Prizes will be £2,000, £1,000 & £500, & a chance to read online with judges Linda Gregerson & John McAuliffe on Monday 6th December! Details below:

Troubadour international poetry prize 2021 

judged by john mcauliffe & linda gregerson

• first prize £2,000

• second prize £1,000

• third prize £500

• plus 20 commendeds

• plus winners read with judges at Troubadour international poetry prize 2021 prize-night celebration online on Monday, December 6.

judges

• Linda Gregerson studied at Oberlin, Northwestern, Iowa Writers Workshop & Stanford, is Professor of English at University of Michigan, a Renaissance scholar, a classically trained actor & a Chancellor of the Academy of American Poets: her poetry collections range from The Woman Who Died in Her Sleep (Houghton Mifflin, 1996) to Prodigal: New and Selected Poems (Mariner, 2015)

• John McAuliffe (b. Listowel) has published five collections with Gallery Press including The Kabul Olympics (2020), is Professor of Poetry at Manchester University, where he directs the Centre for New Writing & Literature Live, founder & co-editor of Manchester Review, assoc. editor at Carcanet Press, & was chief poetry critic at the Irish Times (2013-2020) where he founded & chaired the Irish Times Poetry Now Award.

Judges read all poems submitted

• Poems: Poems may be submitted from any country & must be in English, must each be no longer than 45 lines, must show title & poem only, must not show poet’s name, must be the original work of the entrant (no translations) & must not have been previously published; no text alterations accepted after submission; no limit on number of poems or number of subsequent submissions.

• Submission: Email only, no postal entries: email your poems as attachments (.doc, .docx, .pdf, .rtf only) to poems@coffeehousepoetry.org; include in email: Poet’s Name & Address, Phone Number, List of Titles, Number of Poems, Total Fees, & PayPal Receipt Number.

• Fees: £5/€6/$7 per poem (Sterling/Euro/US-Dollars only); payment via PayPal (see below, PayPal account not required).

• Timeline: Submit by midnight (your local time) on Mon 27 Sep 2021; prize-winners will be contacted in week commencing Mon 22 Nov 2021.

• Acknowledgement/Results: Submissions acknowledged within 14 days of receipt; results posted on website after our Mon 6 Dec 2021 prize-night event; judges’ decision is final; no correspondence entered into.

• Email Address: By including email address you agree to receiving emails regarding annual Troubadour International Poetry Prize.

submit via email by Monday, 27 September, 2021

“Atlantic Vernacular” — Poetry and Craft Exhibition — Call for Poets

*La version française de l’appel suit la version anglaise

A call for poets with ties to Atlantic Canada. The 2021 theme for Craft NB’s biennial exhibition is Atlantic Vernacular. This multi-genre project presents a rare opportunity for poets to participate in a high-calibre online exhibition that seeks to define what contemporary craft and poetry mean on the East Coast.

What counts as Atlantic vernacular? Is there more to us than lobsters, lighthouses and I’se da bye? Whose ways of talking are Atlantic vernacular? What regional clichés are ripe for re-examination? What impacts have tourism, the climate crisis or immigration made on Atlantic vernaculars? 

Of course you may be asking, “What is a ‘vernacular’ anyway?” It’s usually thought of as a kind of local speech or language (Chiac, anyone?), but you can also consider it more generally as a local style or way of being in a particular place.

Jenna Lyn Albert, former Poet Laureate of the City of Fredericton, and Sue Sinclair, poet and Director of Creative Writing at the University of New Brunswick, are curating the poetry for Craft NB’s upcoming exhibition. We are looking for poets who have a route into the above or related questions, and who are willing to create poems in direct response to visual works of art by craftspeople responding to the same theme.

The call that went out visual artists is here: https://www.craftnb.ca/atlantic-vernacular-travelling-craft-exhibition-call-for-work/. It also contains a link to a poem by Albert that was offered to the visual artists as a jumping-off point.

Poets who are selected to participate will be given a small selection of visual works to choose from and will have the month of October to write a 20-25-line poem in response to one of the works. If poets and artists are in each other’s close vicinity, we will set up in-person meetings; otherwise the artists will connect with the poets via video to display the work. We will pay each poet $200 for their original poem.

We would be delighted to consider submissions from writers who intend to write in languages other than English. We would also love to receive submissions from Indigenous writers, writers of colour, LGBTQAI2S+ writers, writers with disabilities and other equity-seeking writers. We invite applicants to identify themselves as such if they choose.

To be considered for this project,please submit a max 100-word literary biography citing any previous publications AND two sample poems (not necessarily on the current theme) to atlanticvernacular@gmail.com.

DEADLINE:  September 22, 2021.

Successful applicants will be contacted by October 1, 2021. Please direct any questions to Sue Sinclair or Jenna Lyn Albert at atlanticvernacluar@gmail.com

« Vernaculaire d’Atlantique » – Exposition métiers d’art – appel d’oeuvres

Un appel aux poètes ayant des liens avec le Canada atlantique. Le thème de 2021 de l’exposition biennale de Métiers d’art NB est le « Vernaculaire d’atlantique. » Ce projet multi-genres offre aux poètes une rare opportunité de participer à une exposition de haut calibre qui cherche à définir ce que signifie l’artisanat contemporain et la poésie sur la côte Est.

Qu’est-ce qui compte comme le vernaculaire d’atlantique? Y a-t-il plus pour nous que les homards, les phares et I’se da bye? Qui parle le vernaculaire d’Atlantique? Quels clichés régionaux méritent d’être réexaminés? Quels impacts le tourisme, la crise climatique ou l’immigration ont-ils fait sur les vernaculaires de l’Atlantique?

Bien sûr, vous vous demandez peut-être ce qu’est un « vernaculaire? » C’est habituellement considéré comme une sorte de discours ou de langue locale (Chiac est un exemple), mais vous pouvez également le considérer plus généralement comme un style local ou une façon d’être dans un endroit particulier.

Jenna Lyn Albert, ancienne poète lauréate de la Ville de Fredericton, et Sue Sinclair, poétesse et directrice de la création littéraire à l’Université du Nouveau-Brunswick, sont les commissaires de poésie pour l’exposition de Métiers d’art NB. Nous sommes à la recherche des poètes pour explorer ces questions ci-dessus et qui sont disposés à créer des poèmes en réponse directe à des œuvres d’art visuelles par des artisan répondant au même thème.

L’appel qui a été lancé aux artistes visuels se trouve ici : https://www.craftnb.ca/fr/vernaculaire-datlantique-exposition-metiers-dart-en-tournee-appel-doeuvres/. L’appel contient également un lien pour le poème d’Albert qui a été offert aux artistes visuels comme point de départ.

Les poètes qui sont sélectionnés pour participer recevront une sélection limitée d’œuvres visuelles parmi lesquelles ils peuvent choisir et auront le mois d’octobre pour écrire un poème de 20-25 lignes en réponse à l’une des œuvres. Si les poètes et les artistes se trouvent à proximité l’un de l’autre, nous organiserons des réunions en personne; sinon, les artistes se connecteront avec les poètes par vidéo pour présenter l’œuvre. Chaque poète recevra 200 $ pour leur poème original.

Nous accueillons les soumissions d’auteurs qui ont l’intention d’écrire dans des langues autres que l’anglais. Nous aimerons également recevoir des soumissions des poètes autochtones, des poètes de couleur, des poètes LGBTQAI2S+, des poètes handicapés et d’autres poètes en quête d’équité. Nous invitons les candidats à s’identifier comme tels s’ils le désirent.

Pour être considérer pour ce projet, veuillez soumettre une biographie littéraire de 100 mots maximum citant des publications antérieures ET deux exemples de poèmes (pas nécessairement sur le thème) à atlanticvernacular@gmail.com.

DATE LIMITE : le 22 septembre 2021

Les candidats retenus seront contactés d’ici le 1^er octobre 2021. Veuillez adresser vos questions à Sue Sinclair ou à Jenna Lyn Albert à atlanticvernacluar@gmail.com.

Members, here's a reminder for your publishers regarding these three Atlantic awards with a November 1 deadline: the J.M. Abraham Atlantic Poetry Award, the Ann Connor Brimer Award for Atlantic Canadian Literature, and the Thomas Raddall Atlantic Fiction Award.

The Brimer Award alternates between YA and children’s books – this year we are looking for children’s books.

Speaking of the Thomas Raddall Atlantic Fiction Award, the Writers' Federation of Nova Scotia will hold a special event in celebration of the 30^th anniversary of the award. The Zoom event features readings by Anne Simpson, Don Hannah, John Steffler, Lisa Moore, Linda Little and Michael Crummey. Alexander MacLeod will be the host.

As well, Thomas Raddall III will be making a special announcement at the event. Yay – I love drama!

It takes place on Thursday, Sept. 23, 7:30 pm (Atlantic) on Zoom. Here’s the link to register: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_4x7IDP6CRle2a4BHvox6hw

And here’s the full info on the event: https://writers.ns.ca/award/a-literary-conga-line/

The second annual Buy a New Brunswick Book Day will be observed by bookstores, publishers, and literary organizations across New Brunswick  to highlight New Brunswick authors, and encourage sales of their books.

Use the digital poster, tagline, and hashtags (#September18 #MyNBBooks and #IReadLocal) to promote this worthy event on social media, and share pictures of your purchases! 

More information is available on the Facebook event. Thank you for buying local!

The report of the Premier’s Task Force on the Status of the Artist was released today, providing recommendations to build a vibrant arts and culture sector in New Brunswick.

The report was a collaboration between the provincial government, professional artists from various communities, ArtsLink NB, the New Brunswick Arts Board, which is also known as artsnb, and the Association acadienne des artistes professionnel.le.s du Nouveau-Brunswick.

“It has been a great honour to participate in this historic endeavour,” said ArtsLink NB Executive Director Julie Whitenect. “We have worked diligently on behalf of our members and all New Brunswickers to strengthen an essential sector of our province. This report urges the official recognition of the contribution made by professional artists to the economic, social, educational and cultural success of New Brunswick.” 

You can read the full report here: https://artslinknb.com/status-of-the-artist/?mc_cid=35f64df4f2&mc_eid=0d49d6719b

Fredericton, New Brunswick - July 30, 2021 - Emerging New Brunswick-based writer and poet Misha K. Nowicki has received the first Jane LeBlanc Storytelling Award.

The Jane LeBlanc Storytelling Award has a cash value of $800.

Misha now has the opportunity for mentorship and further education in her creative field.

Misha is a budding writer from Lower Queensbury and Fredericton, New Brunswick, where she resides today with her husband and daughter. Although her “official” journey as a writer only started a few months ago, she has always had words float through her heart, jotting down ideas and phrases over the years on the margins of school notebooks, the backs of napkins and receipts, and the block papers of conference writing pads.

Misha’s lifelong curiosity with language manifested because her real-time comprehension of it was deemed poor since she was little, and, as a result, she has had to apply a more concerted effort than the average person to understand words and their meanings. Approaching language as a puzzle led Misha to work in the policy research and records management fields after graduating from Saint Thomas University, where she could explore at a more significant level the how and why of things.

This past spring, Misha was diagnosed as autistic and with ADHD.

These revelations enabled Misha to cease questioning her perceived inability to understand and instead embrace the value of her process of uncovering the why behind words and the how of communication. This approach is how Misha explores self-expression and inquiry through writing. She is currently focused on writing poetry, although she also writes fiction and non-fiction prose.

Misha is ecstatic to be the recipient of the inaugural Storytelling Award through the Jane LeBlanc Legacy Fund. To have her use of words and methods of expression recognized by accomplished writers is a deeply validating encouragement, and she is thrilled to pursue developing her writing in formal settings of creative writing courses and workshops.

Misha hopes to publish her first collection of poetry in the next year.

About The Jane LeBlanc Legacy Fund

The Jane LeBlanc Legacy Fund was created in memory of Miramichi, born Jane LeBlanc. The fund is in place to assist emerging New Brunswick resident creatives. Jane lived life to the fullest and courageously took action in making her dreams a reality. She died of brain cancer in 2010.

Sponsors and Supporters for the Storytelling Award: Cat LeBlanc Music, Montelibretti Pictures, Cathy Goodfellow, Atlantic Mediaworks, Jan Miller, Louise Lalonde, Jeremy Thomas Gilmer, Julie Scriver, Akoulina Connell, Roger Moore, and the Writers’ Federation of New Brunswick.

TORONTO [July 30, 2021] – Access Copyright’s case against York University was about remedying the significant and sustained economic harm to creators and publishers caused by the mass, systemic and systematic copying of their works without compensation by the education sector under self-defined fair dealing guidelines.

This economic harm was proven in court. Today’s Supreme Court decision did nothing to undermine that conclusion. Indeed, it declined to endorse York’s guidelines, which are virtually identical to the guidelines adopted by most of the education sector outside of Quebec.

While today’s decision does not dispute the harm, it declines to remedy it.

After almost 10 years of litigation and economic harm to the writing, visual art and publishing sector, creators are still left fighting for fair compensation for the use of their works by educational institutions.

Disappointingly, the Court’s decision undermines collective licensing as well as the role of the Copyright Board of Canada in upholding a functioning market for creative works.

The Supreme Court’s finding that tariffs are not enforceable exacerbates the struggles of creators in today’s marketplace where the imbalance in bargaining power does not lie with creators and their collectives, but with large institutions that brazenly abuse uncertainty in the law, push exceptions to the extreme and deprive creators of their just reward. This decision marks the beginning of a significantly more challenging environment for creators to manage and monetize their works in an increasingly digital environment.

This threatens investment in and creation of Canadian works that reflect our lived experiences and values, to the detriment of all Canadians, starting with our students.

“Canadian creators and publishers spend countless hours shaping and building the published material that inspire students. Educational institutions should be setting an example by respecting the work of others by fairly compensating creators for the use of their work. Instead, they have chosen to refuse to do so for almost a decade now,” said Roanie Levy, Access Copyright’s President & CEO. “There are no winners with today’s Supreme Court decision: we will all have fewer stories that speak directly to us as Canadians and chronicle our shared reality.”

The Supreme Court specifically said today that it is “open to Parliament to amend the Copyright Act if and when it sees fit to make collective infringement actions more readily available.” On behalf of Canadian creators and publishers, we call on the federal government to support the creative community and remedy the untenable situation in which creators find themselves as a result of the Court’s decision.

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About Access Copyright
For over 30 years, Access Copyright has facilitated content use for educational and professional purposes. Access Copyright has helped people make customized use of published materials combined with an assurance that the original creators and publishers also benefit, so that they can continue creating new and innovative works. This is vitally important to a strong Canadian culture and to all who rely on quality publications.

May 20, 2021 – The Writers' Federation of New Brunswick has announced the winners for its annual New Brunswick Writing Competition. The winners will be feted during a ceremony at the WFNB’s fall writing festival, Wordsfall, slated for October 22-23.

Every year, the competition celebrates writers who submit unpublished work in seven categories: novel, poetry manuscript, short story, narrative non-fiction, single poem, stories for youth, and short story or poem written by teens.

The winners are as follows:

David Adams Richards Prize (novel extract, novella, short story collection)
Judge: Carol Bruneau

• First Place Winner: Zev Bagel (Shediac, NB), Solitary
• Second Place Winner: Trent Pomeroy (Rothesay) Writers, Rats and Other Creatures
• Third Place Winner: Elizabeth Blanchard (Grand -Barachois), The Last Time My Mother Left Without Her Shoes

Honourable Mentions:

• Heather Gunn (Shediac), How’s she Goin’?
• Brent Mason (Saint John), The Root Cellar and Other Stories
• Ann Marie Beatttie (Oshawa), In the Shadow of Secrets
• Sharon Bird (Calgary), Gulliver’s Gulch

Alfred G. Bailey Prize (poetry manuscript)
Judge: Annick MacAskill

• First Place Winner: Keagan Hawthorn (Sackville), After the Harvest
• Second Place Winner: Jill Dunderdale (Fredericton) What Autumn Taught Me
• Third Place Winner: Kayla Geitzler (Moncton) Witching in the Blood

Douglas Kyle Memorial Prize (single short story)
Judge: Evelyn C White

• First Place Winner: Agata Antonow (Florenceville-Bristol), Nightcrawlers
• Second Place Winner: Brent Mason (Saint John), It Takes a Village
• Third Place Winner: Anne Marie Beattie (Oshawa), The Songwriter

Narrative Nonfiction Prize
Judge: Monica Graham

• First Place Winner: Roger Moore (Island View), Two Dead Poets
• Second Place Winner: Scott Wilson (Regina), Homework Assignments & Human Sacrifices
• Third Place Winner: Trent Pomeroy (Rothesay), Small Stories

Dawn Watson Memorial Prize (single poem)
Judge: L M Rochefort

• First Place Winner: Kathy Mac (Fredericton), An Element
• Second Place Winner: Shari Andrews (New Maryland), Double-Boiler
• Third Place Winner: Shari Andrews (New Maryland), Banner of Unusual News

Fog Lit Books For Young People Prize (short stories or poems for young people)
Judge: Lisa Harrington

• First Place Winner: Karen Davidson (Elgin), Albert County Tuxedo
• Second Place Winner: Cheryl Thomas (Lower Coverdale), The Tangled Up Pups
• Third Place Winner: Cheryl Thomas (Lower Coverdale), Humblebee the Bumblebee

Sheree Fitch Prize for Teen Writers (short story or poem written by teens)
Judge: Joanne Levy

• First Place Winner: Tori Garnett (Saint John), Woman
• Second Place Winner: Olivia Mazerolle (Riverview), The Ferryman
• Third Place Winner: Emmalyn Sheehan (Lepreau), Loss

The Writers’ Federation of New Brunswick thanks its sponsors of the annual Writing Competition: David Adams Richards, Weymedia, Atlantic Industries Ltd., The Kyle Family, Steeves Excavating, the NB Film Co-op, Sheree Fitch, the Fog Lit committee, and various anonymous supporters of writers and writing in NB.

WFNB has held these awards every year since 1985. Our annual competition launches careers, highlights the vitality and exemplary writing in our province, and shines a light on the diversity of literary talent.

Our mandate includes raising public awareness of literary culture in New Brunswick by showcasing the works of New Brunswick and Canadian authors. We are the provincial membership organization for writers in New Brunswick.

The Writers’ Federation of New Brunswick and The Fiddlehead have announced the judges for the 6th annual New Brunswick Book Awards. The program will celebrate books published in the 2020 calendar year in the poetry, fiction and nonfiction categories and children’s picture books published in the 2019 and 2020 calendar years.

Submissions will be accepted until December 1, 2020.

The awards and judges are:

Mrs. Dunster’s Award for Fiction – Mark Sampson is the author of several novels, most recent All the Animals on Earth, short story and poetry collections.

Alice Kitts Memorial Award for Excellence in Children’s Writing – Frieda Wishinsky is the author of over 60 trade and educational children’s books including picture books, chapter books, novels, and nonfiction.

The Fiddlehead Poetry Book Prize – Yusuf Saadi is the winner of the The Malahat Review‘s 2016 Far Horizons Award for Poetry and the 2016 Vallum Chapbook Award. His first collection, Pluviophile, was selected for the CBC’s 2020 summer reading list.

Writers’ Federation of New Brunswick Nonfiction Award – Naomi Lewis is a fiction and nonfiction writer, editor, and creative writing teacher. Her 2019 memoir, Tiny Lights for Travellers has won a number of awards, most recently she won Alberta’s Wilfrid Eggleston Award for Nonfiction. and her journalism has been shortlisted for provincial and national magazine awards.

Full bios can be found here:  https://nbbookawards.wixsite.com/info/judges-1

The New Brunswick Book Awards is open to traditionally published and self-published authors who have lived in the province for three of the last five years, including the award year. For more information on the eligibility criteria and to download the entry form, visit http://nbbookawards.wixsite.com/info.

The book awards program represents a partnership between the Writers’ Federation, which for more than 30 years has passionately supported the development of home-grown writers at all stages of development, and The Fiddlehead, Canada’s oldest literary magazine, which has nurtured New Brunswick’s literary culture for 75 years.

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Media Contacts:
Ian LeTourneau
Ian.letourneau@unb.ca
Cell: (506) 440-8072

Rayanne Brennan
rayanneb@rogers.com
Cell: (506) 961-3633

It is with a heavy heart that the Writers’ Federation has decided to cancel WordSpring this year. Our venue, St. Thomas University, has cancelled all events which left us with no choice. This year’s AGM and Award Ceremony have also been cancelled. We will monitor the situation as it progresses to determine when we can reschedule events.

After months of preparation, this cancellation is a blow for all of us. Thank you to our WordSpring committee and to all the workshop facilitators and panelists.

For those members who pre-registered, I will be refunding your payments.

Please note the Frye Festival is cancelled as well.

In these uncertain times, we are all hunkered down at home, in isolation. Events are unfolding in slow motion and super speed simultaneously. Many of us are working from home while watching our children, who no longer go to school. Although it is hard to tune out, I hope you unplug from the news cycle and find ways to engage your mind in creative ways.

As in any emergency, artists are initiating all kinds of creative projects to respond to the situation. Many writers are posting regular writing prompts, offering free writing advice, and giving readings online. For now, I will gather what I can on our Facebook site. In time, I hope to send you updates for online writing opportunities through email.

My best to you all,

Shoshanna Wingate
Executive Director
Writers’ Federation of New Brunswick