Writers' Guild of Alberta Podcast

The publishing world has gone through tremendous change in recent years, especially post-pandemic. Even established authors who have found great success being traditionally published have aired their grievances about the hardships and uncertainty in the industry moving forward. Self-publishing has become a popular alternative for writers who want more control and autonomy when publishing their work, but it can be expensive and there still seems to be a level of ambiguity that plagues the process. Both avenues have their pros and cons, but what does it really entail to have your work traditionally published? To self-publish on your own? Is one better than the other, or are they simply different? Are works that are traditionally published valued more? If so, why? Which route might be best for you? Join our panelists this September as they delve into the often polarizing topic of traditional publishing vs self-publishing.

Marty Chan (Moderator): Marty Chan writes books for kids, theatre for adults, and social media posts for fun. The 2024 recipient of the WGA’s Golden Pen Award, Marty has written dramas, comedies, fantasy, and suspense. He works and lives in Edmonton with his wife Michelle and their two cats, Minnie and Hugo. For more information about Marty, visit martychan.com.

Social handles:

X: Marty_Chan

Blue Sky: https://bsky.app/profile/martychan.bsky.social

Threads: @martychanwriter

Facebook: MartyChanAuthor

Instagram: martychanwriter

Julie Sedivy (Panelist): Julie Sedivy is a writer and linguist whose love of language extends to many literary genres and whose work often intertwines aesthetic and scientific perspectives. Her publications include three books of nonfiction, a forthcoming children’s picture book (co-authored with Souad Shehab), a non-boring textbook on the psychology of language, and an edited volume of personal essays (co-edited with Rona Altrows). Her book Memory Speaks was shortlisted for the W.O. Mitchell City of Calgary Book Prize and the Eggleston Award for Nonfiction. She has published dozens of essays and articles in outlets such as Nautilus, The Literary Review of Canada, Scientific American, Discover, Politico, as well as in various anthologies. She occasionally writes and performs poetry as well. She is preparing to launch her scientific memoir, Linguaphile: A Life of Language Love, in October 2024.

Farah Heron (Panelist): Farah Heron is a critically acclaimed romance author for adults and teens. Her books have been named as best books of the year by CBC books, USA Today, and NPR, and have been praised in Entertainment Weekly, Buzzfeed, and Teen Vogue. She writes contemporary romances and romantic comedies full of huge South Asian families, delectable food, and most importantly, brown people falling stupidly in love. Her adult books include ACCIDENTALLY ENGAGED, JANA GOES WILD, and JUST PLAYING HOUSE, and her young adult books include TAHIRA IN BLOOM and HOW TO WIN A BREAKUP. Farah lives in Toronto with her family.

Social Handles:

Instagram: farahheronauthor

X: FarahHeron

Facebook: FarahHeronAuthor

Conor Kerr (Panelist): Conor Kerr is a Métis/Ukrainian writer living in Edmonton. He is a member of the Métis Nation of Alberta. His Ukrainian family are settlers in Treaty 4 and 6 territories in Saskatchewan. He grew up in Saskatoon, Edmonton, and other prairie towns and cities. In 2022 he was named one of CBC’s Writers to Watch. He is the author of the poetry collections An Explosion of Feathers and Old Gods, which was shortlisted for the 2023 Governor General's Award and named one of the Best Poetry Books of 2023, as well as the novel Avenue of Champions, which was shortlisted for the Amazon Canada First Novel Award, longlisted for the 2022 Giller Prize and won the 2022 ReLIT award. He recently published his second novel Prairie Edge.

Social Handles:

Instagram: Millcreekcowboy

Folks in the writing world continue to talk about AI and how they are using – or not using – it as a tool, a test, or even a novelty party trick. The writing seems to be on the wall when it comes to the inevitability of AI and its use in everyday life, but have writers and readers had their say about how AI creates new works of art? Some groups of writers are speaking out against the use of their writing to train Large Language Models (LLMs) without recognition and compensation, but is that enough? Are writers and consumers of literature willing to say they are not interested in purchasing new stories and books that are written entirely by AI? Is there a strong enough case for Human Intelligence and Human Creativity or is there just no stopping technology?

Join us for a spirited discussion of what we value as writers and as humans and the ways in which we can fight back.

Panel includes: Alison McBain, Christine Taylor, Matthew Stepanic, and Travis Croken.

Matthew Stepanic – Moderator

Matthew Stepanic (he/she/they) is a queer writer who lives and works on Treaty 6 territory in Edmonton. He edits and designs chapbooks for the recently launched Agatha Press. He is a co-author of Project Compass (Monto Books, 2017) and the author of Relying on that Body (Glass Buffalo, 2018). His work has appeared or is forthcoming in Queer Little Nightmares (Arsenal Pulp, 2022), Plenitude, FreeFall, and others.

Social handles on Twitter & Instagram are: @mlstepanic

Alison McBain- Panelist

Alison McBain’s novels are the recipients of over 13 awards, including the Foreword INDIES. When not writing for herself, she’s a ghostwriter who has penned over two dozen books for clients, as well as an award-winning editor who has worked with both celebrity and NY Times-bestselling authors. She’s currently pursuing a project called “Author Versus AI,” where she’s writing a book a week over the course of a year, using NO AI at all (52 books total). When not writing, Ms. McBain is associate editor for the magazine ScribesMICRO and draws all over the walls of her house with the enthusiastic help of her kids. She lives near Edmonton in Alberta.

Author Versus AI website

Author website

Facebook

Twitter

Instagram

LinkedIn

YouTube

Christine Taylor – Panelist

Christine Tsai Taylor is a writer, storytelling consultant, and diversity specialist. The biracial daughter of a Taiwanese mother and American father, Christine grew up in the US, Germany, Saudi Arabia, and Switzerland. She moved to Edmonton in July 2021 after seventeen years in The Netherlands. Her Substack newsletter is Wanderings.

Travis Croken – Panelist

Travis J. Croken lives in Ottawa, Canada and writes in a variety of genres. He is the National Co-Chair of the Canadian Authors Association, a member of the Ottawa Independent Writers, and Society for Children’s Books Writers and Illustrators. Croken hosts several writing programs including the Writer’s Chat, Scribe’s Journey Podcast, and After the… literary talk show. He owns Wax Seal Productions where he designs literary cocktails and helps authors reach their goals through coaching, editing, and other supports.

Socials:

Instagram: @thecalmscribe

Twitter: @thecalmscribe

TikTok: @thecalmscribe

As writers, we are told that rejection, a lot of rejection – most likely – is par for the course. Some of us cope by making light of the situation, framing rejection letters and showcasing them on an office wall or shelf. Others opt to go back to the drawing board, reframing their process, their work, or even their overall career plans. When is enough enough? Is there a point where we accept that something isn’t working and move on to the next project? Where is the line that separates resilience from naivety? Join our panelists as they discuss the complexities of dealing with rejection during our May Controversy @ Noon panel.

About The Panelists

Ali Bryan – Moderator

Ali Bryan is an award-winning novelist and creative nonfiction writer who explores the what-ifs, the wtfs, and the wait-a-minutes of every day. Her work has been shortlisted for the Stephen Leacock Memorial Medal for Humour, nominated for the Pushcart Prize, longlisted for both the Commonwealth Short Story Prize and the Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing prize, and has been optioned for TV by Sony Pictures. Her sixth book, a YA contemporary novel, Takedown, was released in May. Born and raised in Halifax, she now lives in the foothills of the Canadian Rockies on Treaty 7 Territory. When not writing, she operates Parlay Manuscript Services with her business partner, Sandra McIntyre.

Sandra SG Wong- Panelist

Sandra SG Wong writes fiction across genres. The cross-genre Lola Starke novels and Crescent City short stories have garnered finalist nominations for the Crime Writers of Canada Awards of Excellence. The standalone thriller, IN THE DARK WE FORGET, was an Anthony Awards finalist and Canadian bestseller. In addition to being a speaker, mentor, and community organizer, Sandra is a Past President of Sisters in Crime, and an active member of Crime Writers of Color.

Nisha Patel – Panelist

Nisha Patel (Nee-Sh-aww, Put-ell) (She/her) is a Poet Laureate Emeritus of the City of Edmonton and a Canadian Poetry Slam Champion. A queer and disabled artist, Nisha is a recipient of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Medal and the Edmonton Artists’ Trust Fund Award. Her sophomore collection of poetry, A Fate Worse Than Death, engages in the necropolitics surrounding disability, and is out now with Arsenal Pulp Press.

Lauren Seal – Panelist

Lauren Seal is a writer and former St. Albert Poet Laureate. She mentors the teen and young adult poets of SWYC, the Spoken Word Youth Choir, and performs in the adult incarnation of the group. Her debut novel-in-verse, Light Enough to Float, is forthcoming October 2024 with Rocky Pond Books, a Penguin-Randomhouse imprint.

This recording is from an online reading featuring finalists for the 2024 Alberta Literary Awards.

Antoinette Bekker

Astrid Blodgett

Kate Boorman

Jennifer Bowering Delisle

Natasha Deen

Julie Sedivy

Josée Thibeault

*Note. The audio volume drops at the end of the recording during Astrid Blodgett's reading. Apologies for the inconvenience*

Does bias exist in the literary world where age is concerned? Writing is hard enough in the first place, do writers also have to worry about the continued relationship with their publisher, agent, readers, and other writers in the industry as they get older? If so, in what ways? Additionally, are writers in certain genres prone to be more successful if they fall under a particular age group? Less successful? Our panelists will examine these questions and other age-related industry issues during our April Controversy @ Noon Panel.

About The Panelists

Norma Dunning – Moderator

Norma Dunning (PhD) is a Padlei Inuk writer, professor and grandmother. Dr Dunning has published in poetry, prose, fiction and nonfiction.

Kinauvit? (what’s your name?) a work of nonfiction shortlisted for the Shaughnessy Cohen prize for political writing in 2023 and Tainna (the unseen ones) received the Governor General’s Award in literary fiction in 2021. Annie Muktuk and Other Stories (2017) received the Danuta Gleed in 2018, as well as several other literary awards. Her books have been translated into French, Greek and Amharic. Aput! (snow), a children’s book, will be released in the fall of 2024.

Dunning lives in Regina where she teaches at the First Nations University of Canada.

Facebook

Rona Altrows – Panelist

Rona Altrows is a fiction writer, essayist, editor, and playwright. She believes literature plays a critical role in the fight for social justice. Her books of short fiction are A Run on Hose, Key in Lock, and At This Juncture, and her work has appeared in Queen’s Quarterly, The Prairie Journal, and many other magazines and e-zines in Canada and the US. She has edited or co-edited three anthologies, including You Look Good for Your Age, an exploration of women, aging, and ageism. Honours she has received include the W.O. Mitchell Book Prize, the Jon Whyte Memorial Essay Award, and two Independent Book Publishers awards.

Website, Bluesky

Sharon Butala – Panelist

Butala is the author of 22 books of both fiction and nonfiction and for nearly fifty years, at 83, has been writing and publishing with both major publishers and smaller companies. She has been agented since the eighties and has appeared at many festivals in Canada and the USA and made presentations in, besides Canada, the USA, Mexico, Ireland and the Czech Republic. Her many awards and prizes include the Marian Engel Award, the W.O. Mitchell/City of Calgary Award and the Glengarry Book Prize Award. She was recently shortlisted for the Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize. Her memoir, The Perfection of the Morning, was on the Canadian bestseller list for a year.

Website

Tololwa Mollel – Panelist

Edmonton-based Tololwa M. Mollel writes books, plays, and stories for performance for all ages in English and Kiswahili, the national language of Tanzania where he was born. He has published 24 books for the young in both languages. Some of the books are translated into various African, Asian, and European languages. Tololwa also performs stories, solo or with other performers or artists. He has been spreading his passion for story, performance and writing to the young and old through story workshops, performances and presentations in Alberta schools and communities.

Website

With book banning in Alberta and Canada seemingly on the rise, it’s left many wondering what this means for writers, for readers, and for the community at large. What are the ways in which censorship affects and/or impedes the literary world, and what can we do to maintain the creative freedom to read and to write what we choose to?

The ethics of writing on social issues can be a complicated topic of conversation for writers: What does it mean, really? Are certain issues off-limits for particular writers? What are the types of issues that fall under this very broad theme? How can we strive to write characters and narratives that feel meaningful, informed, and appropriate to the story we’re trying to tell? Join our group of panellists as they discuss the ethics of writing on social issues during our first Controversy @ Noon panel in 2024.

About The Panellists

Dr. Jenna Butler (she/her)

www.jennabutler.com

Dr. Jenna Butler (she/her) is an award-winning poet, essayist, mentor, and editor.

She is the author of three books of poetry, Seldom Seen Road, Wells, and Aphelion; a collection of ecological essays, A Profession of Hope: Farming on the Edge of the Grizzly Trail; and the Arctic travelogue Magnetic North: Sea Voyage to Svalbard. Her book, Revery: A Year of Bees, essays about beekeeping, climate grief, and trauma recovery, was a finalist for the 2021 Governor General’s Literary Award in Non-Fiction and a longlisted title for CBC Canada Reads 2023.

Butler teaches creative writing at the University of Saskatchewan and serves as the Environmental Writing Fellow for the Spring Creek Project and Oregon Wild. She teaches for Calgary’s Alexandra Writers’ Centre as their outgoing Writer in Residence, focusing on ecological writing. Her work has its roots in the off-grid organic farm she runs with her husband in northern Treaty 6, Alberta.

Natasha Deen

natashadeen.com

Recent works: The Spooky Sleuths series, Book three, Don’t Go Near the Water!

Guyanese-Canadian NATASHA DEEN is a best-selling author, with novels for kids, teens, and adults, and she’s a recipient of the Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal. Her novel, In the Key of Nira Ghani, won the Amy Mather Teen Book Award and her most recent YA title, The Signs and Wonders of Tuna Rashad was a Globe & Mail‘s Top 100 Books for 2022. When she’s not writing, she teaches Introduction to Children’s Writing with the University of Toronto’s SCS and spends an inordinate amount of time trying to convince her pets that she’s the boss of the house.

Uchechukwu Peter Umezurike

www.instagram.com/uche_peter_umez/

Uchechukwu Peter Umezurike is the author of literary works such as there’s more (2023), Double Wahala, Double Trouble (2021), Wish Maker (2021), and a co-editor of Wreaths for a Wayfarer (2020).

Rayanne Haines (she/her)

www.rayannehaines.com/

Rayanne Haines is an award-winning author, educator, and cultural producer. She is the creator and host of the literary podcast Crow Reads, is the President of the League of Canadian Poets, and teaches at MacEwan University. Her hybrid poetry collection, Tell the Birds Your Body is Not a Gun won the 2022 Stephan G. Stephansson Alberta Literary Award and was shortlisted for both the Robert Kroetch Award and the ReLit Award. She’s been published in the Globe and Mail, Minola Review, Fiddlehead, Prairie Fire and others. A CNF poetry and essay collection exploring grief, identity, and gendered trauma is forthcoming from Frontenac House September 2024

Bibliography:

1 - https://bookriot.com/mistreatment-of-women-in-game-of-thrones/

2 - https://www.vulture.com/2019/02/kosoko-jackson-a-place-for-wolves.html#

3 - https://www.texasmonthly.com/arts-entertainment/american-dirt-book-controversy/

4 -https://lareviewofbooksorg/article/my-taco-laughs-at-you-on-death-threats-aimed-at-women-of-color-who-dont-fellate-white-supremacy/

We are thrilled to present the latest episode of the Canadian Literature Centre podcast. In this episode, also part of the “Air and Fire” series of readings and conversations this year, Hari Alluri, Alice Major, and Michelle Porter explore the literal and metaphorical significance of fire in a brilliant, wide-ranging reading and conversation.

As the presence of Artificial Intelligence evolves and its reach continues to expand, writers are forced to ask themselves: What does this mean for me and my work? The topic of AI is multi-faceted, and while AI promises endless possibilities for artists and writers alike, it also brings with it fear and uncertainty. What lines have been drawn between AI as a supplemental tool and AI as the career-crushing thief many believe it could be?