel, Jasmin, won the Ruth Schwartz Award. Her other novels include Summer Goes Riding, Red and Peter’s Moccasins. Her short stories have appeared in such magazines as Redbook, Chatelaine, on CBC radio, and in various collections. As Jan wrote in her book Paper Bird—

“ I watched the silent moon passing and whispered over and over my first Latin word, that verb—renascor, renascor—thinking I understood what it truly meant for me, my forever.’” The WGA extends its deepest sympathy to Jan’s family and friends. She will be missed by the literary community.

APRIL – JUNE 2022

FEATURE

REJECTION = SUCCESS The road to success is paved with rejections WestWord invited members to send their best rejection stories—needless to say, none were rejected.

DAN ST. YVES

In 2003/2004 (flush with national and local publishing success for my humourwriting), I tried testing the U.S. market. At that time, Canada had declined to join the U.S. in the war that they had recently launched with Iraq. The rejection I received from one market had a handwritten note from the submissions editor following the typical boilerplate reply letter: Peace. I’ll never know if that was a snapback or a show of respect for Canada’s stand, but it sure stood out from the other unoriginal rejections over the years.

LEE KVERN I entered a 24-hour short story contest earlier in my writing career. My writing sample was initially refused, then a couple of days later, the organizer of the contest called back and said they’d allow me into the contest if I still wanted to participate. THE WRITERS’ GUILD OF ALBERTA

The idea being that you and the other participates were to spend any or all of the 24 hours crafting a short story in person on site. In exchange, they’d feed, coffee and water us. A one-page note was allowed. I left my young children at home with my young husband and went in to write. Twenty-two hours later, I emerged: exhausted, fully wrecked, but well fed and enormously happy for the opportunity. The organizer called the next day to tell me I’d won the contest. I was ecstatic. And to further ice my writing cake, one of the judges was a publisher and asked if I had anything else kicking around. I published my first book via him. Also attended my first workshop at the Banff Centre because another judge was a program director there. This, after 25 years of writing, is my most memorable rejection, lol.

ANNA SHANNON

LISE MAYNE

My story simmers, uncherished, seethes.

We writers are sensitive, deeply affected by our environment. We “see feelingly,” to quote Shakespeare. Our drive often stems from a need to prove we’re worthy. Thus, rejection bites to the bone. I struggle against my feelings, even after many years. Rejection letters, kindly worded, hurt, nonetheless. “We received hundreds of submissions…” equals “amongst those, yours failed.” Or: “You’re almost there—try again.” Really? A writer in residence once said to me: “Yours isn’t a REAL poem. Here’s one.” How do we keep going? Fortunately, that poem has now been published, twice. Here’s my best rejection letter. Take it personally. 24

“We shall be happy to feature your story in the April 2021 issue.” But they didn’t. No issue ensued. My email to them bounced. I DM to their actively posting IG. “…personal issues…your story’s in safe hands.” My bio notes a “forthcoming.” One year later, URL’s expired. No new posts, but there’s a green dot: “ Active now.” I won’t DM the social media volunteer. I’m not in the mood for assuagement. Not rejected. Ghosted, strung along, slighted. Keep your reasons. It roars to be told. I declare to the unreachable: I hereby withdraw my story.

KAT CAMERON The rejection began as an acceptance. In 2016, [the publisher] accepted my second book of poetry, titled Lightning Over Wyoming. Publication was scheduled for fall 2017. Then [the publisher] ghosted me. For over a year, I sent multiple emails and letters, but nobody from [the publisher] responded. They rejected my book through silence. After my contract expired, I sent a revised manuscript to the University of Alberta Press, which published the

FEATURE collection as Ghosts Still Linger in 2020. Ghosts Still Linger was nominated for a WGA award and won the High Plains Book Award in 2021.

FELICIA ZUNIGA

BARB HOWARD

This is a very hard letter to write, but our reading committee did not choose your manuscript. There was an unusually high number of submissions, and the selection process was very difficult for our four readers. We have had to turn away a lot of high-quality work.

Pasting two of my writing rejection stories here. Feel free to edit or, dare I say, reject. My most enigmatic rejection came in a one-sentence letter about a novel manuscript. It said: “This doesn’t sound like Barb Howard.” The rejection I am most proud of came on a scrap of paper clipped to my (presumably-rejected) short story. The hand-written note said: “For your sake, I hope you are not as weird as your story.”

Like most writers, I’ve received heaps of standard rejection emails. However, below is one that stood out.

Submitting poems for consideration is a show of courage and vulnerability. Thank you for that. Rejection letters are a part of every writer’s life—which means writers that succeed are the ones that keep going regardless. It is a writer’s job to persist, so persist!

WESTWORD SUBMISSION GUIDELINES Guidelines for Writers

HOW TO SUBMIT AN ARTICLE

• Send your article by email to editor@writersguild.ab.ca with the subject: “WestWord Article.” • Please use Times New Roman, 12-point font, and double-space and paginate your document. • Name your file as “[Surname]—[Title]” (for example: “Smith—Untitled”). • Attach your submission as .doc or .docx files. • We suggest your article be between 800 and 1,450 words in length.

• We buy first Canadian serial print rights and limited, non-exclusive digital rights; copyright reverts to the author after publication. • Publication occurs within a year of acceptance. • WestWord believes writers should be compensated fairly for their work and pays industry rates for articles.

HOW TO SUBMIT A LETTER TO THE EDITOR Letters to the editor are welcomed to encourage an exchange of ideas and opinions among members. • Email enquiries to editor@writersguild.ab.ca with the subject: “WestWord Letter to the Editor.” • The body of your email should contain your name and contact information.

HOW TO SUBMIT A PROPOSAL In addition to commissioned articles, WestWord welcomes unsolicited submissions. • Your proposal should express concisely and coherently the article’s essential elements; how you intend to approach the article; the section of the magazine best suited to the idea; and a summary of your credentials (no CVs please). • Email enquiries to editor@writersguild.ab.ca with the subject: “WestWord Article Proposal.” • The body of your email should contain your name, contact information, brief biography and outline of your proposal. • WestWord has a small staff. The response time to all proposals will vary.

MEMBER NEWS SUBMISSIONS Writers’ Guild of Alberta members in good standing may submit announcements about book publications, awards won, or other news about their writing life to the Member News section of WestWord. Submit news via email to mail@writersguild.ca. Questions? Email editor@writersguild.ab.ca

APRIL – JUNE 2022

THE COMMUNITY

MEMBER NEWS Writers’ Guild of Alberta members are encouraged to submit news about their recent publications. Please keep your submission brief—up to 150 words. Content may be edited to conform to WestWord style. Katie Bickell is thrilled to announce that her novel, Always Brave, Sometimes Kind, won the 2021 Indie Author Project (IAP) Award for Alberta. Sponsored in partnership with Library Journal and Biblioboard, the IAP is a community throughout North America that includes public libraries, authors, curators, and readers working to connect library patrons with great indie-published books. The IAP regional awards identify and celebrate the best indie books available to readers, so they can be circulated to library patrons with confidence. 2021 is the first year Alberta has participated in the award. Prizes include $1,000 and inclusion in Library Journal’s January 2022 issue. Always Brave, Sometimes Kind (Brindle & Glass, September 2020) received the Alberta Literary Award’s 2020 Georges Bugnet Award for Fiction and was shortlisted for the 2020 ReLit Award for fiction. Edmonton writer Peter Fratesi is pleased to announce the publication of his second novel, The Devil’s Doctrine—A Hale PI Novel (Fiction4All). The murder mystery revolves around a series of brutal, bizarre murders in and around contemporary New Orleans. Three levels of police, including the FBI’s Violent Crimes Unit, struggle to comprehend, let alone, solve the murders. The story features surprising twists and turns that challenge readers’ sleuthing skills, including the discovery of a shocking, dark secret deep in Louisiana’s history. Also featured are the intense inner struggles and growth of its two main characters, PI Jeremy Hale and his partner, criminal profiler Monica Sauvé. The novel is available as an eBook, paperback THE WRITERS’ GUILD OF ALBERTA

and audiobook on fiction4all.com and major internet book sites. For reviews and information, please visit peterfratesi.com. Home at the Office: Working Remotely as a Way of Life by Barbori Garnet was recently released by Atmosphere Press. What if I told you that working remotely can lead to increased freedom, flexibility, and independence in your life? Many people feel stuck working 9-to-5 or being tied to a geographical location because of their job. Home at the Office will help you work remotely through any age and stage of life, understand the work-from-home mindset, learn the skills and character traits needed for remote work, discover the seven different types of working from home, and more. Bringing over 10 years of work-fromhome experience in writing, marketing, and music, Garnet invites you to join her as she shares how you can enjoy the rewards of freedom, flexibility, and independence found by working remotely. Garnet is a writer, artist, musician, and gardener based in Alberta. Visit her at BarboriGarnet.com. Like pesky wasps buzzing circles around us, people who act as if they’re the sole expert on a subject put us on edge. We bristle at their arrogant, rigid certainty and refusal to change their minds in the face of abundant evidence that should give reason to pause. Thief of Reason, by Judy Johnson, opens with a gripping scene of rising tension during a family dinner conversation. Polarized viewpoints spark a heated argument between an intolerant, dogmatic father and his son, Rick, a bright, 28-year-old university student who’s determined to understand his fractured relationship with his father and capture the heart of his new love—a political neophyte who, unlike himself, is religious. Johnson peers through a powerful psychological lens that’s original, compelling, and insightful. She skillfully contrasts closed-minded 26

characters with those who are more openminded, respectful, and inclusive—those who get second dinner invitations. For information, visit dogmatism.ca. My Dancing Feet (Eman Books, 2021), written by Dianne KoebelPede, and illustrated by Jupiters Muse, is now available through Amazon and Goodreads. A personalized version is available through Emanbooks.com. This beautifully illustrated rhyming celebration of dance invites the young reader to be the star of the story. Join your special dancer on their journey through practice and mishaps to the year-end performance. Pages at the back allow the dancer to record their special memories. Makes a great Christmas, birthday, or year-end recital gift. Available at emanbooks.com and goodreads.com/book/ show/59437873-my-dancing-feet. David Mannes is pleased to announce the release of his new science fiction novel, Silverdome (Clublighthouse Publishing, Toronto). Former members of Majic-12 are being killed. The only clue, the sign of the Black Sun, an old Nazi group. What does Argentinian industrialist Johan Silbermuzen or Silverdome have to do with this? Damien Wynter needs to find out before the Fourth Reich launches its world takeover. From the back halls of Washington to Buenos Aires to the frozen wasteland of Antarctica, Damien Wynter finds an enemy he may not defeat. Find Silverdome at clublighthousepublishing.com. Elena Schacherl is happy to announce the launch of her new novel, Beach of the Dead (Europe Books, 2022). Escaping a crumbling marriage and a frigid Calgary winter, Shari Shapiro—a retired

THE COMMUNITY teacher and an Italian Jewish immigrant— flees to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. Despite the lush, vibrant surroundings, she grieves her mother’s death. Since family ghosts appear whenever she enters a bathroom, death is never far from her thoughts. Yet she longs to embrace life again. She also struggles with issues faced by other baby boomers, such as retirement. Schacherl was born in Trieste, Italy, and immigrated to Canada as a young child. She now lives in Calgary, Alberta, and travels to Puerto Vallarta every winter. She has published several short stories. In 2017, “Swimming with Sharks,” was included in the art book Printed Word, on permanent exhibit at the main branch of the Calgary Public Library. Kathy Sutherland is excited to announce that her short story collection, Saying Good-bye is Easy: A Life is Short Stories, was released in September by Dream Write Publishing of Sherwood Park. These emotionally authentic stories relate the experiences of a young woman from a Canadian military family who sets out to find her place in the world in the 1960s. Along the way, she discovers patterns of helplessness that trap her in unhappiness until she unearths self-empowerment and growth by reframing her life in writing. The stories we tell ourselves and others shape our lives and what we believe about the world. Recreating events from the past gives us meaning and invites forgiveness and hope into our hearts. This book may be of interest to authors, readers and kindred spirits who found inspiration for their stories with Saga Seminars. Saying Good-bye is available from Amazon, the publisher or the author.

Tell us about your recent publications. Send your notice to Ellen Kartz at the Writers’ Guild of Alberta– ellen.kartz@writersguild.ab.ca

Welcome to Our

NEW WGA MEMBERS Sarah Adams, Calgary

Skylar Kay, Windsor

Ashley Alton, Edmonton

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Leslie Archer, Okotoks

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Derek Beaulieu, Banff

Elizabeth Marchak, Edmonton

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Carys Menard, Calgary

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Matthew Morrison, Calgary

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Karen O'Sullivan Cookson, Calgary

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APRIL – JUNE 2022

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Thank you to all our generous

DONORS & SPONSORS FRIENDS (UP TO $99) Patricia Atchison Diane Armstrong Natasha Backs James Ballard Bonny Beswick Sheila Birmingham Ted Bishop Shirley Black Astrid Blodgett Kate Boorman Ali Bryan Eric Bryer Jean Buchanan Eleanor Byers Lorraine Cathro Judith Clark Pamela Clark Joan Crate Jean Crozier Dolly Dennis Beth Everest Krystyna Fedosejevs Joan Marie Galat Susan Glasier Nora Gould Janelle Grue Jacqueline Guest Richard Harrison Amber Hayward Faye Holt Hazel Hutchins Nancy Jackle

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SUSTAINING PATRON ($100 - $499) Mona Bacon In memory of Gonda Bosscher Bres on behalf of the University of Manitoba, Partnerships & Innovation Office Ann Campbell Canadian Literature Centre Jim Conley Lisa Cook Charlotte Corothers Ruth DyckFehderau Edmonton Poetry Festival Karen Farkas Marilyn Fleger Raymond Gariepy Leslie Greentree Trudy Grienauer Lori Hahnel Brian Hitchon Carol Holmes Bruce Hunter Marlene Kadar Jo-Ann Kolmes Olga Krochak Sulkin Angela Kublik Dennis Lee Anne Logan Jodi MacAulay Alice Major Dan Martin Brent McConnell Kerry McKinnon

Peter Midgley Kerry Mitchell Elaine Morin Taryn Pawluk Rachelle Pinnow Priority Printing Holly Quan RIO Kids’ Writing Club Lori D. Roadhouse Sandy Romanow Julie Sedivy Kathy Seifert Shirley Serviss Anne Sorbie Patsy Wiebe Wordfest Young Alberta Book Society Marjorie Zelent

ASSOCIATE PATRON ($500 - $999) AAlberta Magazine Publishers Association Calgary Public Library Ann Goldblatt Betty Jane Hegerat Barb Howard Shaun Hunter Margaret Macpherson Blaine Newton Owl’s Nest Books L. Deborah Sword Aritha van Herk

PATRON ($1,000 & UP) Alexandra Writers’ Centre Society Rona Altrows Amber Webb-Bowerman Foundation ArtsVest Stephan V. Benediktson The John Patrick Gillese Fund at Edmonton Community Foundation Vivian Hansen Randy Henderson Greg Hickmore Richard and Beatrice Kerr Mary Anne King Jeananne Kathol Kirwin LLP Deborah and Steve Leighton Joan McMillan Pandemic School of Writing Inc. RBC Foundation Rosza Foundation Marilyn and Bob Stallworthy Nhung Tran-Davies Under the Arch Youth Foundation WGA Board of Directors

READY FOR SUMMER?

WordsWorth 2022 A week-long creative writing residency for creative youth ages 11-19 who believe in the power of words.

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Wordsworth is committed to creating a safe, inclusive and diverse learning community that allows the campers to learn and interpret the world in which we live through dialogue, social interaction and hands-on activities.

SAVE THE DATE

ALBERTA LITERARY AWARDS GALA 2022 Saturday, June 11

City View Ballroom (Holiday Inn Express Downtown) 10010 - 104 St. Edmonton, AB TICKETS: WRITERSGUILD.CA