The Atlantic Region is well known for telling stories in various art forms. Today, one of the outputs of that creative culture is an explosion of books and authors, with more titles being published in the region than ever before. Atlantic publishers explore the whys and hows behind the creative inspirations unique to the East Coast.
More indigenous stories are being published Rebecca Thomas, an award-winning spoken-word artist and Mi’kmaw activist, is publishing her first book called I’m Finding My Talk (Nimbus Publishing). A response to Rita Joe’s iconic poem “I Lost My Talk,” (Joe is often referred to as the poet laureate of the Mi’kmaq people), Thomas’ poem comes in the form of a children’s picture book illustrated by Mi’kmaw artist…
George Elliott Clarke, in his unique brand of spoken word, Africadian poetry, explores a personal subject, his great-aunt Portia White, an internationally celebrated opera contralto. His lyrical ode to her life and work is a celebration of love. He shared with ABT editor, Karalee Clerk, thoughts about his great-aunt, Portia White, and his family’s incredible creative DNA.
Finding his way to the start of a new book has become a familiar route for the award-winning Newfoundland author Michael Crummey. First, there is the avoidance, a glorious, elastic period that stretches for months and sometimes even years. It involves high productivity with activities such as baking molasses buns midday and, really, anything other than book-writing. Then comes the reckoning, a shorter phase wherein Crummey…
Susie Taylor, a resident in Harbour Grace, Newfoundland, penned her novel, Even Weirder Than Before, after discovering her teenage diaries 20 years later in her mother’s basement. Susie shared some of the backstory with Desiree Anstey.
Our history is comprised of many voices, but there are a small handful of Atlantic Canadian stories that are told more often than others. These tales, while important, are not the whole picture. Untold stories are hidden everywhere: in small and all-but-forgotten Nova Scotia towns, in abandoned buildings and in old photographs that lie in dust-covered photo albums. Silent stories also reside in our streets. For instance, countless people travel through Higney Avenue in Burnside on their way to work each day, but few know the story of its namesake.
Donna Morrissey, best-selling author of six novels including Kit’s Law and Sylvanus Now, is working on her memoir, tentatively titled Rocking Her Babies, a journey through love, grief and mental illness, and back to life again. She shared some of the memoir-writing experience with Kimberley Hicks.