Vancouver Island University Department of Creative Writing and Journalism

Congratulations to Pamela Medland whose poem "Blowing Water" has been selected this year's winner of the Mary Garland Coleman Prize in Lyric Poetry.

Thanks to Professor Neil Surkan for final judging.

______________________

Blowing Water

And shall I tell him that the thought of him
turns me to water
and when his name is spoken pale still sky
trembles and breaks and moves like blowing water
P.K. Page, “Water and Marble”

That first un******ng with trembling hands
soon transformed to sure and steady travel
over thighs, breasts, buttocks;
a feint of shy resistance,
quick surrender
in a battle neither want to win,
cleaving as we do together
towards a daylight death, quick tumble
down the sun-browned slope of nether limb.
And shall I tell him that the thought of him

stops my breath with wonder?
Childbirth, betrayal, soured hopes,
stale nights and staler days
grey grey grey
intoned by small stabs of irritation
twined and trestled till all bright lies
and self-illusion shatter.
Shall I beg for absolution?
Ten years on does it still matter
that thoughts of him turn me to water?

Kindness binds us,
a tenderness towards decay.
We shore each other up,
hold our bodies sacred.
And so we go, resigned to
map our tedium until we die.
But there's a catch, a sudden leap of death,
all things known turn upside down,
sure-winged birds no longer fly,
and when his name is spoken pale still sky

rises and closes.
The clock ticks louder,
slower.
Dust settles on white sheets
like pregnant snow.
My days now longer and sadder,
fleshless and without harvest.
But when I close my eyes I see his gentle hands
shudder,
tremble and break and move like water.

Congratulations to Kelly D'Lugos, Winner of the 2024 Mike Matthews Humorous Essay or Rant Award
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Metis Pride
By Kelly D’Lugos

Kids are loud. We love them anyway, but seriously when they’re under five years old, every parent waits for that occasional blissful moment of silence to happen throughout the day. Finally, the kids are happily playing with their toys instead of fighting over whose turn it is, or how the doll should be called “Rose” instead of “Candy cane.”

So, I had a day like this recently. The girls were quiet in their room. Ah, great, blissful… Oh, oh no. Silence… too much silence. Too quiet. Too peaceful…. What’s going on in there? Everyone knows, if you have enough time to begin to be relaxed, and your kid is still awake, then something is wrong. Really wrong. What has it been? Ten whole minutes? YIKES!

I hurl my freshman 15 (or perhaps 20) (okay, closer to 25), off my coffin, er, I mean couch and run over to fling open the mysteriously closed bedroom door. On the way there, I almost slip in a trail of water droplets dribbled perfectly to the border of the possible crime scene. The door swings open; the kids freeze in place, staring blankly. At first, everything looks
in order. There aren’t any crayon pictures on the walls, no paint spills on the rug, no broken lamps, all the windows are intact... and that’s when I see it.

My four-year-old’s face. She doesn’t take her eyes off me. Her smile is static and unwavering like a terrifying clown at a birthday party. Her eyes are wide and round with a look that oozes an unconvincing confidence and surprise all at once. I step closer to inspect a strange shadow peering from underneath her bangs. Something is plastered on her forehead. My eyes dart like Sherlock Holmes to note the wet washcloth that hangs from my five-year-old niece’s little hand, explaining the drips on the new laminate floor. She says, “She asked me to Auntie Kelly! I promise!”

I step even closer, and I finally see it. My niece has moistened a very huge, very dark, long-lasting (but temporary) tattoo of the Metis Nation Logo onto my daughter’s entire forehead. It extends beyond her hairline and down to her brow. This tattoo looks intended for the leg, chest, or back of my freshman 25, not the forehead of a pre-K child. I swipe my daughter’s bangs fully up. OH, MY RIEL! We try to wash it off, but it’s true, the Metis Nation was meant to endure. Even our temporary tattoos never wear down. Not with soap, water, or homemade emergency exfoliants. This kid is a patriot now. She is branded. She is officially the proudest Metis girl I have ever seen! These kids, so full of spirit in this generation, resistance is literally on their minds before they can even spell their own names.

I guess these were the artists Louis was talking about in his famous quote.

VIU HRA Prof Marilyn Bowering will be back in town June 25. All welcome.

A few CREW and English faculty are among the authors reading in support of peaceful student protest this Wednesday. Join us!!

Contact us
Future VIU students: contact [email protected]
Current VIU students: contact [email protected]

The class of CREW 311 is presenting their long poems publicly at 's CREATE student research week. Tomorrow, Thursday April 11th, at 9:00 a.m. in the Madrona room which is on the third floor of the library.

Do you like free money? VIU students should update their scholarship profiles by March 30 to be eligible:

https://learningmatters.viu.ca/learning-matters/ready-set-go/pages/complete-your-online-scholarship-profile-4-easy-steps

We at VIU Creative Writing were lucky to be the first to hear read from her new book, Late September, out now with . Thanks Amy for reminding us of what comes from believing in yourself, for years if that's what it takes, and sticking with your dreams.

Open to everyone! Come hear what Creative Writing Faculty at VIU are up to!

VIU Department of Creative Writing
and Journalism:
Spring Faculty Reading

Thursday, March 21st
2:30pm to 3:30pm

Nanaimo Campus Bldg 200 Rm 203
(Student Affairs Building Theatre)
Faculty from the VIU writing program will read selections from their recent work.

There will be nosh.
All Welcome.

Arrival Submission Guidelines:

There is no fee to submit. Please note that we only accept one submission per writer per issue. We are accepting original, unpublished work from students who are currently enrolled in undergraduate postsecondary creative writing programs in Canada.

Short Stories: 2500 Words

Creative Nonfiction (memoirs, personal essays, lyric essays): 2500 Words

Poetry: Up to 5 pages or up to 5 poems

● The submission deadline is March 15th 2024. ● Please send your submission to [email protected] with your name and the genre of your piece as the subject line. For example, subject line: "YourNamePoetry".

● Submissions should be in .doc or .docx format, with the exception of visual poetry, which should be submitted as a PDF.

● Short stories and creative nonfiction submissions should be double-spaced.

● Please provide your email, a short bio of 50-100 words, and the name of your creative writing program.

● We do not accept simultaneous submissions.

If you have any questions or require accommodations in formatting and/or submitting your work, contact us at [email protected].

We look forward to reading your work!

What’s the hot read down in Tucson, Arizona these days? Well, Susan Juby’s A Meditation on Murder of course.

Rescheduled: https://news.viu.ca/celebrated-poet-karen-solie-give-viu-gustafson-lecture

Poetry in honor of Black History Month!

ISLANDS SHORT FICTION REVIEW invites authors to submit new works of fiction up to 2,000 words for the 2024 event.Winners will share $2,000 in prizes and publication by the Nanaimo Arts Council. This contest is open to Junior (ages 12 and under) Youth (ages 13-18) and Adult (19 and over) writers.Submissions are dueMarch 15, 2024 Visit nanaimoartscouncil.ca/isfrfor the 2024 Entry Rules and Entry Form.

Celebrated 2024 Gustafson Poet Karen Solie Presents at Three Events Feb 7th and 8th 2024

When: Thursday, Feb 8, 2024, 7:00PM - 8:30PM
Attendance: Offline/In-Person
Location: Nanaimo Campus
Building: 355
Room: 203/211

Karen Solie will deliver the Ralph Gustafson Distinguished Poet’s Lecture Thursday February 8th, 2024 from 7 to 8:30 pm in Building 355, Room 203. It is free and will be followed by a catered reception, cash bar, and book signing in Room 211.

There will also be a reading and Q&A for students on February 7th from 10 to 11:30 am in Building 310, The Malaspina Theatre lobby. Karen Solie will also do a community reading that night at White Sails from 7-8:30pm, with student Sam Bollinger opening for Solie.

The UBC School of Journalism, Writing, and Media, in partnership with the Faculty of Land and Foods Systems, is pleased to present an online talk and Q&A with ethnobotanist Leigh Joseph (Squamish First Nation), on Thursday, February 1, 2024, from 12:30pm to 2pm (via Zoom). Join us for this exciting and informative event as part of the Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) in Writing and Journalism Speaker Series.

Use the QR code to reserve your ticket today for this free public event. A link and passcode will be shared with registrants prior to the event.

The CBC Nonfiction Prize is now open: https://www.cbc.ca/books/literaryprizes/2024-cbc-nonfiction-prize-is-now-open-1.7065731

Friends of Kevin -- Save the date for this event: January 6th

Here are the links for each of the three performances of Two Truths and AI.

Copy and paste.

December 6

https://ca.cglink.me/2tT/r375524

December 7

https://ca.cglink.me/2tT/r375527

December 8

https://ca.cglink.me/2tT/r375528