WRITE

THE MAGAZINE OF THE WRITERS’

UNION OF VOLUME 40 NUMBER 3 CANADA WINTER 2013

Idle No More: Indigenous Writers Rising 12

Writing the Family: Perils, Promises and Payoffs 17

Copyright Update: The Latest on Fair Dealing 21 WRITE Support the new Write!

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 write From the Chair By Merilyn Simonds

According to the Mayan calendar, as I write this the world is supposed to be ending in a few days, which tempts me to ignore deadlines. But the thought of you reading this, safely ensconced in 2013, keeps my fingers on the keyboard, eager to

tell you about the last few very busy months. • Edmonton writers suggested we do something dramatic to get First, we have a new Executive Director. The Executive of the government’s attention during our AGM in Ottawa in May, National Council formed a search committee, together with “to show the population that writers are thoughtful, reflective Siobhan O’Connor, TWUC’s Associate Director, and former Chair imaginative people, deeply concerned about our world.” Alan Cumyn. We had an excellent field of candidates from which • Saskatoon writers said writers should connect directly with to choose, and from among those we unanimously selected John teachers because many do not support their administration’s Degen, a man of great experience and skill, who took the reins view of copyright licensing. firmly in hand on November 26. John is especially knowledgeable on copyright, the key issue • Winnipeg writers argued for closer association between facing us as writers today. As fresh fires erupt, we continue provincial writers’ organizations and TWUC, perhaps with fighting at the front, while developing a campaign that we hope quarterly information sharing sessions such as former will see writers universally and fairly compensated for the use of executive director Kelly Duffin initiated with our sister their work. international writing organizations. For six weeks this fall, as the copyright bombs fell and at least • Waterloo members want more regional meetings to learn one major publisher declared insolvency, I travelled the western about the Union’s advocacy work. provinces, Ontario and Quebec, meeting with writers — members and those who want to know more about what we do. A few other • Toronto writers urged us to post a generic election toolkit TWUC chairs have taken themselves across the country: Betty so members across the country can promote the arts during Jane Wylie in 1988; Dave Williamson in 1992; Bill Freeman municipal, provincial, and federal elections. in 2004. Betty Jane talked about sleeping on friends’ couches, • North Bay suggested TWUC keep an updated list on its meeting in coffee shops. Not much has changed. Even so, for me, website of universities and colleges that have NOT signed as for those other Chairs, it was a profound experience. agreements with Access Copyright, so members can monitor Writers gathered in living rooms, in a bakery, a bookstore, a the institutions they work for. university board room. The same concerns were voiced again and again: alarm at the theft of copyright material; despair at • Montreal writers said the Union should post recommended the challenges of digital publishing, ebooks, and the need for compensation rates for members who are approached self-promotion; concern about Canadian books in schools and individually by teachers for permission to photocopy their Canadian content in the media; dismay at the lack of progress work. within the Union on cultural diversity and the growing gender imbalance (again!) in reviewing and prizes. So many good ideas! We are already following up on several. Discouraging? Yes, a little. But writers are irrepressible; they What was especially heartening was the tremendous support look for ways to make the plot come out right, and so every for TWUC’s advocacy activities, and the deep desire to meet and discussion was enlivened with innovative ideas. share information and ideas. Grassroots engagement is always a challenge with an • Vancouver writers suggested our web designers develop a organization as far-flung as ours, but all voices need to be heard flagging system on the new Forums to indicate to NC where — young and old, from every genre, every gender, every cultural action is needed. background. Our new online forums will provide the opportunity for • Whitehorse writers suggested trying to institute the copyright everyone to engage on issues vital to writers. If you want to get income deduction in the Yukon: if several regions have it, the more involved, consider joining one of the Task Forces or run federal government might be more inclined to consider this for a position on National Council as an Advocate or Second Vice tax incentive for creators. Chair. Mail-in nominations close on February 28, but candidates • Calgary writers suggested making the first year of for these positions can be nominated from the floor of the AGM. membership free to writers from minority backgrounds. Lots of time yet to throw your hat into the ring! They also cheered the notion of One Big Union, an umbrella I’ll be heading through Ontario this winter and east in the group to increase our voice, bring solidarity, and eliminate spring. If you’d like to host me in your region, please write me at

Ph oto : M arli s F un k duplication of services to writers. [email protected]. I’m eager to continue the conversation.

WINTER 2013 

national council Nominating Chair Susan Crean and Merilyn Simonds Myrna Kostach First Vice-Chair Race Issues Dorris Heffron Wali Alam Shaheen Contents WINTER 2013 Second Vice-Chair Rights and Freedoms Genni Gunn Ron Brown Treasurer Status of Women Writers 3 Chair’s Report Silver Donald Cameron Betty Jane Wylie 5 Executive Directions BC/Yukon Representative membership committee Michael Elcock Jillian Dagg (Chair) 6 News Alberta/NWT/Nunavut Norma Charles Representative Kathryn Kuitenbrouwer Writer’s Blot Glenn Dixon John Parr Ann Walsh 8 Writer’s Prompt Manitoba/Saskatchewan Representative twuc national office 9 Industry Q+A Anita Daher Executive Director Ontario Representative John Degen, ext. 221 Dispatches Steve Pitt [email protected] 10 @IFOA as a @TWUC #Delegate Quebec Representative Associate Director By Farzana Doctor Joyce Laird Scharf Siobhan O’Connor, ext. 222 Atlantic Representative [email protected] 12 Idle No More: Indigenous Writers Rising Lee D. Thompson Office Administrator By Paul Seesequasis Advocates Valerie Laws, ext. 224 13 Seven Writers Come Together in a YA First-of-Its-Kind Douglas Arthur Brown [email protected] Project Eric Enno Tamm Membership and Fund Katherine Gordon Development Coordinator By Eric Walters Nancy MacLeod, ext. 226 committee chairs [email protected] 15 Back to the Wilderness: In Poland, Canadian Government Contracts Cuts Threaten to Quash a Growing Field of Study Maggie Siggins Projects Coordinator Kristen Gentleman, ext. 223 By Eugenia Sojka Curriculum and Libraries [email protected] Ted Barris Pacific Coordinator Features Electronic Rights/Copyright Raquel Alvaro Bill Freeman 17 Resurrecting the Dead Or, Writing about Family [email protected] International Affairs BY Wayne Grady Webmaster Gale Zoë Garnett Elaine Wong 19 Too True to be Good: The Consequences of Writing Grievance [email protected] Memoir Barbara Killinger BY Leslie Shimotakahara Editor Hal Niedzviecki [email protected] 21 Copyright Updates: What You Need to Know Now Deadline for Winter issue March 10, 2013 Editorial Liasons Silver Donald Cameron, Wayne Grady, Kelly-Anne Reiss BY Jeananne kathol kirwin Copy Editor Alison Lang 24 On Writers & Retreats Write Magazine Advertising Kristen Gentleman [email protected] BY Lawrence Scanlan Design soapboxdesign.com Fiction Cover Illustration Patrick Dias Views expressed in Write do not necessarily reflect those of The Writers’ Union 26 The Meaning of Yellow of Canada. Services advertised are not necessarily endorsed by the Union. All by ursula pflug submissions are welcome. We acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts, which last year invested $154 million to bring the arts to Canadians throughout Canada. business & reports 29 Committee Reports We acknowledge the support of the Ontario Arts Council (OAC), an agency of 33 Provincial Reports the Government of Ontario, which last year funded 1,681 individual artists in 216 communities across Ontario for a total of $52.8 million. 35 Member Awards and News 36 New Members

34 in memoriam Write is produced four times yearly by The Writers’ Union of Canada, 200 – 90 Richmond Street East, Toronto, Ontario, M5C 1P1, T 416.703.8982, F 416.504.9090, [email protected], www.writersunion.ca. © The Writers’ Union of Canada, 2012. The text paper used for this issue contains 100 % post-consumer fibre, is accredited EcoLogo and Processed Chlorine Free, and processed in a mill that uses biogas. If you would like to help us save on paper, please contact [email protected] or 416-703- 8982 ext. 223 to request future on-line editions of the Newsletter. Thank you.

FSC LOGO to  write Be plce by the printer Executive Directions Leading TWUC’s Fight for Copyright By John Degen

Two weeks before taking my desk in the TWUC offices, I walked protest, diplomacy over direct action; but, after a decade of having uninvited into an Association of Canadian Community Colleges our reasoned debate ignored, and our diplomatic insistence seminar to deliver TWUC’s Statement on Fair Dealing. I was scoffed at, we are in exactly the position you see in that video. That accompanied by TWUC members Kathryn Kuitenbrouwer, Hal doesn’t mean there’s no room left for discussion and respectful Niedzviecki (also the editor of this magazine), and a professional advocacy; but we certainly can’t let these doors stay closed. If cameraman. We intended to make a short presentation about others won’t open them for us, we need to push them open. the importance of copyright licensing, hand out TWUC’s official As I write this, Ministries of Education from across the country Statement on Fair Dealing, maybe answer a few questions and are preparing to abandon collective licensing for the copying of then politely leave. Instead, we met an unresponsive wall of our work in K-12 schools. Many colleges and universities have administrative indifference and were threatened with trespassing already adopted the new “fair dealing” policies being discussed in charges. the room TWUC entered and was promptly barred from. What It was a somewhat surreal but quite appropriate (I think) start to you don’t see in that video is the fact that the lawyer leading the my new role as Executive Director of the Union. “fair dealing” seminar for college administrators sat right beside As a novelist, poet, playwright, professional freelance writer me in front of a Senate sub-committee last June and assured and creator affiliate of Access Copyright, I’ve been following everyone in the room that writers had nothing to fear from the quite closely the long and tortured process of copyright reform in pending legislation. When I asked her at the seminar about her Canada. As the father of twin boys, with a Toronto mortgage and previous testimony, she said “I have no comment for you.” all the standard bills to pay, I’m someone who looks anxiously into This is happening. the mailbox every autumn, wondering when the Payback cheque Despite all of the determined advocacy of TWUC and its sister will arrive. organizations. Despite a decade of reasoned diplomacy and I’ve written in support of writers’ copyright in the Globe and evidence-based argumentation, despite the fact that nothing Mail, the Hill Times, Quill & Quire, Straight Goods, THIS Magazine, fundamental about copyright protection has actually changed, and in hundreds of blog postings on my own and others’ websites educational budget-makers have decided to roll the dice on over the last eight years or so. I’ve argued on behalf of my own creating a new legal precedent that would excuse them from copyright in online fora; in public presentations at schools, paying for copying substantial chunks of your work. Educational colleges, and universities; and before the Senate of Canada. administrations are off-loading liability for copyright infringement Despite all my own effort and the work of so many admired to their teachers and students, and are gambling that writers are copyright advocates around the world, I’ve watched as bit by too poor to sue for redress. bit, the rights of writers to protect and profit from their own The worst-case outcome from this organized copyright grab hard work and creative invention have been leached of any real is not just that your next few Access Copyright cheques will be authority, our long-established licensing agreements thrown in much smaller before they disappear for good. The most likely and the bin of free culture. most depressing outcome is that Canadian teachers will simply Perhaps you’ve already seen the video we recorded of the stop assigning Canadian readings to their students. Without the TWUC intervention (http://tinyurl.com/copyfair). It’s received legal assurance of a blanket licence, and without the support of thousands of views on YouTube and as many if not more through their administration, what teacher has the time, energy or legal the Facebook and Twitter platforms, and through embedded links expertise to clear copyright on her own? on many prominent copyright discussion blogs. I’ve been emailed TWUC’s intervention into that ACCC seminar is our new and messaged and phoned and pulled aside at meetings by many starting point. From here, we open up new discussions — with in the cultural sector who quietly wanted to express their thanks to students, with the parents of students, with teachers, librarians, Write is produced four times yearly by The Writers’ Union of Canada, TWUC for taking this action. and professors; with everyone who will be negatively affected by 200 – 90 Richmond Street East, Toronto, Ontario, M5C 1P1, I know not every TWUC member agrees with the thinking this cynical and needless cost-cutting. Parliament must review T 416.703.8982, F 416.504.9090, [email protected], www.writersunion.ca. behind the video. To those members, I want to say that I certainly the recent Copyright law changes in five years. We should all © The Writers’ Union of Canada, 2012. don’t enjoy confrontation, and being kicked out of an airport be spending those five years monitoring and recording the hotel on a Monday morning ranks fairly low on my professional damage to our work, but also building new partnerships and new satisfaction scale. My preference always is rational discussion over agreements with those who want to use our work.

WINTER 2013  The Latest on Writing and Publishing News in Canada and Beyond

Publishing House Chairman and CEO Marcus Dohle Incorporated as a not-for-profit — who it is speculated will become the organization in 2012, The National Penguin and Random House Merge CEO of the new company — sent a letter Reading Campaign is led by chair and to literary agents assuring them that founder of Groundwood Books Patsy On October 29, 2012, publishing giants under the new arrangement Random Aldana, vice-chair and co-founder of Random House and Penguin joined House and Penguin will retain distinct Annick Press Rick Wilks and vice-chair to form the world’s largest publishing identities and “you and your clients will and founder and president of Orca Book company. Forming Penguin Random benefit from an extraordinary breadth of Publishers Bob Tyrrell. It is supported House, the merger will enable the publishing choices, and editorial talents by groups such as the Association of two companies to “publish even more and experience.” However, as The Daily Canadian Publishers, Canadian Urban effectively across traditional and emerging Beast points out, if the new company Libraries Council, The Writers’ Trust formats and distribution channels,” said maintains Penguin’s rules, agents will of Canada, and The Writers’ Union of Thomas Rabe, the chairman and CEO not be able to pitch to multiple imprints Canada. The mission of the campaign is of Random House’s parent company, within the group, limiting the possibilities “To sustain and grow a reading society in Bertelsmann, in a statement. for authors. which everyone living in Canada has an Even though the merger — which sees The Guardian took a positive spin on equal opportunity to become, enjoy and German-based Bertelsmann taking 53% the merger, calling it “an opportunity remain a life-long reader.” of the company and UK-based Pearson for independent publishing to prove its Since 2009, the campaign has presented (Penguin’s parent company) owning 47% vitality.” Pointing to Faber’s assistance three TD National Reading Summits — is still subject to regulatory approval of indie publisher And Other Stories which invite delegates from around the and likely won’t be finalized until late 2013, in putting out a mass market edition of world to talk about different aspects media outlets have been considering what the Man Booker shortlisted Swimming of reading. The first summit allowed this move really means for authors. Home by Deborah Levy, Gavin James delegates to compare reading plans from Many speculate that the formation Bower wrote that indies will come out on around the world. After this summit of Penguin Random House will mean top during a recession because they are seven working groups were formed to lower author advances and will see fewer willing to take risks on material deemed examine the Canadian reading landscape writers getting mainstream publishing too dangerous for the largely profit-driven and use the reading plans to suggest opportunities. The day the merger was majors. However Vancouver-based Arsenal programs and determine best practices announced, Denise Bukowski of The Pulp Press’ Publisher Brian Lam doesn’t to promote reading in Canada. The Bukowski Agency told the Globe and Mail think the merger will have any real effect 2011 summit asked delegates to discuss that she thinks publishing consolidation on indie publishers because they don’t what problems are unique to Canada in will have a particularly negative effect compete with the multinationals for developing a reading culture, and the most on Canadians leaving fewer submission authors. “[T]hose who choose to publish recent summit allowed participants an options for authors. “When Random with publishers like us do so because they opportunity to have input into the National House bought Doubleday, they said that know they will get our commitment and Reading Plan. you could make multiple submissions and attention for the long term,” he says. “I This year the campaign launched everyone in the group could bid against think indie presses prove their vitality with “What Are You Reading Today,” a three- each other, but they’ve stopped that,” she every new book they publish, regardless of year promotional event created to raise told the Globe. In the same piece, Bill who has merged with whom.” awareness of the importance of reading Harnum, president of the Association and to encourage all levels of government of Canadian Publishers, told the Globe PROMOTING READING to create policies to make reading available that he doesn’t think it will be much of a to all citizens. change for Canadians. “I’m not sure that National Reading Campaign The campaign this year was comprised the implication for Canadian publishers of a variety of initiatives including two is going to be all that significant. We In a partnership between libraries, contests. A children’s contest asked can’t compete with them now. Whether educators, publishers, authors and librarians and teachers to create a they’re twice as big or 12 times as big booksellers, Canada’s National Reading wall or space where children could doesn’t mean that we’re going to be able to Campaign is a four year-old project aimed post discussions and artwork about compete with them.” at developing a National Reading Plan and what they are reading. (The winning After the announcement, Random making reading a country-wide priority. libraries and schools will get one of 10

 write new book collections valued at $1,000.) Acosta who has been held without trial other sectors. Brison said that Bill C-427 Another contest open to the general in the Philippines since February 2011 should be the guinea pig for expanding public asked readers to tweet what they for writing about environmental issues; tax averaging into other areas. Only are reading to @readingcampaign with Mexican investigative journalist Regina Conservative MPs voted against the bill. #whatdidyoureadtoday in order to be Martinez who was murdered because of Using a method designed by tax experts entered into a draw to win one of 10 her reporting on organized crime and at the Library of Parliament, tax averaging Kobo eReaders. Kobo offered to donate corruption; writer and human rights allows artists who see a spike in income $1 for every tweet up to $10,000 to the lawyer Muharrem Erbey, imprisoned one year to average their earnings over the National Reading Campaign and when the in Turkey under Anti-Terror laws and previous four years in order to determine campaign closed at the end of 2012 it had journalist and blogger Eskinder Nega who a fairer taxation level. Britain, France, easily surpassed that number of tweets. To is serving 18 years on terrorism charges Germany and The Netherlands already help promote all these endeavours, writers which, according to PEN, is punishment have similar legislation. across the country were asked to change for reporting on human rights abuses in In addition to being MP for the Jeanne- their Facebook and Twitter photos to show Ethiopia. Le Ber riding in Quebec, Benskin has been themselves reading and to add “What are A number of events took place around an artist for 30 years including a stint as you reading today?” as a tagline at the end the world in honour of PEN’s day of action. the Artistic Director of the Black Theatre of their emails. For more information visit In Canada, Quebec writers performed Workshop in Montreal. nationalreadingcampaign.ca. readings of work by imprisoned writers around the globe at the Salon de Livres in International Montreal and PEN volunteers in Toronto asked passers by to have their photos taken Free Speech Training by PEN in UK with pictures of imprisoned Russian punk band Pussy Riot and Nobel Peace Laureate English PEN (the UK branch of PEN Liu Xiaobo in support of the writers’ release. International) has launched a program to train young people — age 16 to 21 — in FINANCE $ freedom of speech, project management and creative writing. The five-month Bill C-427 Promoted Tax Fairness for program entitled Speak For Yourself! PEN Canada honours imprisoned Chinese writer Artists started this October and is funded by the and Nobel Laureate Liu Xiaobo and imprisoned Esmée Fairbairn Foundation, a granting members of the Russian rock band Pussy Riot on Parliament recently rejected a bill which body that funds charitable foundations in Day of the Imprisoned Writer. would have allowed income averaging to the UK. make taxation fairer for artists. Bill C-427 Based in London, the training project Censorship — the Reflecting the Realities of Canadian was developed to accept up to 45 Artists Act — was introduced to Parliament participants and is broken out into three Day of the Imprisoned Writer as a private members bill by NDP MP sections: a free speech training section Tyrone Benskin, and was meant to protect where issues of the meaning of free speech Since 1981, PEN International has been artists from being disadvantaged financially will be explored, a creative writing training running yearly events to create awareness by high taxation in years where they are section aimed at helping participants to of writers who have been persecuted, more successful. express themselves through their writing, imprisoned, tortured or killed for their Although the bill was defeated, the vote and a projects training section where views. was relatively close. The motion to move young people learn to plan, create, and Hosted on November 15, 2012 the PEN the bill to a second reading was defeated manage a project of their choice. Day of the Imprisoned Writers highlighted 142 votes to 121. During the Parliamentary The goal of Speak For Yourself! is to the plight of journalists and writers in Iran, discussion of Bill C-427, NDP and Liberal find and nurture free speech leaders of the Philippines, Mexico, Turkey and Ethiopia. MPs defended the bill. Liberal MP Scott future. The final outcome of the intensive The organization shared the stories of Brison argued against the Conservative training sessions will be for participants to Iranian human rights activist Shiva Nazar parliamentary secretary’s rationalization create “a project that somehow challenges, Ahari who was sentenced to four years for that artists should not benefit from tax celebrates or intervenes in the debate her writing; poet and songwriter Ericson averaging when it is not available to around free speech and literature today.”

WINTER 2013  Writer’s Blot

Writer’s Prompt /

bring to life. But they can also be like crutches, propping up char- Take a Picture: It’ll Last acters who need to learn how to stand on their own. I think it’s a great idea for the writer to take pictures of the places and people and shadows and sunsets we can then use as supple- Longer ments to our sometimes faltering memories. But for the writer, it’s best if the photos remain in the background: part of the process, by Hal Niedzviecki not the end result.

Hal Niedzviecki is author of eight books and editor of Write Magazine. In an article in the literary journal Canadian Notes and Queries writer Andrew Steinmetz goes in search of the memory of his long lost Comic by Scot Ritchie uncle Michael, a refugee from Nazi Germany who later had a bit part as a Gestapo agent in The Great Escape before fading into the obscurity of an untimely death.

There’s a moment in this melancholy travelogue when Steinmetz asks the three young people working in the museum of Munich’s Bavariafilmstadt if he can take their picture. “Why of us?” one of them asks. “To help my memory,” Steinmetz responds. “Your faces will help me remember details from this day and this place.” This incident reminded me of the power of the image to fire and inspire the imagination. And yet, at the same time, the picture Steinmetz refers to does not appear in print with the essay. “Why not?” we might wonder. But in re-reading the piece I real- ize it’s a good thing. The article doesn’t need the photograph. The story is clear, the images on the page conjured up out of the pre- cise focus of the words. Nothing is gained by including the photo. At the same time, I imagine quite a bit was gained in its taking. Writers take many kinds of snapshots: mental snapshots, hand- written snapshots of scribbled messy pen scrawl, and of course, now more than ever, photos. Like our notes and ideas, the photos aren’t necessarily meant to be seen by the reader. Nor should they be. The temptation might be to include them. They show. They

 write Q &A Industry Q+A and as ebooks – what has been the response? That’s more of a question for our US company, as Harper Canada has always distributed printed copies from the other worldwide Mergers, Machines, and divisions. Ebooks makes this easier, as digital files allow for local POD in foreign markets. the Quest for the Good Have you realized your ambition to bring Canadian exports to the world? Book We’re more interested in having our Canadian authors published in other countries than we are in exporting our editions – and so by Tina Novotny many of them are being successfully published around the world.

Did publishing learn any lessons from the digitization of the music and movie industries? In conversation with We most surely have… HarperCollins Canada Is this really a time of great advantage for writers and publishers when we have the $60,000 Hilary Weston Writers’ Trust Prize for President and CEO David Non-fiction awarded to a book(A Geography of Blood: Unearthing Kent. Memory From A Prarie Landscape) from a respected publisher (Greystone Books) now in creditor protection? I would hope that a good book has a greater chance of being Will the Penguin-Random House merger published than ever before, and that recognition of excellence will change the way HarperCollins does be, or should be, recognized; however, the history of all the arts business, with the new company’s control tells us that often this may not happen immediately. of 26% of the global consumer market? What will be the biggest ripple effect in Canadian publishing? You do seem to be keeping the CanLit faith with your new Patrick The merger is more a reaction to how all businesses — and not Crean Editions. Are you hoping to sew up the “Giller Effect?” just publishing companies — need to re-examine, adapt, anticipate The “faith” that we keep is that a good book is worth publishing and change how we are structured. If form follows function, we and worth reading, and that we match that with a commitment to better be clear as to the functions of every aspect of the publishing reach the eventual reader. Everything in our business flows from chain. that. You started HarperCollins 360 this past summer to make titles published by all HarperCollins divisions available as on demand

WINTER 2013  Dispatches notes on the writing life

festivals / @IFOA as a @TWUC #Delegate

By fARZANA DOCTOR

The International Festival of Authors in Toronto nervous and choosing their words carefully. I wasn’t sure what to tweet, but I did manage to post a good photo. I remarked on invited me to be one of their TWUC delegates at Rebecca’s obsession with older religious men, Marjorie’s distracta- this year’s event. In exchange for free tickets, we bility as a source of inspiration, Leanne’s photographic and literary mash-up, and Anakana’s episodic style as a vehicle for writing were asked to tweet about events and to partici- grief. pate in debates. I was excited for the opportunity About thirty minutes in, the on-stage alchemy shifted when Anakana reacted to a debate about story. Zoe Whittall captured her to mingle with authors and to take part in words: conversations about writing and publishing. the word story bothers me...story is such a dead end...I become in- At the orientation session at the Westin Penthouse, we were in- trigued when I recognize style. Scofield structed on hashtags and encouraged to liven up on-stage conver- sations by asking questions from the floor. A number of us giggled Marjorie reacted and Kathryn Kuitenbrouwer wrote: about how our delegate badges made us feel like we belonged. It turns out that even for those of us who are pretty good at literary Things are getting a little tetchy on panel re: sentence style Thank God!! schmooze, an international authors festival can be an intimidating #ifoa conflict!! space. Someone in the audience (I couldn’t see who), chimed in with Lisa Foad just upped the interesting quotient of this debate. the example of Ulysses, which caused Lisa Foad, the delegate #IFOA sitting beside me, to stand and snark, “Oh come on! There are five We drank a couple of glasses of wine, and walked in a pack to amazing women on stage and you’re talking about Ulysses?!” This Harbourfront. The first event we were to attend was hosted by prompted Susan G. Cole to start a debate about whether women Susan G. Cole: “Basic Instinct - Style vs Content”, with Marjorie can take the same style risks as men and still get published. Celona, Rebecca Lee, Anakana Schofield, and Leanne Shapton. We took our seats and the delegates dutifully pulled out their smart @LiamCard Yay for on-stage happy tears! phones. I wished I’d come up with something as witty as Brian On Saturday, I attended “A National Literature”, moderated by Francis: James Grainger with Liam Card, A.L. Kennedy, Beatrice MacNeil, Kristel Thornell, and Irvine Welsh. The authors discussed writing I’m at the @ifoa Basic Instinct round table tonight. So far, no Sharon from their various Australian, Scottish, and Canadian perspec- Stone. tives, with the central question being whether national literatures can truly exist in an age of globalization. As the Canadians talked The round table began as they often do, the authors noticeably about identity survival motifs, I yawned and typed:

10 write This panel about a national literature lacks racial diversity. Really,‪ @ And this is what writers’ festivals are about for me. Yes, the ifoa? debates about publishing are interesting enough, but it’s the connections with other authors — the hanging out together before I was very pleased with a retweet by a fellow writer. Then I and after the events — that I valued most. wondered if I’d ever get invited back to IFOA. I think IFOA’s strategy was useful; we author delegates promot- The panel grew more animated when the authors discussed ed IFOA, enlivened the Q&As, and were included in a semi-official general writing topics. Liam Card was charmingly teary when he way even if we weren’t promoting our own work at the festival. spoke of writing for his friends versus writing for fame. Irvine Perhaps this is a model other literary festivals should replicate. Welsh opined that Trainspotting wouldn’t likely get published in And perhaps TWUC should approach festival organizers to facili- today’s more risk-averse environment. Beatrice MacNeil joked tate this. I’d tweeted the Australian writer’s words: about selling novels to folks getting off cruise ships in Cape Breton. Nick Barley tweeted about A.L. Kennedy: Kristel Thornell: Writers often feel like freaks and exiles

ALK tells long story about commercialization of writing. Punchline: IFOA was a meeting place for us freaks and exiles to create ‘more & more is effectively golf-related pornography’ community. On Twitter, but more importantly, in real life.

Despite the humour, this panel was less energetic that the previ- Farzana Doctor is a novelist and psychotherapist. Her most recent ous one. Later, a number of other author delegates and I debriefed: novel, Six Metres of Pavement, was named one of NOW Magazine’s Was it the venue (a darkened theatre)? The dull theme? Author Top Ten Books of 2011. It also won the Lambda Literary Award and was jet-lag? short-listed for the Toronto Book Award. Farzana was named as one of After, I had a chance to go for dinner with fellow delegate and CBC Books’ “Ten Canadian Women Writers You Need to Read Now”. this year’s Toronto Book Award winner, Andrew J. Borkowski. We continued the conversation about Canadian writing — Polish and South Asian — over pad thai. That night, I reviewed our collection of hashtagged sound bites. It struck me as a smart strategy for IFOA to engage authors in their social media efforts. But I wondered: who was reading our tweets, and what impact would they have?

Nice to see a bit of India‪@ifoa The next day, I attended “Found in Translation”, hosted by Mark Medley, featuring Dr. Anamika, Mukumda Raom and Subodh Sarkar. Following their readings, there was a discussion on the state of writing in India. Similar to the previous panel, they volleyed differing opinions about their national literature and the ways in which it’s supported. Mark questioned whether a multitude of Indian languages and regional differences left authors isolated in India.

Dr. Anamika: “isolation is not a word to describe India”

The panelists countered that small journals thrive, the Indian public still buys books and unknown authors are championed by more senior authors. They insisted that authors’ works are easily disseminated across their country.

a I raised my hand to ask about writers of Indian descent working y in the diaspora. I wanted to know how Indo-Canadians are received because my two novels were recently released by an Indian publishing house. I’m heading there in January to launch them. : V ive k S h ra The three panelists flashed me smiles, asked me about my books, and reassured me that my work would be welcomed. Later I Facebook-friended Sarkar and I hope we get to meet when I’m in

Ph oto Credit Bangalore.

WINTER 2013 11 Dispatches

native writing / In these times our writers and story-keepers have a sacred role as chroniclers, both of the past and to envision the future. As creators each of us carries our own unique flame but, in the Indigenous cosmology, that spark is infused by our family, our Idle No More: kin, our clan, our community. It is what roots us, gives us specificity, a unique voice and yes, a sacred mission. We are free Indigenous to interpret it as we may. We may choose to embrace our com- munity, our ancestral roots; we may choose not to. But many are choosing to. Writers Rising On March 9, Indigenous writers will gather in Vancouver for a By paul Seesequasis National Indigenous Writers Conference, sponsored by the Cana- dian Centre for Studies in Publishing. The day-long event will be historic. It is not a set of literary readings or signings, but a special space — a moment — created for Indigenous writers to discuss where they are at and where they wish to go. The discussions are beginning. The dialogue has begun. The circle is coming together. Input has come in from across the country. There is a shared enthusiasm for the conference amongst Indigenous writers. A desire to exchange ideas, build a consen- sus, build toward a future with a brighter legacy that will benefit upcoming generations of Indigenous writers. The agenda will shape itself, holistically, over the next few months. It is in the hands of the community of writers to mould. The initial framework for the Vancouver meeting is divided into “For the storyteller, for the arrowmaker, five areas for discussion: language does indeed represent the only • A national network which could potentially include a rela- tionship with The Writer’s Union of Canada; chance for survival.” • A website as a communicative hub; – N. Scott Momaday • International linkages; • Sharing resources and support across the country (work- Standing by the fire on Victoria Island, on what is day 18 of a shops and training) protest fast by Chief Theresa Spence, I am thinking about our • Theory and issues specific to Indigenous writers. stories. Indigenous stories. Indigenous writers. “Things happen when they’re supposed to,” my mooshom used to say and there is Clearly, now is the time for The Writer’s Union of Canada to much to adhere to in that. reach out to Indigenous writers. As a national organization with Idle No More is happening because it is meant to. The resur- the mandate to represent and advocate in the interests of all gence of Indigenous writers, storytellers, and poets is happening professional Canadian writers, the Writer’s Union has an obliga- because it also is meant to. Contrary to doomsdayers — none of tion and a responsibility to be there for Indigenous writers. I them, by the way, Mayan — December 21, 2012 was never the end know there is awareness amongst its leadership that representa- of the world. It does, however, signify a new dawn, a new begin- tion within the membership can be greatly improved, but there is ning, a new time. much more to this than simply saying, “Yes the membership is Today there are more Indigenous writers and publishers in there for you — $95. Be published and come join us. We are fam- Canada than ever before. There are active writers collectives ily.” It must be more than this. The invitation to “come sit by the in Vancouver, Saskatoon, Winnipeg, and Toronto, and smaller fire” must acknowledge that for a dialogue to occur, one needs to groups in other cities. This is not coincidental. In the words of listen first. The specific issues facing Aboriginal writers must be Elder William Commanda, we are entering the prophesized time appreciated and understood and then the room can be made for of the Seventh Fire when “new people will emerge. They will discussions to take place, in partnership with, or, in consultation retrace their steps to find what was left by the trail. Their steps will with, whatever entity comes to represent Aboriginal writers. take them to the Elders who will guide them on their journey... Indigenous writers have a circle to build. It is beginning. It is there will be a rebirth and a rekindling of old flames. The Sacred my personal opinion that it would be unfortunate for that circle- Fire will again be lit.” building to take place with TWUC on the outside, exempt from This is also the time when the eagle meets the condor. “Do you awareness and not “on the radar” of any of the Indigenous writers hear that? It is the sound of their world crumbling,” Subcoman- attending in Vancouver. There is room to work together. There is dante Marcos said, on the eve of the silent marches when 50,000 much to be gained in that but there is also an imperative to come Mayans descended from the mist-shrouded hills of Chiapas State and listen. in Mexico, not uttering a word but saying more than a thousand Respectfully. There will be many voices to be heard. And they speeches could. They were heralding a new era. Similarly in will be. It is time. Aotearoa, Australia and around the world as the Indigenous rights moments rise, and the Idle No More movement gains traction, Paul Seesequasis is a writer and one of the organizers behind The there is a momentum for change. National Indigenous Writers Conference in Vancouver, March 9, 2013.

12 write young adult / Seven Writers Come Together in a YA First-of-Its-Kind Project By Eric walters

Eric Walters on his Kilimanjaro climb

Now we had to get the writers. I was clear that I wanted writers I Writing is a fairly solitary profession. We read respected, writers who could write compelling stories, and writers each other’s books and get to know each other who could work together. As well, they all had to be ‘pros’. With all the books being simultaneously released we were dependent but the writing is done alone. I started thinking on each of us delivering our book on time. about a story where a beloved grandfather dies I started to make phone calls. I approached them writer to writ- er, explaining the concept but trying to put very few limits on their and leaves his grandson the task of spreading creativity. I outlined the starting point — the reading of a will in his ashes from the top of Mount Kilimanjaro. the lawyer’s office and the special requests made by the departed grandfather. I said that each writer would be able to create their Then I wondered, what if he had more than one own original story and decide what request they were pursuing, grandson? What if he had seven? that they could write in their own genre and that the story could be anywhere between 25,000 and 45,000 words. The only other Then I had a stranger thought – what if rather than me writing a caveat was that since the characters were to be brothers or cousins series, I asked some of my favorite writers to each write the story there would be interaction between the characters in different of one of the grandsons. As far as I knew, it hadn‘t been done books so they would need to work together. before. Why not? Some of the writers plunged in before the end of the call. Others The first step was to contact a publisher. I’ve worked extensively needed a day to think it over. In quick succession though we had with Victoria, B.C.’s Orca Books and had a great working relation- our group: John Wilson, Ted Staunton, Richard Scrimger, Norah ship with Orca’s publisher Andrew Wooldridge. I also knew that McClintock, Sigmund Brouwer, and Shane Peacock, and we were he was somebody who was prepared to think outside the box and off. had the ability to make a decision. I explained the premise. Seven Instantly, messages started to fly between the writers. I’ve co- interconnected stories based on the death of a beloved grandfa- written novels with both Deb Ellis and Teresa Toten but this was ther. All the writers would work with the same starting point — a different. There were seven of us and our stories were all moving scene in the lawyer’s office where the will was being read. Each in different directions while still remaining connected. As we grandson was to be given a special task that he was to under- crafted our individual stories we had to reshape aspects to fit in take as a last request of the grandfather. And, unlike every other with what the others were writing . As stories evolved, new parts series, I wanted all seven books to be published at the same time were grafted to the Grandfather’s back story and bits and pieces to provide a big ‘bang’ in the market. We talked, Andrew asked had to be added to the will scene to accommodate the developing questions, and within ten minutes he was in. I knew I’d called the storylines. We knew the grandfather was a pilot, but then he was right person. shot down in France, ferried planes through Iceland and was a

WINTER 2013 13 Dispatches

bush pilot in Tanzania. Ted finished his draft and then was answers mine. I think John was as shocked to receive that text as approached by Richard — their characters are brothers — who his character was in the story. asked him to ‘add a day’ to his story. Ted, a true professional, While my character went up the mountain, other writers went added a day to his story so that it would fit nicely with Richard’s off on adventures to Spain, a double murder in Iceland, being story. attacked by a grizzly bear in Canada’s north, to France, Northern My character, D.J. is the oldest grandson. He is relentlessly goal- Ontario with an aging movie star, and that most dangerous and directed and idolized his grandfather. I wanted a task that would exotic of places…the west end of Toronto! fit his personality — and maybe mine. Kilimanjaro is near and Seven has been promoted by extensive touring. We went to dear to my heart. On a clear day the mountain is visible on the dozens of schools presenting to thousands of kids. Some schools distant horizon as I sit on the front porch of the orphanage I run had several of the authors together, including a couple of appear- in Kenya (www.creationofhope.com). Since my character was ances with all seven authors. We went to evening events, writing going to climb the mountain, I was going to climb the mountain. festivals, media appearances, and book store signings. As this In the summer of 2011 I did a six-day summit. I wrote the first is being written, a third printing is being planned and Orca has section of the novel up until the point where my character starts been approached concerning film rights and foreign rights. The the climb before I began my own climb. Climbing Kili involves books have been favorably reviewed, devoured by young readers frequent stops to allow the body to accommodate to the lack of and have already been adopted by schools for literature circles and oxygen. I used those rests to write. Sometimes it was simply novel studies. notes — what was I seeing, experiencing, how my body was react- There’s a saying in my book: “If you wish to go fast you go ing. Other times it was whole chapters that almost leapt onto the alone, if you wish to go far you go together.” Together we seven page fully formed. authors have gone far and fast into new publishing territory. On that 5th day, at the summit, I sent a text message to my good friend John Wilson the same way my character in the book Eric Walters is the author of over 75 books for children and young sends a message to John’s character who just happens to be my people. He tours extensively and has spoken to over 1.5 million students character’s twin brother. John answered me the way his character throughout North America, Japan, and Europe.

CELEBRATE NATIONAL POETRY MONTH Congratulations to the Writers’ union of Canada on 40 incredible years !

15TH YEAR OF NATIONAL POETRY MONTH IN CANADA We acknowledge the support of the From CARFAC Ontario the association of Canada Council for the Arts and the Government of Canada through the professional visual and media artists. Canada Book Fund, Ontario Arts Council, Toronto Arts Council, Literary Press Group of Canada, National Film Board of Canada and the League of Canadian Poets.

www.carfacontario.ca

14 write funding / Back to the Wilderness: In Poland, Canadian Government Cuts Threaten to Quash a Growing Field of Study By Eugenia sojka

April 2012 was a very busy time for me as I Development Program) assisted us tremendously in our efforts to advance the appreciation and respect for Canadian literatures spent several weeks working on details of my and cultures, to deconstruct stereotypical thinking about Canada, application to the Canadian Studies Program and to promote the values of a cross-cultural dialogue. For the past 12 years, the grants assisted me in many Canadian literature and Development Grant. As a Director of the Cana- culture projects via teaching, research, publications, and the orga- dian Studies Centre at the University of Silesia nization of conferences and other cultural activities. The Centre was fortunate to host over 60 guests whose lectures, readings and in Poland, I expected to receive funds to support workshops attracted the attention of both the university students new avenues of research and teaching, as well as and members of the general public. As well, we organized and coordinated visits of specialists in Canadian Studies from various the organization of related academic and Canadian and European Universities. Visits from Canadian writ- cultural activities planned for the Centre. ers were most memorable and inspiring: Lee Maracle, Tomson Highway, Armand Ruffo, Fred Wah, George Elliott Clarke, Lola Little did I realize that soon all my hopes regarding the funding Lemire Tostevin, Dennis Cooley, Myrna Kostash, Wayne Johnston, would be dashed. In early May I received a phone call from the Eva Stachniak, Douglas Barbour, and Marek Kusiba had long Academic and Cultural Relations Officer at the Canadian Embassy talks with our students and faculty and many of them remain in Poland, who informed me about the regretful decision of the friends of the Centre. Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade to abolish The cuts, unfortunately, are hurting the plans that I have been the Understanding Canada: Canadian Studies Program. As no developing with the help of the faculty and students of the Insti- further grants were to be issued my application was not even sent tute of English Cultures and Literatures (IECL). to Ottawa. Meanwhile the Embassy employee, after 14 years of At the moment we can rely only on token University funding indefatigable support for Polish Canadianists in a variety of which is insufficient to proceed with our projects. Our library does Canadian Studies ventures, lost her job in August. The position of not provide academic databases to assist us in our research and the Cultural and Academic Relations Officer has been cancelled due to funding shortages it does not subscribe to Canadian and the relations between Polish Canadianists and the Embassy academic journals or periodicals. In fact, it is only due to the are now in a rare state of dormancy. (The Canadian Leadership Library Support Program and donations from various Canadian and Canada-U.S. Fulbright Programs have been retained, accord- publishing houses and visiting lecturers and writers that our ing to the government’s website.) library has a significant collection of Canadiana. (Here I must I was thrilled and full of hope for the new three year project I express special thanks to Myrna Kostash for her generous gifts was proposing on Canadian literatures and cultures with a special of Canadian texts offered to the Centre several times a year. Her focus on indigenous and intercultural drama and theatre, an area support of our Centre activities has been unflagging and all the of research neglected in Poland. This was going to be the next step more commendable as she uses her private funds to send us pack- in the development of our Canadian Studies program. The plan ages full of Canadian journals, periodicals, and other texts. We was all the more promising as it was connected with the prospect are extremely grateful and touched by her personal commitment of future academic co-operation with Dr. Michelle LaFlamme from to promote the recognition of Canadian intellectual and cultural the University of Fraser Valley. potential abroad.) The Understanding Canada programs offered in the past by The loss of these programs is particularly unfortunate given the the Canadian government (Faculty Research Program, Faculty fact that interest in Canadian studies and Canadian literature has Enrichment Program, Doctoral Research Program, International been steadily growing in Poland with new students continuously Research Linkages and Library Support Program and Program attracted to the discipline. The students themselves have taken

WINTER 2013 15 Dispatches

THE BANFF CENTRE | LITERARY ARTS Steven Ross Smith, Director

an active role in advancing the cause. They founded a Canadian Studies Student Circle in 2009 and meet every two weeks to WRITE discuss extracurricular materials and make presentations on their current topics of interest. Thanks to the Student Mobility grant awarded to the Centre by DFAIT, select groups of students were IN BANFF, able to participate in two four-week research trips to Vancouver Island University and Alert Bay reserve. Subsequently, five of our graduates were awarded the highest prizes in the Polish Associa- SHARE WITH tion for Canadian Studies Competition for the Nancy Burke Best Canadian M.A. Thesis Award in Poland. We have observed that our graduates are committed to spreading this knowledge once THE WORLD. they work as teachers, introducing Canadian topics and organiz- ing Days of Canadian Culture at a high school level. Apply by June 15, 2013 All Canadian Studies and Research Centres and Programs in Poland (Torun, Krakow, Poznan, Warsaw) have been affected by the cuts to funding. Unless we demand exorbitant registration MOUNTAIN AND fees or manage to raise funds elsewhere, we will not be able to organize conferences and workshops, or even fund local travelling WILDERNESS WRITING expenses of our guests, should they manage to obtain any travel October 28 - November 31, 2013 (on-site) funding in Canada. (Moreover, our own fundraising efforts may August 15 - October 15, 2013 (online) be negatively impacted once our potential donors learn about the Canadian government decision.) Due to the cancellation of the Faculty: Tony Whittome, Marni Jackson Library Support Program there is going to be a marked shortage of materials for Canada-oriented degree projects, especially at the M.A. and Ph.D. level. The cancellation of the Student Mobility WIRED WRITING STUDIO Program has deprived students of a chance to do extensive re- search in Canada. Moreover, the loss of the opportunity for direct September 30 - October 12, 2013 (on-site) contact with Canadian scholars, writers, playwrights, or artists will October 31, 2013 - March 30, 2014 (online) inevitably result in secondhand knowledge on Canada. Faculty: Fred Stenson (program director),Curtis Gillespie, Today, Canadian studies scholars are wondering: How can we Phil Hall, Lisa Moore, Jennifer Still, Carrie Tiffany, Chris Fisher sustain interest in Canadian literature and culture? How can we mitigate the negative effects of the Canadian Government’s deci- sion regarding the Understanding Canada Program? The sug- WRITING WITH STYLE gestions that follow concern a strategy of survival — a remedial strategy — rather than a strategy of development. The ideas come FALL PROGRAM from a discussion of the problem with my colleagues Dr. Paweł September 8 - 14, 2013 J˛edrzejko and Dr. Anna Branach Kallas. As there are no funds to purchase books, could writers and critics ask publishers to send Faculty: Elizabeth Philips (program director), single copies of their books to our Centre, or any other Centre Jacqueline Baker, Charlotte Gill, Don McKay, Alexander McLeod of their choice? Is there a chance for special educational licenses for Canadian e-books or audiobooks which might significantly increase the popularity of Canadian cultural production among For more information: university students? Could we get information about formal visits banffcentre.ca/writing of Canadian scholars, writers, and artists in Europe so we could 1.800.565.9989 organize reading or lecture tours in Poland for them? Where could we access such information? Are co-authorships, co-produc- BanffCentreLit tions, and sponsored translations possible? BanffCentreLit It seems that the decrease in interest in Canada is inevitable, but perhaps the results of political and economic choices of the Canadian government might be minimized. We trust that a better future for Canadian Studies abroad will materialize sooner or later. Although we are concerned about the state of the field, we remain committed, passionate and enthusiastic about it, and we do hope that our students will follow in our footsteps.

Visit www.csc.us.edu.pl for more information about the Canadian Studies Centre at the University of Silesia.

16 write Resurrecting the Dead Or, Writing about Family

by wayne grady

“But dead people persist in the minds of the living.” – Margaret Atwood, Negotiating with the Dead

y current work-in-progress rebelled after were dead, which helped. If you’re going to write about family about ten drafts. It had started out as a work members, it’s best if they’re dead. The dead can’t thank you, which of creative nonfiction — a book about my they probably wouldn’t do anyway, but neither can they refuse to parents, along the lines of Michael Ondaatje’s speak to you ever again, or, worse, shriek at you at parties. The Running in the Family, which he calls “not a dead are static, easier to get a fix on, easier to talk to. As Steve history but a portrait, or ‘gesture.’” I was Heighton puts it, “the dead are more visible,” especially if you live Mgoing to call mine a “fictional memoir.” But after I had assembled beside a cemetery, which is what my nonfiction book had turned all the characters (my parents), chosen a starting point (1943), and into. set a few actions in motion (the Second World War, their mar- For a writer of fiction, however, dead people pose a problem. riage), the book changed its mind. It didn’t want to be nonfiction “Dead people are situated outside of time,” writes Margaret at all. It wouldn’t be confined to what my parents had actually said Atwood in Negotiating with the Dead, “whereas living people are and done, it had already been there and done that. It wanted to be still immersed in it.” free, it wanted to explore new possibilities, new motivations, even I wanted my novel to be immersed in time, and so I needed new territories. It wanted, it said, to be a novel. living people in it, not dead people. There are two ways to get I remonstrated. It was adamant. Even as I forged ahead, it kept living people: you can bring dead people back to life, or you can sending in new characters who sat down and insisted I give them make new ones. The former is harder, but at least you know what something to say. Then some of the old characters started doing you’re getting; making new people involves more risk, but it’s also things I knew they hadn’t done. What was going on here? a lot more fun. We’re a novel, they said. Nonetheless, I tried resurrecting my parents first. Whenever All right, I said, you’re a novel. I was stuck for, say, a description of my fictional male character, My parents hadn’t been all that happy about being in a work of I described my father. He had wavy, black hair and high cheek- nonfiction, anyway, so they were okay with the change. Plus, they bones. In his youth, he looked like Frank Sinatra (I can show you

WINTER 2013 17 photographs). When I didn’t know what my fictional characters the characters from behaving in a natural way. The reader then would do next, I had them do what my parents did. In 1945, my becomes aware of the strings on the puppet.” parents moved from St. John’s to Halifax, then to Toronto, and She’s right, Jack and Vivian said. Puppets. You should listen to finally to Windsor, Ontario. So that’s what my fictional characters her. did. I should keep my emotions out of my writing? That turned out to be too much moving around for them. No, you should keep your emotions out of our emotions. Why move us to Halifax? they demanded to know. What purpose “An author who is using a true person as a starting point,” Nita does it serve? It isn’t plausible. continues, “should allow them to do things outside of whatever Plausible? I said. It has to be plausible. It happened. happened in real life, to let the character actually have some traits It didn’t happen to us, my characters said. It happened to your that the real-life person did not have. It can be very freeing.” parents. And this isn’t your parents’ story any more. So I tried that. I wrote: “Mary Parsons was right, he looked so Well, how did you get from St. John’s to Windsor? I asked them. much like Frank Sinatra it took your breath away.” We took a train. I had no idea who Mary Parsons was. This was in draft twelve. But there wasn’t a train from St. John’s to Windsor in 1943. I bought Jack a 1935 Hupmobile and found him a job selling Look, what are you writing, The History of VIA Rail? Funk & Wagnalls encyclopedias door to door. My father owned a Like Peter Cook’s miner, I sought solace in the printed word. black 1935 Hupmobile, but he never sold encyclopedias in his life. According to Bill Roorbach, the author of Writing Life Stories, a Can you make the Hup green? Jack asked. I made it green. I was book about writing creative nonfiction, “characters in nonfiction getting there. This was draft sixteen. present special problems: while characters in fiction are often “The metamorphosis occurs in the movement from draft to based on real people, there’s still that screen, that safety net, that draft,” says Genni Gunn, author of Solitaria, her novel in which legal loophole…. In nonfiction, by contrast, the writer is telling Piera, one of the main characters “is very much my aunt’s charac- the reader: These people I’m bringing to you are real.” ter, but my aunt didn’t do the things that Piera does in the novel.” So, real people don’t belong in works of fiction. Fictional charac- Piera, Genni says, “is both my aunt and then she really isn’t. She’s ters can be based on real people, but they can’t be real themselves. a fictional version of herself.” But here’s Vincent Lam on his novel, The Headmaster’s Wager: This raises an intriguing question. Are fictional characters ever “The protagonist, Percival Chen, shares many characteristics fully severed from their real-life versions? Do they not retain some with my grandfather...,” the writer told me. “Qualities in Percival vestigial aspects of the true people who inspired them? Do the are inspired by my grandfather. I choose that word carefully — in- dead continue to communicate with the living? spired. The book is a work of fiction, it is not ‘based upon’ my Of course they do. The dead want something. Usually food, as grandfather’s life. It does not memorialize him or reconstruct his Margaret Atwood points out, but other things as well. Revenge, actions or memories. Instead, it picks up on a thread of his life, justice. “If we could sum up what all of them want, in one word,” and an era he experienced.” Atwood writes, “a word that encompasses life, sacrifice, food and Not based on, then, but inspired by; not resurrected dead death, that word would be ‘blood.’” Perhaps that’s why writing people, but new people. In my rebellious novel, as long as — in about relatives is so much stickier than writing about people we my mind — the characters Jack and Vivian were based on my hardly know. Vincent Lam didn’t have as much difficulty writing parents, I was still writing nonfiction. I was writing about dead Bloodletting and Other Cures, stories inspired by people he met people. It wasn’t until I’d learned to untether them from my par- in the course of his work as an ER doctor, as he did writing The ents’ real lives that Jack and Vivian began to come into their own Headmaster’s Wager, possibly because the novel was inspired by a as living characters. close relative, someone he knew a great deal about, someone to For example, I was angry with my father for a lot of reasons whom he was related by blood. when I began writing the book, and my anger showed in the way “Usually,” says Nita, “casual acquaintances are easier to fictional- I portrayed him: I included in Jack’s character only those parts ize because the author has more creative play, more personality to of my father that had made me angry. What I had to learn was to fit in, and less interference from reality.” show those parts of Jack that were lovable, so that readers could In my novel, my parents still hover like ghosts in the characters understand why Vivian falls in love with him in 1943. Seems they inspired. The bones of their story underlie the flesh of the simple, doesn’t it? It took me about five drafts. novel. Fiction needs an element of nonfiction, I think — a link Vincent Lam went through the same struggle. “The whole between what did happen and what can happen, so that readers book,” he says, “was initially composed of events that happened to can pass freely from one realm to another without leaving the my grandfather. Now, almost nothing significant that happens in story. the book comes from my grandfather’s life. That’s how far I had Now you’re catching on, Jack and Vivian say, nodding approv- to go from the real life of my grandfather.” ingly. Sort of like travelling from St. John’s to Windsor without “Writers sometimes get trapped into recreating their version getting off the train. of real people on the page,” says Nita Pronovost, my editor (and Vincent Lam’s) at Doubleday Canada. Nita has a knack for putting Wayne Grady is the author of 11 works of nonfiction, as well as a her finger directly on a sore spot in a book and pressing down un- prolific magazine writer and translator. til finger meets bone. “And their own emotions actually prevent

18 write Too True to Be Good: The Consequences of Writing Memoir

by LESLIE SHIMOTAKAHARA

My first book, a memoir, focuses on a bleak period about five years ago, when I was an English professor in small town Nova Scotia. Isolated and burnt out, I’d long fallen out of love with the research topic I’d spent too many years dissecting in my dissertation, and I also sucked at lecturing (a couple of students even voted me in an online forum “The Worst Prof Ever”). Plus, two love affairs had blown up in my face.

t 29 — the same age at which Lily Bart’s world had dementia. This made it all the more important for him to falls apart in The House of Mirth — I wanted get her on the record about certain things he’d never understood nothing more than to return home to Toronto and about his childhood. He’d grown up in the aftermath of the search for a new career, turning back the clock Japanese-Canadian internment, which no one in his family ever by 10 years. A little infantile, perhaps. My father talked about. Also taboo was the murky topic of how his father certainly thought so when I came home to visit the had died when he was in his early twenties. I became fascinated Asummer after my first year teaching. by my father’s anguish and the way the internment had left scars The interesting thing about that summer was that my father on my family. As I began to experiment with creative writing — a primary character in the memoir — happened to be — my childhood passion — I found myself repeatedly returning experiencing his own crisis. Just as my career was supposed to to this scenario. It was as though understanding my family, my be taking off, he’d retired from a busy career in engineering and father and in turn myself depended on coming to terms with the suddenly had all this time on his hands. He started sitting by his history that had been painfully repressed — a process I examine mother’s bedside, interrogating her about the past and recording in some detail in my memoir. it all on a tiny digital recorder. My grandmother was dying and The other hobby my father took up that summer was reading

WINTER 2013 19 Special Section: back to school

books for pleasure, and who better to ask for a reading list than merit at my first recital. But my parents were both warm and his overeducated daughter? Grudgingly at first, I put together a supportive, praising my book for giving them insight into me as a list of my favourite novels — by everyone from Wharton to Woolf person, not just the sanitized view that most children allow their to Atwood — and my father and I began reading them together. parents. My father said he found the ending highly moving and Since I’d had it up to my eyeballs with academia, I was searching commended my honesty. I couldn’t believe how well our meeting for a distinctly non-intellectual way of reading… reading for had gone. Had my fears been completely unfounded? personal insight, for pleasure, to see glimmers of myself and my As it turned out, they weren’t. I think the hardest thing for own struggles in these characters. A surprising thing happened my father in the weeks that followed was finding himself being over that summer. In the course of learning to read like a normal discussed — as a literary persona — by the family members person again and discussing some of the novels with my dad, I and friends my parents had invited to my book launch. Being learned a lot about him and our family secrets. My grandfather continually asked how he felt about the book seemed to grate on had committed suicide partly because he’d never been able to him, and a couple of relatives and friends voiced their opinions live up to the family’s expectations that he follow in his father’s that I’d portrayed the whole family and him in particular rather footsteps by becoming a doctor; instead, he’d floundered in every harshly. His initial positive reaction now swung to the opposite career path he pursued, while neglecting the artistic talents his pole and the worst part was that I could understand his anger. If I family didn’t value. Although I’d never met the man, I felt a were in his position, I’d also feel exposed — used, even. My father strange new empathy and identification. and I met for dinner to discuss his feelings and this time I did While I was writing The Reading List, the words came find myself needing the techniques that my therapist had coached surprisingly easily. I found it freeing — therapeutic, almost — to me in. We discussed his ambivalence toward the book and how write about all this and reshape it through narrative. Once I’d it had been difficult for him to respond to the hostility of certain found a publisher and was in the final stages of editing, however, relatives, who seemed to expect him to be more upset and turn the anxiety set in. How would my father react to finding himself against me. I kept reiterating that I cared about our relationship written about and all our struggles on display? moving forward and it had not been my intention to hurt him or I couldn’t sleep. A grey nausea was constantly with me. By anyone in the family. Despite everything, he made it clear that I this point, I’d told my father about my book in general terms had his support in being a writer; he recognized how important and I could see he felt somewhat uneasy, even as he tried to be the process of writing the memoir had been to me in dealing with encouraging (both my parents were pleased that since I’d taken my anger, confusion, and disillusionment. A wave of incredible up writing, I’d come out of my depression, found a reasonably gratitude came over me — this was the greatest gift he could give lucrative day job to free me from academia and become much me. more pleasant to be around). But as the day of the book launch Now that some time has gone by, we’re back on solid ground. drew closer, my panic only intensified. I decided to see a therapist I’ve moved on to writing fiction, a historical novel called The who counselled me to stick with my “intention” in writing the Cherry Blossom Queen. I suspect that if they were to read the book (not to hurt anyone, of course). She and I play-acted how manuscript, however, my family would know that certain I imagined the dreaded conversation with my father would elements have been inspired by the family vault. Some people go. Although I felt silly at the time, her help actually proved might not be too pleased. A part of me wishes I could simply invaluable. switch to science fiction or fantasy — wouldn’t that make life so The book launch turned out to be a lot of fun, passing in a blur; much easier? But right now, this seems to be how my imagination a crowded room of friends, family and strangers eating sushi and works. All I can do as a writer is follow my instincts and write sipping wine at The Japan Foundation. My parents each bought about what most fascinates and unsettles me. a copy of the book and we agreed to meet for coffee in a week’s time after they’d read it. How nervous I was as I got ready to go, Leslie Shimotakahara’s memoir The Reading List: Literature, Love a vaguely dissociative feeling settling over me. When I got to the and Back Again won the 2012 Canada-Japan Literary Award. She cafe, they were already there and I had that sense of coming down blogs at www.the-reading-list.com. from the stage after giving a clarinet performance of uncertain

20 write

COPYRIGHT UPDATES: What You Need to Know Now

by JEananne kathol Kirwin

criteria include: the purpose of the dealing; the character of the Explaining the new Fair Dealing dealing; the amount of the dealing; alternatives to the dealing; Provision and the nature of the work. It is the sixth criterion that is often most relevant to writers: the effect of the dealing on the work, i.e. In the recently enacted Copyright Modernization Act, Bill whether the dealing is likely to affect the market of the original C-11, three additional “fair dealing” exceptions to copyright work. On this point, the Supreme Court of Canada said, “Although infringement are added — namely exceptions for use of copyright the effect of the dealing on the market of the copyright owner material for parody, satire and, more significantly, for “educational is an important factor, it is neither the only factor nor the most purposes.” This last newly-added exception is a source of great important factor that a court must consider in deciding if the concern for writers. So what exactly is “fair dealing”? dealing is fair.” Essentially, copyright laws underpin writers’ survival. The How, then, does the new “educational purposes” exception Copyright Act provides quite simply in Section 27 that copyright affect writers? Extending the list of fair dealing exceptions to infringement consists in doing anything that only the copyright “educational purposes” will have a far-reaching effect upon owner has the right to do unless the owner’s permission is Canada’s literary landscape, Bill C-11, which was proclaimed in obtained. Section 29 then goes on to create “exceptions” to Section force in November 2012, has the following and likely adverse 27, thereby introducing interesting complexities. Before Bill C- consequences upon writers: 11, only five “fair dealing” exceptions existed under Section 29: research, private study, criticism, review, and news reporting. With • Anyone claiming an education purpose could arguably the last three exceptions, the use was only fair if certain attribution copy substantial parts of copyright-protected literary works information was given, and none of the exceptions were fair without permission or payment. unless they were conducted “without motive of gain,” i.e. not used • Educational institutions and ministries will argue they do in an advertisement. Creators whose works are used in the context not have to pay Access Copyright for collective licenses to of permissible fair dealing are often stated to be “section 29-ed.” enable teachers and students to legally copy materials In the 2004 S.C.C. case that dealt with fair dealing, the judges • If Access Copyright is not paid for licenses, then its annual cautioned that fair dealing exceptions are “user’s rights.” The payments to creator and publisher affiliates will be much Court then established a six-part test to determine when the lower. Access advises that 80 per cent of its revenues come dealing is fair. Without delving too deeply into the law, the six from ministries of education and educational institutions.

WINTER 2013 21 Member Kathryn Kuitenbrouwer was part of a TWUC intervention at an Association of Canadian Community Colleges meeting regarding their new policy toward copyright. For more information read John Degen’s Executive Directions column on page 5 of this issue of Write and watch the video of the TWUC intervention at http://tinyurl.com/copyfair. – Write

Further, Access Copyright predicts it will need to vigorously publishers can only contribute if what they produce — their litigate the fairness of the taking of copyright works under property — is protected by copyright law. the educational purposes exception. Since “educational purposes” is conceivably much broader than the existing “private study” exception, multiple copies for classroom Copyright Update: Supreme Court use may be argued to be fair. Writers and publishers of Canada rules against Access alike would lose significant income and as a result, the already precarious Canadian publishing industry would be Copyright in case exploring fair weakened. dealing exceptions.

The writer most likely to be adversely affected by the educational On July 12, 2012 The Supreme Court of Canada simultaneously purposes exception is the talented poet, playwright, novelist or released five copyright decisions. One of these decisions relates to historian whose work appears in a textbook anthology; their a dispute between various education ministries (led by the Alberta compensation and that of their publishers will now be much more Minister of Education) and the Canadian Copyright Licensing tenuous. To the detriment of writers, publishers, and our students, Agency, well known among writers as Access Copyright. new creative literary work is much less likely to be studied because The court was asked to review a decision of the Copyright Board even fewer Canadian publishers will exist to bring their work that had examined whether copying by teachers of short excerpts into the tapestry of Canadian culture. The educational purposes of materials within the repertoire of Access Copyright, with exception will thus have the effect of squelching both creators, instructions to students that they read those materials, was a fair often revered as the innovators and drivers of the knowledge dealing. The Copyright Board had ruled that such copying was industry, and publishers, who traditionally act as vehicles of made for the allowable purposes of “research or private study”, expression. among the five fair dealing exceptions, yet because of the scope Another adverse outcome of the “educational purposes” of the copying, it did not constitute fair dealing and was therefore exception affecting not only writers, but all Canadians, is that subject to the payment of a royalty. The Federal Court of Appeal content taught in Canadian classrooms will not originate in had agreed with the Copyright Board, so the education ministries Canada. If Canadian content is not available, then foreign — quite then appealed the decision to the Supreme Court of Canada. likely U.S. — materials will be used. The Supreme Court judges ruled in a very close decision that All Canadians are penalized if Canadian content is diminished the Copyright Board had a “skewed” approach to the law of fair in classrooms in which the next generation of Canadians are dealing in the context of private study and research. The Supreme taught. It is Canadian writers who write about Canada, our shared Court ordered the Copyright Board to reconsider whether the tariff history, and our aspirations for the future. Canadian writers and applied in those circumstances, “on a reasonableness standard”

22 write which it explained at some length in its decision of 17 single- student may be reasonable. spaced pages. What the dissenting judge says comforts those who take the At the risk of over-simplifying, here is how the Supreme Court contrary view to the majority judge: i.e. textbook publishers and views “reasonableness” in the context of classroom copying: The writers. However, his view did not prevail. The Copyright Board test for fair dealing involves two steps. The first is to determine of Canada did re-consider its decision on fair dealing in view of whether the dealing is for the allowable purposes of research or the SCC’s “reasonableness standard” and in September 2012, private study, criticism or review, or news reporting (and, now that issued its decision that the copying in question did constitute fair the Copyright Modernization Act Bill C-11 is proclaimed in force, dealing and therefore was not subject to a tariff. In a press release the purposes also of parody, satire, and education). The relevant issued after the release of the Copyright Board decision, Access perspective, when considering whether the dealing is for an Copyright indicated it “is disappointed but accepts the ... decision allowable purpose, is that of the user, not the copier. that a small proportion (7%) of the hundreds of millions of pages The term “private study” does not, in the words of the majority copied in the K-12 sector every year constitutes fair dealing and is judge, require users of copyright materials “to view them in therefore non-compensable. The Copyright Board said it based its splendid isolation”. Studying and learning are essentially personal decision on the record before it and on the findings of fact of the endeavours whether they are engaged in a classroom or alone. On Supreme Court of Canada. This decision, however, has no impact this point, the dissenting judge stated that the word “private” in on the requirement that royalties continue to be paid on the “private study” was not to be stripped of all meaning. This judge hundreds of millions of pages of student texts that are copied for would characterize the teachers’ copying for classroom use as non- use in K-12 classrooms every year.” private study, or at the very least, “just study” rather than private Recent copyright law developments — namely the study. “reasonableness standard” set by the Supreme Court of Canada If the dealing does qualify under those fair dealing exceptions, decision, the new fair dealing exception of educational purposes i.e. the purpose is for research or private study, for example, then in the Copyright Modernization Act, and the tariff decision of the court must take a second step of analysis, i.e. to determine the Copyright Board of Canada — have had a decidedly negative whether such dealing is fair. The relevant perspective, when impact upon writers as creators, and in combination they blunt considering whether the dealing was fair, is that of the copier. the tool of copyright as a means to protect writers’ works. “Copiers cannot camouflage their own distinct purpose (such as profit, in the case of copy shops) to conflate it with the research or Jeananne Kathol Kirwin (B.A. English, Yale; J.D., U of Toronto) is study purposes of the ultimate user.” an intellectual property lawyer of 25+ years. A version of this piece first For the second step of the test, the following list of fairness appeared in the Writer’s Guild of Alberta newsletter WestWord. factors should be considered: (1) the purpose of the dealing, (2) the character of the dealing, (3) the amount of the dealing, (4) the existence of any alternatives to the dealing, (5) the nature of the work, and (6) the effect of the dealing on the work. (That NOTICE TO MEMBERS: BEWARE PAM six-part analysis was outlined in a 2004 decision called CCH v. Law Society of Upper Canada, and was reaffirmed in the Access The Copyright Modernization Act (Bill C-11) contains a new Copyright case.) Publicly Available Material (PAM) exception. This means The majority judge viewed teachers as having “no ulterior that any work published on the public internet that is not motive when providing copies to students […] it seems to me to be either protected by a technological protection measure (a axiomatic that most students lack the expertise to find or request password or some sort of copy-protection code) or a clearly the materials required for their own research and private study, worded notice spelling out copy restrictions, is fair game for and rely on the guidance of their teachers.” The dissenting judge anyone to copy and re-use. All TWUC members are advised disagreed, stating that the teachers’ main purpose was not private to review the copyright notice on your blogs and website, study, but rather instruction. and anywhere online where your work appears. We have On the subject of the six-part test, the majority judge had this to been advised that a simple © All Rights Reserved will not say: “Buying books for each student is not a realistic alternative to be considered enough of a declaration. You must be explicit teachers copying short excerpts to supplement student textbooks. about your wish to have your work licensed for copying and First, the schools have already purchased originals that are kept further use. Here is the notice our executive director John in the class or library, from which the teachers make copies. The Degen has on his blog (it appears on every page): teacher merely facilitates wider access to the limited number of texts […] purchasing a greater number of original textbooks to © All Rights Reserved. Unless otherwise indicated, all distribute to students is unreasonable [because] teachers only blog content (except comments by others) copyright John photocopy short excerpts to complement existing textbooks.” Degen. Educators need not purchase a license for use, if On the same point the dissenting judge had this to say: “While already covered by an Access Copyright permission. teachers usually made short excerpts at any one time, this was offset by the fact that the teachers would return to copy other TWUC will seek further legal opinion on this copyright excerpts from the same books […] thereby making the overall development, and advise members if a standard notice is proportion of the copied pages unfair in relation to the entire work developed. – Write over a period of time.” Thus in his view, buying books for each

WINTER 2013 23 On Writers & Retreats

by lawrence scanlan

George Bernard Shaw wrote in a tiny south-facing shack set on a turntable, so he could periodically and easily rotate the thing to maximize solar gain as the sun moved across the sky. He called his hut “London” so his staff — when asked — could truthfully say, “Mr. Shaw has gone to London.”

ark Twain wrote in what he called “a cozy this house, and it has to be in the morning.” nest... octagonal with a peaked roof, each face Wayne Grady’s neat 12-foot-by-18-foot shiplap writing cabin filled with a spacious window... perched in is 500 paces from his house, but really, it’s a world away. “In my complete isolation on the top of an elevation house,” he told me, “the eye is pulled to duty: the dishes need that commands leagues of valley and city and doing, the phone needs answering, the grass needs cutting. In retreating ranges of distant blue hills...” the cabin, my head never leaves the project I’m working on. Our M Michael Pollan built a 104-square-foot writing hut in the woods house is quiet, but the cabin is quieter.” He calls the cabin his behind his Connecticut house, then wrote about the process in A “outer sanctum.” Place of My Own: The Architecture of Daydreams. Wayne observes that humans are hard-wired to be on the Virginia Woolf, Henry David Thoreau, Dylan Thomas, Roald lookout for danger, but nothing in the quiet and familiar confines Dahl all wrote in tiny cabins expressly built to foster writing. of the cabin is dangerous — except maybe that box of cookies on Years ago I joined a volunteer crew constructing a writing his desk. “Stress is the key,” Wayne says. “Any place that reduces hut for Diane Schoemperlen (who wanted one in her midtown white noise is restful to the brain so your brain can concentrate on Kingston, ON backyard) and, more recently, did the same for what you need to do.” Wayne Grady (who wanted one in the woods behind his house in On the other hand, some writers like white noise. I recently the countryside). spotted Iain Reid in a bustling Kingston café, his laptop open and Diane’s graceful cabin was supposed to offer a quiet space to plugged into the wall behind him, his fingers tapping. “Part of write. “I’m somewhat embarrassed to say,” Diane told me recently, why I write in cafés,” he says, “is because of the routine of leaving “that I don’t use my writing shed... at least not for writing. I did try my apartment, going for a walk, and arriving somewhere I’ve to use it but never felt 100 per cent comfortable writing out there. designated for writing — a library or café. It’s not my apartment. I think I’ve fallen into a trap of needing my surroundings to be I can’t see my bed, or lie down on the floor, or flip through a book, always the same so I can write. I have backed myself into a corner, or make a sandwich. The only option is to work and the babel thinking that I can only write well here at this desk in this room in somehow blends into supportive white noise.”

24 write However, Iain told me, should one sound begin to dominate — a loud conversation ensues near you, the music gets jacked up — that throws a wrench in the works. Still, many writers draw energy from public places — hotel lobbies, airport lounges, and train stations. If you prefer quiet, Saskatchewan is one option. Wallace Stegner House on a quiet street in Eastend offers writers a view of the Frenchman River and the Cypress Hills, and, on a clear day, the setting sun. Rent is $250 a month. Also in Saskatchewan is the Sage Hill Writing Experience — a blend of quiet time to write, instruction and feedback. An 11-day course in non-fiction writing comes with an all-inclusive price tag of $1,195. Then there’s St. Peter’s Abbey, a Benedictine monastery near Muenster, Saskatchewan. Working independently, or not, writers are housed in a former convent and served meals often prepared from the monks’ organic garden. The Banff Centre in Alberta offers writing classes, including “a self-directed residency.” For $80 a day, you get a bed, a desk and all meals. The mountain view is free. There’s also Berton House in Dawson City, Yukon, a writer-in-residence position with three- month stints. In the fall of 2012, Lawrence Hill and I each got a taste of writerly seclusion at Wintergreen Studios, a not-for-profit Lawrence Hill pronounced his five days at the cabin “a cool education and retreat centre based on a stunning 204-acre piece adventure,” one he aims to repeat next spring — but this time for of Canadian Shield an hour’s drive north of Kingston. (Full eight days. disclosure: I sit on the Wintergreen board.) I took a course there When he was there, he swam in the lake. When I was there in 2010 on stackwall construction and got hooked by the place and in October, my one chore was keeping the wood stove stoked. the sense of peace I felt there. You may wonder why a scribbler with his own cabin would seek When I invited Lawrence Hill to give a writing course at seclusion in another. I credit the true isolation at Wintergreen Wintergreen, he accepted — on one condition: He also needed (the lodge is a kilometer in from a quiet dirt road, and the cabin quiet time to write. another kilometer beyond that). I cherish my own cabin and 44- For five days in September, this was his routine: home was a acre piece in Prince Edward County, but that land is flat and rural 16-foot-by-20-foot cabin overlooking tranquil Paddy’s Lake, named and tame; the Wintergreen sanctuary is rugged and rocky and after the Irishman who tried to farm here in the 19th century. feral. And, I admit, I was pampered, and I liked that: it felt like The cabin’s water comes from a hand pump linked to a rain I was the sole guest at a wilderness resort (the normal charge is barrel outside; a tabletop propane burner enables coffee, tea and $150 a day all-inclusive, but I was charged significantly less). porridge; there is no electricity and no plumbing — only an airy I also valued the chance for pure focus on the stiff deadline I lake-view outhouse. Lawrence wanted quiet and privacy, and these then faced. Hill and Scanlan concur: we both got a lot of writing he got in spades. done at Paddy’s Lake. “I have never been to a place like Wintergreen,” he told me. Something else we agreed on: the cabin’s ticking clock had “What made the place so fantastic was the quiet. It was a shock to go. Lawrence parked it out of earshot; I simply removed the to the system. I’m a city guy, with not a lot of experience in the clock’s batteries. The only sounds I heard in the cabin were the woods alone, but I loved that 20-minute hike back to the lodge.” wind off the lake, the rain on the red tin roof and the wood stove He and I both pursued the same schedule. At 4 p.m. or so, debating whether to expand or contract. One night my dog and I we tossed the two computers (our own plus one borrowed from heard wolves as we drifted off to sleep. Wintergreen) into a backpack and walked along a marked trail There is no mystery about the appeal of writers’ retreats. When I through a tall deciduous forest of maple and oak and hickory, was in my twenties and thirties I somehow wrote in cacophonous climb granite rock faces past a beaver pond and meadows back to newsrooms. In my sixties, I crave a quiet space uninterrupted by the lodge — a solar-powered, straw-bale gem where dinner was telephones and telemarketers, by knocks at the door and errands always fresh, delicious, and virtuous. We would power up the to run, by the tyranny of routine. computer batteries again, check e-mails, shower, get fresh freezer Michael Pollan had it right when he called his writer’s shack “a packs for the cabin cooler and take back a nutritious breakfast place of solitude a few steps off the beaten track of everyday life.” and lunch — much of the food grown right there. The joke at Wintergreen is that anyone staying there is on “the 100-metre Lawrence Scanlan is the author of Harvest of a Quiet Eye: The Cabin diet.” as Sanctuary.

WINTER 2013 25 Fiction The Meaning of Yellow

by ursula pflug

Jessica left her journals on subways, third, but refills weren’t free, and she was out of money. She’d have asked Simeon to pay, but she was always doing that. He got money in taxicabs, in laneways bright from home to flesh out his loan. Her own professor father balked at doing this; he thought she needed to learn how to budget. Jessica yellow with the first fallen leaves, couldn’t budget to save her life. Just now the manager was giving them dirty looks. The place was filling up with the after class crowd, soon to be brown and rumpled and paying customers who’d ordered soy lattés and expensive pastries and were now looking for somewhere to sit. smelling of Halloween. “The bunnies they perform the experiments on,” Jessica told Simeon as they swung out the door. It was cold. She should’ve worn It wasn’t just drinking with Simeon; she was a forgetful sort. Each a coat and not just a sweater. time she bought a replacement journal she told herself she’d leave it “Experiments?” at home, but she could never bring herself to stick to this plan. She “They wire their eyes open and put mascara on them to see how loved writing in cafés too much to ever give it up. they react,” Jessica said. She always imagined the strangers who found her notebooks. “That doesn’t sound right,” Simeon said. They’d reached the Would they take up where she left off, filling the remaining blank corner where they usually parted ways. pages with their own to do lists, love letters, and scraps of poetry? “Oh fuck,” Jessica said, patting her alarmingly empty canvas bag. Would they complete her failed short stories? Would they share her Simeon started to laugh. He knew what was wrong. Jessica ran journals with their friends and imagine her as plump and unattract- back to the café, hair flying. Her clogs made a nice thunking sound ive? Jessica was plump, but her father had told her that to fetishise on the wet October sidewalks. She burst into the door. Her note- the very thin was actually a de-sexualizing of the female form, repre- book wasn’t on their old table, nor was it underneath. The people senting a male fear of womanly fecundity. He could go on. He was now seated there were all wearing new brand name jackets. Didn’t a cultural studies professor. Simeon told Jessica how lucky she was. they have coffee chains for people like that? She asked if they’d seen Jessica’s father was never going to sigh in a disappointed manner her book. What she really wanted to do was go through their bags, when she showed up for Thanksgiving dinner with disheveled hair, one by one, as if she were a store owner and they were suspected sans make-up and polished nails. Simeon, Jessica’s best friend, was shoplifters, but they were already looking down their noses at her impeccably groomed at all occasions, but this failed to impress his obvious desperation. She asked at the counter. The pierced and tat- own father, who hadn’t yet gotten over (and might not ever get over) tooed manager rolled his eyes; it was his rush and he was under- the fact that his son was gay. staffed. His eyes willed Jessica to disappear. “Some people are straight,” Jessica pointed out, “and some aren’t. Back on the sidewalk, she looked around for Simeon. He was People should do what they want. Guys who want to wear eyeliner gone, home, she supposed. It was raining now, and she hadn’t should, although I do think all those chemicals have got to be bad really expected him to wait for her since they were going in different for your skin. And do you know what they do to the bunnies?” directions. “What bunnies?” Simeon asked. She set off for her little bachelor apartment around the corner. They were in a student café called The Mermaid, drinking coffee Almost at her door, her clog kicked something on the sidewalk. She and eating carrot muffins. Jessica had been there since one, Simeon looked down. At her feet there was a hardcover journal. It was yel- since three. They’d had one refill each. Jessica would’ve gotten a low. She picked it up and stashed the book in her shoulder bag. She

26 write turned the key in her lock. She walked up the three flights of stairs. It was a good future. She still lived in the apartment; she had nice Her sweater and jeans were damp and wet. She unlocked the door new downstairs neighbours. She still had the couch. She still had to her tiny apartment, went inside and sat down on the old yellow Simeon. And later on, she found a nice guy, and got to keep Simeon couch. She opened the book she’d found and read. too. Renee and her friend Neil climbed down the iron fire escape that led There was a tiny part of her, she realised, that had always doubted from her kitchen to the roof of the first storey, where she’d planted purple there would be a later on, for her. She felt reprieved by this story, by fall asters and canna lilies in halved oak wine barrels. The cannas’ foliage whoever had written it. lent the roof a tropical feel, and much to everyone’s surprise, it managed Jessica remembered her and Simeon’s Ouija board phase. Ouija to bloom, displaying huge spikes of glowing red flowers. boards were usually a girl thing, but Simeon was Simeon. It was a perfect description of the back of Jessica’s flat. Will I find love? Was this one of her journals? Maybe she’d forgotten she’d ever O-H Y-E-S. even had it, never mind written in it. Maybe she’d been experiment- Who will it be? ing with autobiographical fiction, and her first step had been to M-O-R-G-A-N. change her own and Simeon’s names. Jessica spent all of grade eight looking for Morgan but he never Except the handwriting wasn’t hers, so that couldn’t be it. appeared. She turned the page and read on. This was like that, only much worse. Or better, depending on how She and Neil climbed down the second set of iron stairs and cut you looked at it. Except that Jessica wasn’t 13 anymore. She couldn’t through the yard of the butcher shop, stinky even in winter from heaps of get excited. It was just nuts. There had to be a rational explanation, discarded beef bones, through the alleyway, and back out onto the main and suddenly it dawned on her in its obviousness. She picked up the street where they’d seen it earlier in the afternoon. It was an enormous cordless and called Simeon. brocade couch with a real wood frame and not a pasteboard one, and was “I found your book,” she announced. henceforth extremely heavy. “That’s great,” he said. “I thought I’d have to get a new one! Bring Now she was sitting on it. Stained yellow; round wooden feet, it to class tomorrow.” brocade flowers, a missing centre cushion. “Okay,” Jessica said. “It was right on the street outside my door. Jessica went to the kitchen and put water on for tea. She changed You must have dropped it last time. We drank two bottles of wine, out of her wet clothes while the tea was steeping, sat back down on remember?” the couch, and turned to the next page. It was empty. Impulsively “I’m so relieved. They’re $80,” Simeon said, “and there aren’t any she picked up a pen and wrote: at the used bookstore.” Renee was in shape from swimming twice a week so she and Neil “What are you talking about?” Jessica asked. were able to carry the couch down the street, around the corner into the “My biology textbook.” alleyway, through the butcher’s yard that always inspired her — for 15 “No, this is a yellow hardbound journal with lined pages. You’re minutes at a time — to become a full time vegetarian again, instead of writing a short story in it. It’s about you and me, and that day last a lapsed little-bit-of-chicken, little-bit-of-fish one. They set it down to pant winter we brought home my couch, only you’ve changed our names heavily, exuding vast puffs of vapoury breath, dragon-like, staring at to Renee and Neil.” their frozen whale, the return journey up the fire escape: the hard part. It “Not so,” Simeon said. didn’t help they’d gone to the campus pub earlier and were quite drunk, or “You’re lying to mess with my head,” Jessica said. maybe on the contrary that was what made them think they could pull it “That would be someone else,” Simeon said. off. “But who? No one saw us that day. The description of the roof, the Jessica remembered she’d gotten the top end, being so much cannas, the fire escape. It’s all there, exactly as it happened.” smaller than Simeon. She’d asked him to abandon the project It was Simeon’s turn to say it. “You’re lying to mess with my because the slats of the fire-escape were icy now and slick with sleet. head.” She was afraid she’d lose her grip on the couch and kill Simeon. She “But I’m not. And it even describes our future.” told him so but he thought keeping going made more sense than “Oh?” Simeon didn’t do too good a job of sounding credulous. taking the couch back down. Jessica had thought they could just “We’re still best friends in a year, and even after I get married. See leave it on the fire escape, a canted yellow whale. She put down her you tomorrow.” pen and turned the page. The unknown writer continued the story: Jessica hung up. She picked up the yellow book, opened it to the Renee learned to hate the couch — she always meant to find a page ahead of the last entry. It was empty. Should she write some- replacement for the missing centre cushion that, if it wouldn’t match, thing more? She leafed through the remaining pages one by one. would at least fit; she never did. The couch sat there for a year and eventu- Every single one was empty. ally she called Neil and they lifted it once again and carried it back down If she wrote something else about Renee and the yellow couch, the fire-escape from whence it had come. They left it on the second storey would another entry appear, one page ahead? roof; a place to sit and contemplate the unlikely cannas. The girls down- Jessica knew how to find out, but she was too afraid to try. Instead, stairs appreciated it more than she did. They always drank cold Steam she slipped the yellow book into her canvas bag. She’d show it to Whistles on its leaf shadowed squishiness in the afternoon when they got Simeon. He’d admit it was his after all. That had to be it. The part home from their landscaping jobs. Leaf shadows joining with brocade about her writing the missing part of the story was just a coinci- fabric ones, mutating. dence. Pleased with her analysis, Jessica went to sleep. Years later, when Renee was happily married, she found a yard sale The next day Jessica went to the café after class to meet Simeon. yellow couch that reminded her of the first one. It was as if the couch had Her cheque from her little job at the library had finally arrived, and it followed her. Why? What did it mean? Should she buy it? She pulled out was her turn to treat. She stood in line at the crowded counter while her cell to call Neil and ask him. the manager stuffed two carrot muffins into a paper bag. Someone Jessica shut the book. She was apparently reading her own future. tapped her shoulder. She thought it was inadvertent; the café was so

WINTER 2013 27 Fiction

crowded. The tap came again. She turned around. A young man in a remotely. wool scarf and a duffle coat stood there holding out her journal, the She reached into her bag to get out the yellow journal and show black one she’d lost the day before. Everyone had those notebooks. it to Simeon. But her bag felt, once again, alarmingly empty. Jessica Except that she’d taped a postcard of a Christiane Pflug painting to felt as if she’d been captured, and taken on a long ride through the cover: “Cottingham School with the Yellow Flag.” What was it inexplicable weirdness — unmoored in space and time, coerced to about yellow, anyhow? explore a maze of many new dimensions. She took it. “Thanks,” she said. She felt exposed, wondering if “Oh fuck,” she said, and laughed. he’d read it. She wrote in journals to vent, not to be brilliant. She felt “Fuck what?” Simeon asked. “You haven’t lost your journal again; suddenly angry at all the imaginary people who’d found her many you haven’t had time to buy a new one since I saw you yesterday.” lost notebooks and snickered at her. He noticed she was holding it then, the postcard of the Pflug paint- “Do I know you?” Jessica asked. “How did you know it was ing still taped to its cover. “Oh,” he said. “You found it.” mine?” Maybe he stared at her in some class. Maybe he’d surrepti- “That’s right,” Jessica said, still laughing. “It’s Morgan’s notebook tiously stolen her book so he’d have an excuse to introduce himself. I’ve lost this time, I’ll bet you anything.” He smiled. “I’m Morgan,” he said, and turned away before it even For just a moment she thought she saw the yellow flag ripple in sank in. the breeze, and then it stopped. “My turn to buy,” she said, and they “Wait!” she called when it did. headed back into the Mermaid Café. He was already at the door. He heard her, though. He turned “I remember about Morgan,” Simeon said, as she’d hoped he around and said, “I don’t think you’ll lose your notebooks anymore, would. “So you finally met him?” Renee.” “Yes, I did. He’s not what I thought, though.” She pushed through the crowd to follow him. On St. Andrews she “Is he your true love?” Simeon asked. turned both ways. He was gone. “Possibly,” Jessica said. “All the same, can you help me throw the She felt like someone was performing experiments on her. How yellow couch off the roof this afternoon?” would she react? “Whatever for?” Simeon asked. “Jessica!” someone said behind her, and she started, afraid to “I want to watch it fall,” Jessica said. turn and look, see the young man again. Except whoever it was had called her Jessica, not Renee. And she knew Simeon’s voice, she Ursula Pflug is author of the critically acclaimed novelGreen Music and always had. She was just so disoriented she’d momentarily forgot- the story collection After the Fires. She teaches creative writing at Loyal- ten. Just as she’d forgotten — or pretended to have forgotten — that ist College, and co-organizes Cat Sass Literary Nights, a reading series in the handwriting in the yellow book wasn’t like Simeon’s, not even Norwood, Ontario.

FREEDOM TO READ WEEK February 24 - March 2, 2013 Join us in raising awareness about censorship, freedom of expression and our access to Canadian writing! Visit www.freedomtoread.ca to order your Freedom to Read annual review of censorship issues in Canada and 2013 posters.

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28 write Business & Reports

PUBLIC CONVERSATION ABOUT COPY- with no clear guidelines requiring it to Summary of RIGHT. That the Union initiate a public adhere to Union policies or to reflect conversation about what copyright means Union interests. Approved Motions to us as creators, based on a statement to be developed by the task force; that the Be it resolved that (a) National Council National Council Meeting Union target high profile advocates such create a Write Editorial Board, and (b) the September 14–16, 2012 as Robert Levine to add their voices to the mandate of this committee be to work with conversation and/or endorse the state- the editor to ensure that Write magazine Courtyard Marriott Hotel, Ottawa ment; and that other creator organizations serves as the voice of the Union, reflecting be invited to endorse the completed and supporting Union policies and

statement. interests, and reports regularly to the DIGITAL COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT membership through National Council, TASK FORCE. To create a Digital Copyright MONITORING INFRINGEMENT BY POST and (c) the Board consult with the Execu- Infringement Task Force that will monitor SECONDARY INSTITUTIONS. That the tive Director, office staff, and the editor of infringements on creators’ copyright by Union encourage members to let the Write to articulate guidelines that reflect Google, universities, libraries, and so on, Union know if they believe their works are the roles and responsibilities of the Board as well as evolving definitions of “fair being improperly used by post secondary and of the magazine, and submit these dealing.” The Task Force will present a first institutions who have opted out of guidelines to National Council. (M.Elcock/ report and recommendations for next collective licensing — the Union will then A.Daher) steps to National Council at its next pass this information to the appropriate meeting. agency to analyze licensing. REVISED COMMITTEE STRUCTURE. National Council, following up on the LITERARY PRESS GROUP. That the Chair PIRATE OR ILLEGAL DOWNLOAD AGM discussion regarding committees, write a letter to the Minister of Heritage WEBSITES. That the Union keep members has re-envisioned the committee structure expressing the Union’s outrage at the informed on a regular basis of pirate or to better engage the entire membership by decision to end financial support for the illegal download websites and advise them creating online Communities of Interest Literary Press Group. to check content for their works and to (with moderators who will report issues to check with their publisher (if applicable) as National Council) through the Union’s TASK FORCES. That the Committee to whether permission has been granted new interactive website under the follow- Transition Task Force and the E-Lending for use of the work and that the Union ing headings: Contracts, Copyright, Task Force be approved. develop a standard “cease and desist” letter Grievance, Opportunities Abroad, Race that can be utilized by members in this Issues, Rights & Freedoms, and Status of 2014 AGM. That the 2014 AGM be an situation, if their publisher is not prepared Women Writers. In addition, Task Forces Atlantic Region AGM held in Halifax, Nova to do so. which will be engaged where action is Scotia. required and Standing Committees will be SCANNING/DOWNLOAD WITHOUT created as ongoing issues present them- COMPETITIONS. That the Union no PERMISSION. That members be encour- selves. This structure will take effect at the longer administer the Writing for Children aged to notify the Union if they become 2013 AGM. and Postcard Story Contest and that the aware that their works have been subjected Union notify other organizations of this to scanning or download without permis- WRITE EDITORIAL BOARD. That the decision. sion, for example, by Google. current Write editorial liaisons be appoint- ed to the Write Editorial Board. SHORT PROSE COMPETITION. That WRITE EDITORIAL BOARD. National Council reconsider the value of Whereas the current Advisory Panel was CONSTITUTIONAL REVIEW TASK FORCE. the Short Prose Competition in a year’s established to provide a link between the That the Constitutional Review Task Force time. editor of the Union’s Newsletter and the (Katherine Gordon, Genni Gunn, and membership and to function on an adhoc Marian Hebb) be charged with developing MEMBERSHIP SUSPENSION. That basis with no official mandate or authority a vision statement for the Union and members who have not paid their 2012/13 from National Council. And Whereas the reviewing the Union’s Constitution in light dues and have not formally resigned in nature of the Newsletter has now shifted in of the vision statement and the new writing by December 31, 2012 be the direction of an in-house magazine, Corporations act and provide a report to suspended. named Write, published by the Union but the January National Council meeting.

WINTER 2013 29 Business & Reports

assistance to continue the examination of best practices among Access Copyright Task Force Report creator-driven collectives. Discussions are ongoing, but the task force expects to have a substantial proposal for the January 2013 Christopher Moore, Chair national council meeting and further results for the AGM. One point to ponder: In Britain, a creator-run collective serves (and delivers money to) some 100,000 creators, including many TWUC’s task force on Access Copyright was formed after the 2011 teachers and professors. As a result, the academic community, AGM after a resolution expressing members’ concern that Access instead of being collective licensing’s worst enemy as in Canada, Copyright was not adequately serving creators’ interests in collec- is often broadly supportive. In Canada outside Quebec, barely tive licensing. The AGM mandated research into ways to assert 10,000 creators benefit from Access Copyright. (Quebec’s Copi- creators’ interests separate from the publishers’ interests that seem bec: 16,000+). There is a relative handful of us who see a cheque to dominate Access Copyright. from time to time, but tens of thousands of creators see collective The task force delivered to the 2012 AGM some comparisons licensing as merely a scam to enrich their publishers — fueling with other collectives, in Canada and internationally, that suggested the trend against collective licensing in politics and the courts. more satisfactory practices do exist. Because further work was As the techies say: is this a bug or a feature? Access Copyright required, the 2011-12 National Council applied to the (arms-length) has long seemed designed to maximize distributions to publishers Access Copyright Foundation for a grant to undertake continued as its default solution. There is good evidence that creator-driven research. That application was successful. collectives are the ones committed to getting money to all creators The 2012 AGM endorsed the task force report, and the 2012-13 for the uses of their work and to strengthening creators’ interests national council mandated the task force to continue this work. in collective licensing generally. More news by the 2013 AGM in This year our principal focus has been seeking professional Ottawa. See you there.

for a woman her own age. She auditioned with some confidence Status of Women Committee Report but the part went to a woman 20 years her junior. Last summer I attended several workshops dealing with the prob- Betty Jane Wylie, Chair lems of senior artists — actors, writers, visual artists — launched by a new organization designed to help them. The meetings were held, appropriately enough, at PAL, the Performing Arts Lodge in As you may or may not know there is a Status of Women Commit- Toronto, one of several country-wide residences and home bases for tee in the Union. Or, I should say, was. senior artists who need community, support and, frequently, I tried on the listserv to enlist volunteers to offer opinions, not financial assistance. Writers are threatened not only because of their service, but no one responded, save for one,, a former member from age but also because of what’s been happening to the publishing a bygone year, who said there was no longer any need for action; industry. that women are doing just fine. That means she’s okay, so everyone The name of the new organization is Canadian Senior Artists’ else must be. I wrote a large report — essay, really — for the Annual Resources Network — CSARN, established after extensive research. meeting and received no response at all. I quote from a news release when the new website was launched: In the meantime, I have been counting the representation by “The research confirmed that senior artists experience challenges in women in various public appearances: anthologies, newspaper the areas of finances, housing, health, isolation, and career — some reviews, books reviewed, plays produced. In every field, women are of which are shared by other seniors and some of which are unique outnumbered by men, usually three or four to one, in men’s favour. to artists. Using the survey data, an assessment of the risk factors of No one seems to care. So I suggest we scrap the Status of Women senior artists found: Committee. However, I’ll tell you what I do care about, what not only women • 61 per cent of senior artists are at moderate or high financial but men of a certain age also care about. It’s age discrimination. risk; It’s hard enough to make a full-time living as a writer these days, • 73 per cent are at moderate or high health risk; with all your energy and hope surrounding you, but it’s even harder • 28 per cent are at moderate or high risk of isolation; and as you get older, physically and visibly. I was 42 when I was wid- • 42 per cent are at moderate or high risk with regard to their owed and had to make a living for myself and my four children, de- artistic career or legacy. ciding in my ignorance that I was going to do it by writing full-time. No one told me it couldn’t be done. However, two people specifically June Callwood used to call her published books her little pension told me that I could not possibly do it if I didn’t — literally — go plan. Now with the publishing industry in a perilous state and many blonde. I had salt-and-pepper hair at that point but it was a negative books (including mine) being remaindered as we wonder if we can flag to those hiring. One of the people was an editor at Maclean’s switch gracefully and successfully to ebooks and print-on-demand, magazine; the other was a New York actress working at Stratford our little pension plans have dwindled or died — with less and less. that summer. Perhaps it is time to start a new committee. I have no idea of the Remember what Lady Bracknell said about a recent widow: “They demographics of the union now. I know I see a lot of unfamiliar, say her hair has turned quite gold with grief.” So eventually, did young faces. At meetings now, I notice that I am a Grey Eminence mine. but I don’t know how many there are like me. I’ll start asking for Actresses have a harder time because they’re selling their looks. the stats. But at least, here is something for National Council to One gifted actress, in her 60s, told me she tried out for a part calling consider.

30 write ent pricing. The blocks would be paid for in five-year increments. E-Lending Task Force Report If a title is not moving — if no one is borrowing it from the library — it might be “returned” early with the library only paying perhaps Tim Wynne-Jones, Chair 40 per cent of the full price. The library would only be allowed to loan out one copy at a time; more copies might be purchased if demand warrants. If the electronic copy of the book is the only This task force was formed as a result of information that came to version of that title in the library, it would count for PLR purposes. light from comments made by librarians at the 2012 AGM. TWUC (Otherwise, of course, the hard copy would count.) realized that librarians were looking into a new model for lending There would be a set number of borrowings: after 40, the title ebooks. We wanted writers to be at the table during those discus- would have to be re-purchased. Libraries view this as a “purchase” sions to ensure that they have a say in the ongoing discussion model, but actually it seems to be more of a hybrid between between publishers and libraries and to help guarantee that our purchasing and licensing. After five years the library “owns” the interests are taken into account on whatever licensing model the title, but must purchase again after the 40 borrowings. The transac- libraries and publishers decide upon. tion would be considered a purchase under most current publisher- We have kept abreast of e-lending through articles in Canadian author contracts. The actual price per title is uncertain at this point. Business Magazine, Digital Book World, Publisher’s Weekly, and Quill Publishers would set the price, in competition with each other. & Quire as well as a very useful “call for evidence” report from our Libraries, obviously, would want to save money while expanding colleagues in the Society of Authors in the U.K., and an equally their collections of Canadian titles; publishers (and authors) could cogent discussion paper provided by the Canadian Urban Libraries stand to gain a new payment for titles that for now might not be Council (CULC). Our Exexcutive Director at the time, Kelly Duffin, selling well. met with spokespeople from the Association of Canadian Publish- The model envisions libraries dealing with publishers, not neces- ers and eBound, which represents their side of the discussion with sarily individual authors, but there might be room for an organi- CULC. She shared her findings with the members of the task force. zation like TWUC to become a central clearinghouse for authors The task force, including our ED and Chair, participated in two who are offering their own titles as e-books. Libraries are also telephone conferences with the CULC steering committee in charge looking into the possibility of facilitating ebook sales to the public of coming up with a licensing proposal. The discussions so far have on their websites — offering a commercial sales link to books for been primarily fact-gathering missions, as we define terms, learn patrons who face a long lineup for a popular title. The sales could who the significant players are and generally try to scale the steep be through a local bookstore, an online store, a publisher, or all learning curve of this issue. It’s the Wild West out there! However, of the above. This model would not replace Overdrive but would we feel better informed and have put forward several concerns to be work alongside that service to give libraries — and patrons — more taken into consideration. Here, in a nutshell, is the proposal from choice. CULC, as nicely summarized by Alan Cumyn: The whole business is moving quickly with a proposed pilot Libraries get most of their ebooks now from a large American project expected as early as this spring in some major libraries. aggregator, Overdrive. Many Canadian titles are not available and We will be meeting again in January with CULC. But already we libraries would like to have more freedom to buy locally and build have realized one benefit from being at the table early: as CULC their collections independently. Publishers and authors are also becomes increasingly aware of the writers’ needs in this swiftly wary of the possibility of libraries lending out e-copies indiscrimi- developing technology, they are now ensuring that whatever model nately, undercutting sales. CULC’s current proposal is that Cana- they approve will have the capacity to harvest data for the Public dian publishers be invited to put together “blocks” of titles to sell to Lending Right Commission, which has made a commitment to libraries. One block might include mid-list titles that have been out include ebooks by 2014. for a few years; another block might include new titles, with differ-

inscrutable future. AGM 2013 Planning Committee Eight compelling panels (good luck deciding what you’ll have to miss!) will help us explore new ideas, age-old questions, and Christine Cowley, Co-Chair potential opportunities; and a whole slew of events will have us swapping industry news, networking and (ahem) socializing for four memorable days. Details of speakers, panels and events are all Planning for the annual gathering of The Tribe has been a new found in this issue of Write. experience for many on the team this year, including me. In spite Two events you won’t want to miss: a special excursion planned of my limited knowledge — based on attendance at the 2011 and for Thursday afternoon, ahead of the evening kick-off. First signed- 2012 conferences — I felt the AGMs had so enhanced my writing up, first served attendance for a tour of the Parliamentary library practice that it was good karma to give something back. Sharing just for TWUC members. Walking is required, so don’t forget the lead is co-chair Katharine Fletcher — another newbie — whose sensible shoes and your historical sensibilities. On Saturday after- knowledge of Ottawa and herding (cats) expertise supports our noon, join a walking tour of the Parliament buildings conducted decision-making and helps us stay on track. by our very own Ottawa expert, Katharine Fletcher. Numbers are Together, the team has whittled a huge volume of creative ideas limited for both tours, so reserve your spot early. into an inspiring theme encompassing the 40th anniversary of If you are a new member or (especially) a long-time member TWUC: Fast Forward@Forty. Honouring our past with all its chal- who has never attended the AGM before, come to Ottawa in May! lenges and successes, we turn also to address the writing life in an Your place in The Tribe is waiting.

WINTER 2013 31 Business & Reports

minister, James Moore ([email protected]) and Foreign Af- International Affairs fairs minister, John Baird ([email protected]), with a copy to Prime Minister Harper ([email protected]), urging them, in your own words, Committee Report to continue supporting this organization, which, in turn, supports our authors and publishers, creatively and economically. Gale Zoë Garnett, Chair International Federation of Actors (FIA) Congress. In September, ACTRA hosted an international three-day congress for the world’s Winter Greetings to all! As I write this, all TWUC committees are actors’ unions. I attended these meetings, believing the FIA, with in the midst of a restructuring process. Recently, as current Chair which I’ve worked over the years, has the template for a confed- of IAC, I had a productive working lunch with 2012-2013 TWUC eration of unions, which, with no problems regarding individual Chair Merilyn Simonds. As everything is in flux, I cannot now union sovereignty, would give us a larger, stronger voice. They’ve report details right now. I was, however, assured that IAC’s work is done years of superb work in terms of international copyright, valued and valuable, and will be built upon going forward, after any and their newly-minted Beijing Treaty is truly a model from which nomenclatural and/or systemic changes. What does that mean? Not TWUC can benefit. FIA’s new president, Fern Downie, is also certain, but am sure TWUC will make an international forum for president of ACTRA, which further benefits TWUC. Fern, as well its writers and writing in the new structure. It will all take a while to as ACTRA executive director Steve Waddell, acts as a generous and shake down, and to see what does and does not work. IAC contin- knowledgeable resource for Canadian writers here in Canada. I will ues as a standing committee at least until our next AGM, and, as report in more detail in Write’s next issue. always, welcomes input from all regarding international matters Regarding Canadian Publishing Opportunity. I know that Eva affecting Canadian writers and writing. Deep thanks to those who Pors, in Denmark (see Fall issue of Write) has received many have written in support of IAC. Our current concerns include: submissions for her planned YA anthology. One TWUC member, ICCS: As reported in the fall issue of Write, the federal govern- however, has had difficulty contacting Eva. I was told that the email ment plans to end its support of The International Council for Ca- address was not case-specific. The email address, however, ep@ nadian Studies. This first-rate organization has brought Canadian midfyns-gym.dk is given here without a capital ‘g’. writing to schools and Universities all over the world. Its course- A warm welcome to TWUC’s new Executive Director John work also sells our books. If discontinuing Canadian government Degen, with gratitude for the work of his predecessor, Kelly Duffin. support for this seems as counterproductive to you as it does to I will report again prior to the 2013 AGM. In the meantime, I wish those who’ve worked with them, please write to Canadian Heritage you all a productive and creative winter and spring. Race Issues Alberta/ Northwest Committee Report Territories/ Nunavut

Wali Alam Shaheen, Chair Report

By Glenn Dixon, Activity-wise, there is not much to report. My own personal Regional Representative circumstances (concerning prolonged illness within the family) have not helped, either. Our members, mostly writing in their own The festival season is now over. The big ones in these parts are mother tongue, remain busy and connected to the mainstream of Wordfest in Calgary and Banff, and LitFest in Edmonton — which their own literary domain by getting published in journals, giving is the nation’s only non-fiction festival. Thanks to Jo Steffens, readings at events mostly in Canadian urban centres, attending Anne Logan, and Mary Kapusta at Wordfest and thanks to conferences, and burning the midnight oil. Jennifer Cockrall-King, Carol Neuman, Curtis Gillespie, and South Asian Ensemble is a recent Canadian quarterly of arts, lit- many, many others at Litfest. These were all big successes. erature, and culture published in Trenton, Ontario. Its Spring and Thanks too, to all the volunteers who make these events happen. Summer 2012 issue carries impressive writings by I’d also like to mention Northwords — in Yellowknife — whose Canadian writers of South Asian origin, including TWUC mem- festival runs in early June but who held a “weekend” and AGM on bers. South Asian Ensemble’s chief editor Gurdev Chauhan seems November 16th and 17th. to have given the journal an imprint of his own that enhances In late October, Merilyn Simonds came through for her Gather- a tradition reminiscent of M. G. Vassanji’s now-defunct Toronto ing of the Tribes tour. We had meetings at Pages Books in Calgary South Asian Review. Our members may contact the editor at the and a couple of days later in Edmonton at Greg Hollingshead’s journal’s email address: [email protected]. house. One thing that struck me was the strong interest in hav- I wish all my Committee members a very happy Holiday Season ing the Writer’s Union and the Alberta Writers Guild work more and a wonderful New Year. It is a time when we tend to look, like closely together. If you are a member of both, contact me with any Janus, both backward and forward and in good faith make resolu- ideas you might have for this. I’ll be meeting later with Carol Hol- tions to abide by. But, on a very personal note, I am reminded of a mes — executive director of the Alberta Writers Guild — to see couplet from a ghazal of my own: just what we can do together. Lastly, the Banff writing retreat (at the world class Banff Centre) is coming up again this year. The Shaheen, as always, on New Year’s Eve writer in residence this year will be Rosemary Nixon. The first Prepared a list and forgot again retreat — half or full — will go in February. Get your applications in at http://www.writersguild.ab.ca/Retreats.asp.

32 write Manitoba/ Ontario Saskatchewan Report Report By Anita Daher, By Steve Pitt, Regional Representative Regional Representative

The gloves are off, other regions! More on that in a minute. First, They’re alive! In the last report I said we were in the process of we’re (mostly) about the making merry. launching regional subgroups across Ontario so that TWUC In October, TWUC members attended the Saskatchewan Writ- members who live near each other could meet face to face. I’m ers’ Guild conference in Saskatoon. TWUC hosted the pre-gala happy to announce that the effort has been very successful. We cocktail reception, and on Sunday TWUC and SWG members now have more than twenty subgroups up and running across the were treated to a visit from our chair, Merilyn Simonds. province. On Nov. 1st, the Chair’s Tour rolled into Winnipeg where 30 Some are fairly small but they already represent a sizeable writers were extremely pleased to meet with Merilyn and hear percentage of their local TWUC membership. Some of the larger what she had to say about TWUC’s efforts (battles?) in our current ones (Toronto, Ottawa, London) are still only at a fraction of their writing and publishing environment. potential but the subgroup initiative is barely off the ground. The Chair’s visit came on the heels of Douglas & McIntyre’s Hang in there and give it time. I suspect that many Ontario devastating news, felt deeply by many TWUC members includ- TWUCers still haven’t heard about the subgroups despite the ing Saskatoon’s Candace Savage, touring with her just released numerous e-mail messages that have been sent out. Unfortu- Douglas & McIntyre published A Geography of Blood: Unearthing nately, e-mail addresses can change and e-mail messages get Memory from a Prairie Landscape. Not long after her visit it was gobbled up by spam filters. If you want to find the nearest TWUC announced that A Geography of Blood had won the 2012 Hilary subgroup in your area e-mail me at [email protected]; I am not Weston Writers Trust Prize for Nonfiction. Well deserved — changing my e-mail for the foreseeable future and I do not use a congratulations, Candace! spam filter. Celebrations in this region actually began in September when The purpose of the subgroups in mostly social. It is a chance Winnipeg author and former TWUC chair Dave Williamson was for TWUC members to meet informally and enjoy the com- bestowed the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal for pany of other writers. But there is a practical aspect as well. The “outstanding contributions to the cultural and arts community subgroups have already proven invaluable as our union Chair, of Winnipeg.” In Saskatchewan, Sharon Butala received the 2012 Merilyn Simonds, travelled to Waterloo, North Bay, and Toronto Cheryl and Henry Kloppenburg Award for Literary Excellence to meet face to face with her fellow TWUCers as part of her 40th which honours “a Saskatchewan writer who has written a Anniversary Chair’s Tour of Canada. In each location, having a substantial body of acclaimed literary work.” regional subgroup provided a foothold in that writing community. Saskatoon’s Beverly Brenna is also in a celebratory mood after First Vice Chair Dorris Hefferon gets full credit for organizing the winning the 2012 international Dolly Gray Award for Children’s Toronto meeting but in Waterloo and North Bay, it was the newly- Literature for her novel, Waiting for No One. created subgroups who provided a venue for Merilyn to speak and Two regional meetings were held in fall, one in Saskatoon (dur- contacted the local writing community to attend. We hope to see ing the SWG conference), one in Winnipeg (following a group more of the same when Merilyn continues her tour in the new book signing at McNally’s). In attendance: Dianne Young, Alex- year where she plans to visit TWUC members in Ottawa, Hamil- andra Popoff, Jo Bannatine-Cugnet, Bob Curry, Dave Margoshes, ton, London, Windsor, and Kingston/Perth/Belleville/Brockville. Steve Benstead, Susan Rocan, John Parr, David Koulack, Dora I am now asking a favour of all the subgroups that are up and Dueck, Bob Armstrong, and Colleen Nelson. running out there. There is more merrymaking to come as TWUC members will Could each subgroup find one volunteer to serve as a contact gather in Winnipeg with members of the Manitoba Writers Guild person between their subgroup and me? This contact person can for our annual holiday cookie potluck and open mic. then update me as needed on what is happening in their local Looking forward to February and Canada Reads 2013, “Turf writing community. In turn, I, as the Ontario Rep, will be keep Wars ”. For Prairies and North region, sportscaster Ron MacLean them posted on new members and what is happening at National will advocate for The Age of Hope by Winnipeg TWUC member Council. David Bergen. Arguments will begin on CBC Radio beginning Finally, I’d like to congratulate Toronto member Leslie Shimo- February 11, 2013. takahara for winning the Canada Council’s 2012 Canada-Japan

da h er / G lenn D ixon p oto s b y: M arli F un k anita We’ve got this one, other regions. Oh, yeah. Literary Prize for her first book, The Reading List. Her book has been described as “shocking” and “funny”. I think we need more of that in this province.

WINTER 2013 33 Business & Reports

Spring 2013 and Newfoundland members in July 2013. A return Atlantic Report visit to P.E.I. is also in the works, while New Brunswick members can meet with me in Moncton at any time or at WFNB events. By Lee D. Thompson, As I write this, two of the four Atlantic provincial writers’ Regional Representative organizations, the Writers’ Alliance of Newfoundland and Labrador and the The Writers’ Federation of Nova Scotia, are seeking new leadership, with both Executive Director positions being open. It’s important for TWUC to work closely with provincial groups and I wish WANL and WFNS success, an easy transition, and will be in In October I made what will be my first of several TWUC visits touch with the incoming Executive Directors. Also, congratulations to an Atlantic province, this time to meet with a small group of to WANL on their 25th anniversary. long-time P.E.I. TWUC members. Though it was an impromptu In October, the Writers’ Federation of Nova Scotia Literary get together, it was a great introduction to the type of questions Awards were handed out, with prizes going to Harry Thurston members have about the Union’s activities and will better prepare (the Evelyn Richard Memorial Non-Fiction Award), Sue Goyette me for future meetings. Copyright is of course a central issue (the Atlantic Poetry Prize), and David Adams Richards (the to both the membership and the Union’s leadership, but there Thomas Head Raddall Atlantic Fiction Award). Since then it’s been was much discussion of the future of electronic publishing and quieter, but things will pick up when 2013 arrives with literary the precarious state of many publishers in the country, especially competitions for WFNB and WFNS, several festivals, mentorship with the Douglas & McIntyre news being so recent. (Having had programs, and for me a National Council meeting in late January. one novel freed from contract when a publisher went under, I As always, feel free to contact me at [email protected]. sympathize with those who have experienced the same.) I intend to meet with Nova Scotia TWUC members in late

TWUC is anxious to see more new/young blood as recruits. If you Quebec Report would like to review the orientation presentation, please send me a By Joyce Scharf, note and I’ll send you a copy. Regional Representative In other news, Quebec writers, including TWUC members, were honoured when the QWF prizes were awarded in late Novem- ber. Congrats to all. For a list of writers nominated and the winners in all categories go to www.qwf.org. ELAN was busy promoting increased interaction between art- ists and citizens since the creation of Rendez-vous 2007. Having As I write this, it is still late November and according to the weath- reached the mid-point of its 10-year-plan (2007-17) the Montreal er, it’s hard to believe that fall has actually ended and winter is re- Cultural Metropolis forum reported on the accomplishments over ally coming. To date, we haven’t seen snow aside from a sprinkling the past five years and the community arts partnerships for the of half-hearted flurries unwilling to settle in for the season. By next five. For information on these and other community events, the time you read this in February, I’m sure I will be complaining submissions, workshops, jobs, deadlines and more, visit the ELAN about far too much snow accumilation and the calamity of winter newsletter at www.quebec-elan.or boots collecting and multiplying on their own in my vestibule. I’m heading to Toronto in late January to attend our winter Na- Quebec members have met twice this past fall, once in October tional Council meeting. Please look for a Letter from the Chair for when we discussed the upcoming Nation Council Quebec Rep an update of our meeting. election and then again in November with a visit from Merilyn We welcome new members John Mikhail Asfour (Blindfold, Simonds. Both meetings brought together many members who McGill–Queen’s, 2011) and Maya Merrick (The Hole Show, Conun- expressed a keen interest in keeping the union’s spirit and efforts drum Press, 2007). alive in Quebec. We’ll do it all over again this spring. I’ll see you sometime in the spring. Watch for a TWUC email for I have been reminded by the Nominating Committee to prompt time and place. For now, I think I’ll go sweep the walk. All the best members who are interested in taking a role in the Union to send for 2013. in their nominations, whether for this year or in years to come.

Nominations for National Council

Nominations close February 28th, 2013 for the following Nominations for advocate positions, treasurer, and 2nd positions on next year’s National Council Vice-Chair remain open until the AGM. • 1st Vice-Chair Nominations should be sent to the office, and • Regional Reps for B.C., Manitoba/ Saskatchewan, accompanied by confirmation from the nominee, plus and Quebec photo and short bio.

34 write Member Awards and News

The Writers’ Trust of Canada announced in November that Susan M. MacDonald, a new member, reports that her first member Candace Savage was the winner of the Hilary Weston novel Edge of Time (Breakwater Press) was shortlisted for the Writers’ Trust Prize for Nonfiction for A Geography of Blood: Bruneau Family Children’s/Young Adult Literature award at the Unearthing Memory from a Prairie Landscape (Greystone Books). 2012 Atlantic Book Awards and won the gold medal at the 2012 Moonbeam Children’s Book Awards in the category of Fantasy/Sci- Union member former Albertan and current Saskatchewan Fi. resident, chef, writer, and poet dee Hobsbawn-Smith’s fifth book, Foodshed: An Edible Alberta Alphabet, published by Touchwood Vancouver’s Lynne Bowen’s latest book Whoever Gives Us Bread: Editions, has been named top Canadian English-Language Food The Story of Italians in British Columbia (Douglas & McIntyre) was Literature book in the international 2012 Gourmand World shortlisted for the City of Vancouver Book Award last September Cookbooks Awards. All national winners go on to the international and has won the F.G. Bressani Literary Prize for creative level of competition; winners will be announced in Paris in nonfiction. February 2013. dee, who is currently earning her MFA in writing at the University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon, has recently Member Andreas Schroeder’s recently published collection Duped! signed a contract with Hagios Books for her first poetry collection, (Annick Press, 2011) has been shortlisted for the Ontario Library Wildness Rushing in. Association’s 2012 Silver Birch Award for best nonfiction in the 8-12-year-old category. The book is an account of eight of the most Patricia Keeney announces the publication of two new books: First ingenious swindles ever perpetrated by conmen from around the Woman (Inanna Press), a volume of new poems and You Bring world. The winner will be announced on May 16, 2013. Me Wings (Antares: Publishing House of Spanish Culture), a bilingual (Spanish/English) edition of poems and conversation Linda Spalding’s novel The Purchase (McClelland & Stewart) won with Mexican poet Ethel Krauze around art, love, and writing. the 2012 Governor General’s Literary Award for fiction.

Congratulations to Suzette Mayr, who won the Relit Award for The 2012 Toronto Book Award was awarded to Andrew J. Fiction for her novel, Monoceros (Coach House Books). Borkowski for his collection of short stories Copernicus Avenue (Cormorant Books). Member Leslie Shimotakahara’s first book The Reading List (Variety Crossing Press) has been awarded the 2012 Canada-Japan Literary Prize. See her article in this issue of Write for more about the writing of the book on page 19.

Classifieds

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WINTER 2013 35 New Members

John Mikhail ster’s Life, New Star Pulp Press, 2005 Press, 2011 Ann-Maureen 2012 Asfour, Blindfold, Books, 2011 Owens, The Kids Shauntay Grant, Gillian Savigny, McGill-Queen’s Book of Canadian Richard J. Apples and Butter- Notebook M, University Press, Exploration, Kids Douglass-Chin, flies, Nimbus, 2012 Insomniac Press, 2011 Can Press, 2004 Preacher Woman due Oct 2012 Cynthia Woodman Catherine Austen, Sings the Blues, Uni- Colleen Nelson, Tori Kerkham, Good Scott Thornley, The All Good Children, versity of Missouri by Design, Great Holding Ground, Ambitious City, Orca Book Press, 2001 Plains Teen Fiction, Palimpsest Press, Random House, Publishers, 2011 2011 Teresa Earle, Yukon 2011 2012 - A Wilder Place, Mal Peters, Jessica Scott Jody Nyasha War- Greystone Books, Bombora, Kerrin,The Lobster ner, Viola Desmond 2011 Dreamspinner Chronicles: Lower Won’t Be Budged!, Christine McNair, Press, 2012 Garfield Ellis, Till the Trap!, Kids Can Groundwood Conflict, Book Thug, I’m Laid to Rest, Press,2012 Else Poulsen, Books, 2010 2012 Nsemia, 2010 Smiling Bears: A Shawna Lemay, PROVISIONAL Maya Merrick, The Zookeeper Explores Terri Favro, The Calm Things, Hole Show, Conun- the Behavior and Dolly Dennis, Proxy Bride, Quattro Palimpsest, 2008 drum Press, 2007 Emotional Life of Loddy-Dah, Guer- Books, 2012 Larry MacDonald, Bears, Greystone, nica Editions, due Binnie Brennan, Debbie Ohi, I’m Robert N. Fried- The Bombardier 2009 2014 A Certain Grace, Bored, Simon & land, The Second Story: Planes, Trains, Quattro Books, Schuster Books Lamare Robinson, Jeanne Van Bronk- Wedding of Doctor and Snowmobiles, 2012 for Young Readers, What to do…When horst, Premonitions Geneva Song, John Wiley & Sons 2012 Your Mom Feels in Daily Life: Working Carol Damioli, Libros Libertad Canada Ltd., 2002 Blue, Cypress Publi- with Spontaneous Rogue Angel, Dante Publishing Limited, Katrina Onstad, Tara Manuel, cations, 2012 Information When University of Amer- 2011 Everybody Has Every- Walking Through Rational Under- ica Press, 1994 thing, McClelland& Susan Safyan, All Daniel Gawthrop, Shadows: Stories standing Fails You, Stewart, 2012 Roads Lead to Wells: Ranj Dhaliwal, The Rice Queen from the Edge of the Llewellyn World- Stories of the Hippie Daaku: The Gang- Diaries, Arsenal World, Thistledown wide, due Days, Caitlin Press,

Joe Fiorito Frances Itani Stephanie Simp- Judy Ann Sadler Thank you Cynthia Flood Albert M. Jabara son McLellan Robina Salter for your donation. The Writers’ Union Charles Foster Dayv James- Lila Mehta Pete Sarsfield would like to thank the following Peggy Gale French Daniel David Melanie Schnell individuals for their donations to the Gale Zoe Garnett Karl E. Jirgens Moses Mary C. Sheppard Union. Shree Ghatage Gordon Johnston Claire Mowat Maggie Siggins Carolyn Gossage Deanna Kawatski Alice Munro Bonita Slunder Angie Abdou Sharon Butala Barbara Green- Heather Kirk Robert Munsch Lola Sneyd Paul Almond Sandra Campbell wood Myrna Kostash Elaine Kalman Glen Sorestad George Anthony Graham Cotter Sandra Gulland Patrick Lane Naves Ken Stange Manuel Antonio Constance Crook Judy Haiven Dennis Lee Charles Noble Doug M. Symons Arango Sheldon Currie Elizabeth Hay Myrna Neuringer Uma Bob Waldon Bob Barton Mary Lou Dickin- Dorris Heffron Levy Parameswaran Armin Wiebe Judy Fong Bates son Greg Hollings- Glynn A. Leyshon Kalwant Singh Ian Williams Steven Benstead Allan Donaldson head Yan Li Parmar Elana Wolff Marie-Claire Blais Allan Donaldson Isabel Huggan Hilliard MacBeth Nellie Strowbridge Joyce Yardley Lillian Boraks- Jill Downie Dae-Tong Huh Claire Mackay Barbara Reid Nemetz Sonja Dunn Crystal Hope Alistair MacLeod Nino Ricci Lynne Bowen Elizabeth Rollins Hurdle Fraidie Martz William N. Rowe Linda Bramble Epperly Kevin Irie Robin McGrath Garry Ryan

36 write In Memoriam

Fred Bosworth BY Susan Crean 1918–2012

Fred Bodsworth, stalwart Union member, beloved writer of Last My great thrill on joining the Union was meeting Fred. Even of the Curlews and one of Canada’s leading naturalists died in better was becoming his birding friend. That happened because of September, a month short of his 94th birthday. He was born in the madcap auctions we used to hold at the annual banquet with Port Burwell on the shores of Lake Erie and always attributed Pierre Berton doing the auctioneering. One year I bought Fred his affinity for nature to his childhood spent there, Elgin County (and an afternoon of birding with him on Toronto’s Leslie Street being on one of North America’s busiest migration routes of birds Spit) for $200. That was first of many birding excursions with and butterflies. him, the last in celebration of his 90th birthday, held in vintage His formal training ended with high school, and after a few Fred style at the Bracebridge Sewage lagoons. years working in tobacco fields and on tugboats he started Fred had many honours in his life, including the Matt Cohen writing nature articles for juvenile magazines. This turned into Award in 2003 for his legacy as a writer. As Glenn Coady, an journalism, and a move to Toronto where he worked for the editor of Ontario Birds, wrote in his message to the birding Toronto Star and then for Maclean’s magazine as a staff writer. community, “I learned the intricacies of shorebird identification In 1954 one feature short story got out-of-hand. Inspired by the leaning on books by men like Roger Tory Peterson, but sighting of two rare Eskimo Curlews on Galveston Bay in Texas, comprehending them as ‘minute specks of earthbound flesh wondering if they could possibly be the last two curlews on earth, challenging an eternity of earth and sky’ was a gift from Fred Fred wrote a story of the male curlew’s lonely search for a mate. Bodsworth.” It became his first book, which he always said was written by accident. Translated into 15 languages, three million copies sold, it is still in print. I first encountered Fred as a thirteen-year-old reading Last of the Excerpt from Canada Writes! TWUC’s first Curlews. The tragic yet unsentimental account of the true meaning members directory, 1977: of “becoming extinct” showed the hand of humans in the process, and had a huge impact on me and many others. In sounding the “I enjoy the challenge of presenting wildlife characters as modern alarm about the environment (eight years before Rachel Carson`s animal behaviour studies are showing them to be — creatures Silent Spring) the book gave a huge impetus to the movement then dominated by instinct but not enslaved by it, beings with in the making. “I know of at least two men who became full time intelligence very much subhuman in some areas yet fascinatingly conservationists after reading the Last of the Curlews as boys,” says superhuman in others. Out of this blending of human and animal Graeme Gibson. stories comes the theme that I hope is inherent in all my work: Fred was active in the Union from the beginning, coming to that man is an inescapable part of all nature, that its welfare is our AGMs well into his eighties. He had an even longer career as an welfare, that to survive he cannot continue acting and regarding activist in the world of naturalists and ornithologists where he is himself as a spectator looking on from somewhere outside.” revered as one of Canada’s most experienced and knowledgeable – Fred Bosworth birders by scientists and enthusiasts alike.

WINTER 2013 37 In Memoriam

Sara Lee (Harris) Stadelman BY Paul macken 1917–2008

A nickel for going; another for coming back; a third for a soft critic Louis Cook: “She makes Albee look like a sissy and Ionesco drink. A sandwich in a brown paper bag; an apple; a pad; tongue-tied.” She herself thought and said that her Choreologia and a clutch of pencils. From Brooklyn to Manhattan and the was not discovery, but re-discovery of ancient forms. Greek and Metropolitan Museum of Art; another Saturday. She would sit, Shakespearean scholars agreed with her. see, sketch. It would later be said of Sara Lee Stadelman that she Before all this she’d had “Broadway at her feet,” as the papers could create stunning stage pictures for her dancers and actors. said. Her debut was with Gregory Peck, the touring company of She taught and trained performers to engage their five senses in The Skin of Our Teeth, and off to North Africa with the first actors understanding and realizing spatial relationships. The paintings to take full-length plays to the front lines in W.W. II. She landed and sculptures informed her. The playwright Emmet Lavery once back on Broadway in Boy Meets Girl. But these are just beads on said in a public speech, “Only Sara Lee Stadelman is doing for the her rosary. While her troupe was held back by the Battle of the theatre what Martha Graham is doing for dance.” Not surprising. Bulge, Sara Lee fell under the spell of St. Catherine of Siena, and Sara Lee had been a scholarship student of Martha’s for two years began a long tortuous trek from Christian Science to Roman while studying acting with Sanford Meisner. Catholicism, losing a lot of her friends on the way: “Sara Lee! Martha appointed Sara Lee choreographer for the graduation Episcopalian we could have understood, but my God, Rome!” festivities. Sara Lee chose Mother Goose as her subject and (And the Romans weren’t much more welcoming either at first.) asked the students to speak the rhymes as they danced. After the There she found the epic material best suited to her dramatic performance there was no backstage visit from Martha, not a form: the saints. The women saints. She created some of theatre’s word, good or bad. At the company reception a taffeta-clad Ms. most stunning moments to celebrate them, and then moved away Graham stood across the room from Sara Lee and pronounced from commercial theatre and into the religious milieu. She was a that she’d always wanted to produce those nursery rhymes, “but small woman with a huge talent and almost inexhaustible energy, now there’s no need; they’ve been done,” and never spoke to Sara and her performing took her across Canada and the U.S., into Lee again. Mexico and Italy. Sara Lee always credited those two names when she created She taught and trained with discipline and humour, demanding Choreologia, the original theatre form she pioneered. She put truth; honouring it. A student asked to be assigned to do an together Meisner and Martha, asking actors to dance and dancers interpretation of Bach. Sara Lee refused: “Bach does not need to act — and speak and sing all together, all at once, and to create interpretation — he demands a response!” believable characters while doing it. She’s credited in the British Her poetry has been published across North America and in Museum and the New York Public Library as the first person in England. In 1975 she published a book of poems called After the theatre history to stage Shakespeare’s sonnets as a play, using only Ascension, and in 2000 her award-winning memoir Walk-Ons & the sonnets as dialogue, neither added to nor edited. She called Bit Parts was published by Penumbra Press. it The Dark Lady Within. It earned her this kudo from theatre

38 write Bringing Order to Content Management Access Copyright is pleased to announce a©e Creator, a free, comprehensive, password-protected web-based ƐĞƌǀŝĐĞƚŚĂƚĂůůŽǁƐĐƌĞĂƚŽƌĂĸůŝĂƚĞƐƚŽĂĐĐĞƐƐƚŚĞŝƌ ĐŽŶƚĞŶƚĂŶLJǁŚĞƌĞĂƚĂŶLJƟŵĞ͘^ƚŽƌĞŵƵůƟƉůĞĮůĞ formats, archive, retrieve, repurpose and track your ǁƌŝƟŶŐĞĚŝƚƐ͘DĂŶĂŐĞLJŽƵƌĞŶƟƌĞĐŽůůĞĐƟŽŶŽĨǁŽƌŬƐŝŶ ĚŝŐŝƚĂůĨŽƌŵĨƌŽŵŽŶĞƐĞĐƵƌĞůŽĐĂƟŽŶĂŶĚďƌŝŶŐŽƌĚĞƌ ƚŽLJŽƵƌĐŽŶƚĞŶƚŵĂŶĂŐĞŵĞŶƚ͘ dŽĮŶĚŽƵƚŚŽǁƚŽŐĞƚƐƚĂƌƚĞĚǁŝƚŚĂΞĞƌĞĂƚŽƌ͕ƉůĞĂƐĞ contact us at [email protected] or 416-868-1620 ext. 248͘

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WINTER 2013 39 We are now accepting applications for the new fiscal year! NATIONAL PUBLIC wRITERS-IN-THE- rEADINGS pROGRAM SCHOOLS PROGRAM • Applications are now being accepted for readings • Applications are now being accepted for readings taking taking place on or after April 1, 2013. This program is place between April 1, 2013 - August 31, 2013. This open to all TWUC members for public readings taking program is open to all TWUC members for visits taking place anywhere in Canada. place in Ontario-based schools.

• Through this program, authors are paid a $250 • Through this program, the Union subsidizes a portion reading fee and reimbursed up to $300 in travel of the author’s fee. Authors are paid $150 for a full day expenses for a full (solo) reading. Authors are paid and $100 for a half day, and are reimbursed up to $250 half of the above for a half (joint) reading. in travel expenses for a full day and $125 for a half day.

• Each host and member of the Union is eligible to • Ontario-based schools is eligible for one subsidized receive funding for a maximum of two full readings or visit per fiscal year. Authors are eligible for funding for 6 four half readings per fiscal year (April 1 - March 31). full day visits or 12 half-day visits.

• Funding is limited, and allocated on a first come, first • Funding is limited, and allocated on a first come, first served basis. Only hosts can apply to this program. served basis. Only schools can apply to this program.

• For more information (including eligibility), please • For more information, please visit http://www. visit http://www.writersunion.ca/content/national- writersunion.ca/node/122. public-readings.

WRITERSUNION.CA Have you logged in lately? Take advantage of the Union’s tools to raise your profile!

The Writers’ Union of Canada’s Once you have entered your city and member but your first initial and last website is here to help you. This is province in your member profile you name in all lowercase letters, i.e. where you can find the latest TWUC become searchable by location as well our chair Merilyn Simonds would news, professional resources, post as name, which helps when reading be msimonds. Your password is the announcements for your upcoming hosts and media members are looking same as it always was and if you can’t activities, and converse with your for an expert author in your area. remember, you can reset it. If that still fellow members on hot topics in the isn’t working, please contact discussion forums. Every time you visit, MEMBERS ANNOUNCEMENTS [email protected] and Valerie will please log in — there is information Post your member announcements by give you a hand. only visible to members! logging in and hitting the red “Post” in the For Members section of the TWITTER MEMBERS PAGE website. Tell the world about your latest If you are on Twitter follow us at Be sure to keep your member page up book, your upcoming reading, your @twuc; we’ll follow you back. If you to date. Include a photo, a bibliography, recent award. It’s not bragging, it’s self- add @twuc to your tweet we will do our a biography, and a link to your own promotion. Member announcements best to retweet it for you, but only a few website if you have one. Every time appear in their own section as well as tweets per event please. someone visits the TWUC website a being randomly refreshed on any page collage of members’ pictures appears of the website giving you more chances FACEBOOK on the front page. This is randomly for more eyes to see your good news. If you are on Facebook, don’t forget to selected and refreshed at each visit but “like” us to receive TWUC updates in you won’t appear if you don’t have a TROUBLE LOGGING IN? your newsfeed. picture in your member profile page. Your username is no longer the word