Left Coast Poetry Beat: DTES Writers' Collective

Column by Bill Arnott Western Canada’s poetry scene teems with talent, from neophytes to award-laden laureates. Authors of every facet share spoken word, competitive slam, and rapier-sharp contemporary as writers and fans converge in person, print, online and on airwaves. This is not a list of writing/reading groups or events. It’s subjective, personal experience – people and…

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2019 Book Awards: Winners Announcement

The League of Canadian Poets is proud to present the 2019 Book Awards Winners, including the Gerald Lampert Memorial Award, the Pat Lowther Memorial Award, and the Raymond Souster Award. The winners – who will each receive $2000 thanks to funding from Canada Council for the Arts , Ontario Arts Council, Toronto Arts Council, and Canada Book Fund – will be announced…

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ASK A SHORTLISTER: What keeps you going as a writer?

We asked the poets shortlisted for our 2019 Book Awards some questions about their writing lives, inspirations and -of course – poetry. Join us for our weekly series Ask a Shortlister until the winners are announced on June 8, 2019. *** What keeps you going as a writer? Mikko Harvey: Writing is one of my main methods of processing experience. Writing allows me to pull some things closer…

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Postcard: a desert sestina by Jennifer Zilm

Hey you!—this postcard, like every other, is just fragment of a larger journey. Stepping over the threshold of the plane, I entered this hot room of a country. Seen entire the desert seems soft but the sand is sharp to touch, like turning hard snow with bare hands when I was a small girl. Old…

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THE SHORTLIST IN CONVERSATION: Adam Dickinson & Alice Major

The Shortlist in Conversation is a series in which poets shortlisted for the League’s 2019 Book Awards engage with each other’s works and talk poetry. In this installment, Adam Dickinson, author of Anatomic (Coach House Books) and Alice Major, author of Welcome to the Anthropocene (University of Alberta Press) – both collections shortlisted for the 2019 Raymond Souster…

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ASK A SHORTLISTER: When is a collection of poems finished?

We asked the poets shortlisted for our 2019 Book Awards some questions about their writing lives, inspirations and -of course – poetry. Join us for our weekly series Ask a Shortlister until the winners are announced on June 8, 2019. *** How do you know when a collection of poems is finished? Mikko Harvey: Individual poems, in their quiet way, tell you when they…

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REVIEWING THE SHORTLIST: Welcome to the Anthropocene | By Alice Major

University of Alberta Press | 2018 | 136 Page | $19.95 | Purchase online Reviewed by Jenny Haysom Reviewing the Shortlist is a weekly series in which poets shortlisted for our 2019 Book Awards review books written by their peers. Join us for this series until the award winners are announced on June 8, 2019! In this week’s installment,…

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REVIEWING THE SHORTLIST: Welcome to the Anthropocene | By Alice Major

University of Alberta Press | 2018 | 136 Page | $19.95 | Purchase online Reviewed by Jenny Haysom Reviewing the Shortlist is a weekly series in which poets shortlisted for our 2019 Book Awards review books written by their peers. Join us for this series until the award winners are announced on June 8, 2019! In this week’s installment,…

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ASK A SHORTLISTER: Community

We asked the poets shortlisted for our 2019 Book Awards some questions about their writing lives, inspirations and -of course – poetry. Join us for our weekly series Ask a Shortlister until the winners are announced on June 8, 2019. ***   What is the importance of community to your writing life?   Jenny Haysom: I’m reclusive by nature––a lone…

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ASK A SHORTLISTER: How did poetry become part of your life?

We asked the poets shortlisted for our 2019 Book Awards some questions about their writing lives, inspirations and -of course – poetry. Join us for our weekly series Ask a Shortlister until the winners are announced on June 8, 2019. *** How did poetry become part of your life? Tanis Franco: In Ontario elementary school we had to memorize In…

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