CANSCAIP Blog

35 CANSCAIPers mass launch at the OLA Super Conference, February 3, 2012, at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre!

Toronto Public Library’s annual Young Voices winter workshops offer teens an opportunity to hone their creative writing and art skills under the tutelage of professional writers and artists. The workshops lead up to the March 31 submission deadline for the 2012 issue of Young Voices, Toronto Public Library’s magazine of teen writing and visual art. All Toronto teens age 12-19 are invited to attend the workshops and to submit their poetry, creative prose, hand-drawn black and white artwork, or black and white photos for possible publication in the magazine.

“For nearly five decades, Young Voices has given Toronto teens a chance to express themselves, supporting them in their creative endeavours and providing a foundation for their future success," says Toronto Public Library children and youth advocate Lisa Heggum.

What: Looney Poems Poetry Workshop with Poet Matthew Tierney
Where: Runnymede Branch (2178 Bloor St. W., two blocks east of the Runnymede subway stop)
When: Wednesday, February 15, 4:30 p.m.
Who: Wile E. Coyote is just like a poet. He aims the highest and falls the farthest. Toronto poet Matthew Tierney shows you how to make your writing explode with humour.

What: Keeping it Fresh: Drawing with Sharpies with Artist Michael Brown
Where: Toronto Reference Library (789 Yonge St., north of the Yonge/Bloor subway stop)
When: Saturday, February 25, 2 p.m.
Who: Uncap a fresh sharpie with Toronto artist Michael Brown and let your drawing run wild.

What: WordPlay Writing Workshop with Writer Karen Krossing
Where: Cedarbrae Branch (545 Markham Rd., south of Lawrence)
When: Thursday, March 15, 3 p.m.
Who: Author Karen Krossing helps teens rediscover the fun of writing at this hands on workshop.

Teens interested in submitting to Young Voices are encouraged to pick up a submission form at their local branch, or submit their entry online at torontopubliclibrary.ca/youngvoices.

For more info, or to register for the workshops, contact Ken Sparling 416-397-5970, ksparling@torontopubliclibrary.ca

A children’s literature conference organized by graduate students will be held at the University of British Columbia on Saturday, April 28, 2012. This is a one-day conference showcasing graduate research that explores and questions any facet of children’s literature. They are particularly interested in research that draws upon the broadly interpreted themes of navigation, exploration, and narrative. The conference fee is $18 for students and presenters, and $35 for faculty and professionals. It includes morning and afternoon refreshments and a catered lunch. For more information, go to blogs.ubc.ca/childlitconference2012.

UBC_Conference_April_2012.pdf

Sarah Ellis will be the Writer in Residence at the Osborne Collection of Early Children’s Books, Toronto Public Library, February 1, 2012 to May 31, 2012.

Sarah is a contemporary Canadian children’s author. Her works include Back of Beyond, The Baby Project, Out of the Blue and Next Stop. In 1991, Sarah won the Governor General’s Literary Award for Pick Up Sticks. She is also the recipient of the Vicky Metcalf Body of Work Award. Her books have now been published in five countries.

For more information about the Writer in Residence program and how to submit a manuscript for critique by Sarah Ellis, go to www.torontopubliclibrary.ca/writer-in-residence. The deadline to submit is January 13, 2012.

The Writers’ Union of Canada (TWUC) is offering HOW TO BE YOUR OWN PUBLICIST, a professional development symposium for writers.

Whether you are an aspiring writer wanting to develop your audience before publication; an emerging writer who needs to stay visible; or long-published and looking for new tips and techniques, this full-day workshop is for you.

Authors Elizabeth Ruth and Ann Douglas will present on traditional but innovative book marketing strategies as well as new media opportunities for writers. Kelly Duffin, Executive Director of TWUC, will update participants on the latest evolutions in the publishing landscape.

The price of the workshop is $89.00 and covers costs, including lunch, $75 for members of TWUC. For those who can’t attend in one of the participating cities, a 3-hour webinar will be offered, distilling the highlights of the workshop. Registration forms can be printed from The Writers’ Union of Canada’s website at www.writersunion.ca/registration.pdf.

For more information, please contact: Valerie Laws at info@writersunion.ca.

Congratulations to the following CANSCAIP members who are nominees:

Red Cedar Book Award

Information Book Nominees 2011-2012

• Charlie: A Home Child’s Life in Canada, written by Beryl Young, Ronsdale Press
• The Insecto-files, written by Helaine Becker, illustrated by Claudia Davila, Maple Tree Press
• Pharaohs and Foot Soldiers, written by Kristin Butcher, illustrated by Martha Newbigging, Annick Press
• Animal Aha! Thrilling Discoveries in Wildlife Science, written by Diane Swanson, Annick Press
• It’s a Snap! George Eastman’s First Photograph, written by Monica Kulling, illustrated by Bill Slavin, Tundra Books
• Whispers from the Ghettos, written by Kathy Kacer and Sharon McKay, Penguin Books
• You Are Weird: Your Body’s Peculiar Parts and Funny Functions, written by Diane Swanson, illustrated by Kathy Boake, Kids Can Press
• Kaboom! Explosions of all Kinds, written by Gillian Richardson, Annick Press

Fiction Nominees 2011-2012

• The Dread Crew: Pirate of the Backwoods, written by Kate Inglis, illustrated by Sydney Smith, Nimbus Publishing
• Wanting Mor, written by Rukhsana Khan, Groundwood Books
• Walking Backward, written by Catherine Austen, Orca Books
• After the Fire, written by Becky Citra, Orca Books
• Zoobreak, written by Gordon Korman, Scholastic
• Dear Canada: A Desperate Road to Freedom, written by Karleen Bradford, Scholastic

Winners will be announced in May 2012.

Poet Steven Withrow, along with a fifteen-member advisory board including CANSCAIPer Carol-Ann Hoyte, has created Poetry Advocates for Children & Young Adults (PACYA).

PACYA is a grassroots, not-for-profit organization dedicated to promoting poetry for every age group. PACYA is dedicated to:

• speaking out for the need to engage with poetry at every age level.
• creating a global online for hub for news, reviews, essays and interviews; learning/scholarly resources; communication and networking; audiovisual archives; collaborative projects; and more.
• organizing and promoting readings, awards, workshops and conference in North American and internationally.

For more information, check out PACYA's blog.

Congratulations to the following CANSCAIP members who are award winners and nominees this month:

2011 Bolen Books Children’s Book Prize Award

Uirapurú (pronounced oor-a-pur-u), written by P.K Page and illustrated by Kristi Bridgeman, Oolichan Books

OLA Forest of Reading Nominees

Blue Spruce Nominees

A Flock of Shoes, Sarah Tsiang, Qin Leng, Annick Press

Roslyn Rutabaga and the Biggest Hole on Earth!, Marie-Louise Gay, Groundwood Books

Stanley’s Little Sister, Linda Bailey, Bill Slavin, Kids Can Press

Silver Birch Fiction Nominees

Better Than Weird, Anna Kerz, Orca Book Publishers

Crossing to Freedom, Virginia Frances Schwartz, Scholastic Canada

Ghosts of the Titanic, Julie Lawson, Scholastic Canada

The Glory Wind, Valerie Sherrard, Fitzhenry & Whiteside

Neil Flambé and the Aztec Abduction, Kevin Sylvester, Simon and Schuster Canada

That Boy Red, Rachna Gilmore, Harper Collins

Silver Birch Non-Fiction Nominees

Case Closed? Nine Mysteries Unlocked by Modern Science, Susan Hughes, Michael Wandelmaier, Kids Can Press

Don’t Touch That Toad & Other Strange Things Adults Tell You, Catherine Rondina, Kevin Sylvester, Kids Can Press

Game Day: Meet the People Who Make It Happen, Kevin Sylvester, Annick Press

Highway of Heroes, Kathy Stinson, Fitzhenry & Whiteside

Who Wants Pizza? The Kids’ Guide to the History, Science & Culture of Food, Jan Thornhill, Maple Tree Press

Silver Birch Express Nominees

All Aboard! Elijah McCoy’s Steam Engine, Monica Kulling, Bill Slavin, Tundra Books

Banjo of Destiny, Cary Fagan, Selçuk Demirel, Groundwood Books

Canadian Railroad Trilogy, Gordon Lightfoot, Ian Wallace, Groundwood Books

The Last Loon, Rebecca Upjohn, Orca Book Publishers

Our Earth: How Kids are Saving the Planet, Janet Wilson, Second Story Press

Saving Arm Pit, Natalie Hyde, Fitzhenry & Whiteside

When Apples Grew Noses and White Horses Flew: Tales of Ti-Jean, Jan Andrews, Dušan Petričić, Groundwood Books

Red Maple Fiction Nominees

Dear George Clooney Please Marry My Mom, Susin Nielsen, Tundra Books

Dust City, Robert Paul Weston, Penguin Group

Fly Boy, Eric Walters, Penguin Group

Half Brother, Kenneth Oppel, Harper Collins Canada

Home Truths, Jill MacLean, Dancing Cat Books

No Safe Place, Deborah Ellis, Groundwood Books

Thunder Over Kandahar, Sharon E. McKay, Rafal Gerszak (photographs), Annick Press

White Pine Fiction Nominees

The Fifth Rule, Don Aker, Harper Collins Publishers

The Gathering, Kelley Armstrong, Random House Canada

White Pine Non-Fiction Nominees

Nice Recovery, Susan Juby, Penguin Group Canada/Viking Canada

Golden Oak Nominees

Canadian Railroad Trilogy, Gordon Lightfoot, Ian Wallace, Groundwood Books

Highway of Heroes, Kathy Stinson, Fitzhenry & Whiteside

No Safe Place, Deborah Ellis, Groundwood Books

Our Earth: How Kids Are Saving the Planet, Janet Wilson, Second Story Press

Viola Desmond Won’t Be Budged, Jody Nyasha Warner, Richard Rudnicki, Groundwood Books

2011 Moonbeam Children’s Book Awards Medalists

Pre-Teen Fiction - Fantasy

Bronze (tie): Kingdom of Trolls, by Rae Bridgman (Sybertooth Inc.)

Pre-Teen Fiction - Historical/Cultural

Gold: Ghost Messages, by Jacqueline Guest (Coteau Books for Kids)

Silver (tie): Hannah & the Spindle Whorl, by Carol Anne Shaw (Ronsdale Press)

Young Adult Fiction - General

Silver: Signs of Martha, by Sarah Raymond (Great Plains Teen Fiction)
Bronze (tie): Drummer Girl, by Karen Bass (Coteau Books)

Hamilton Arts Council Children & Young Adult Book

Last Chance for Paris, by Sylvia McNicoll, Fitzhenry & Whiteside
(This award is sponsored by Reliable Life Insurance.)

Whispered Words is an open-genre, open-form prose competition run by the Writers’ Community of Durham Region. The $1000 first prize includes publication in the Whispered Words literary anthology. The $400 second prize winner, $200 third place winner and selected honourable mentions will also be published in the anthology. All published entries receive a $25 payment and a contributor’s copy, and every entry receives written feedback from the judges. The maximum word count is 1000 words. The entry fee is just $20 Canadian – $25 for international entries.

Whispered Words is also running a cover design contest. The prize is $150, publication on the cover of the Whispered Words anthology, plus a contributor’s copy. Entry fee is $5 Canadian.

Both contests close November 30, 2011. Winners will be announced in March 2012. Online submissions only. Payment by PayPal, or mail a cheque or money order to The Writers’ Community of Durham Region, Bayly Postal Outlet, PO Box 14558, 75 Bayly Street West, Ajax, Ontario, Canada L1S 7K7. For complete contest details, visit www.wcdr.org or e-mail querycontest@wcdr.org.>

The Saskatchewan Writers’ Guild will be holding a Winter Retreat at St Peter’s Abbey February 3-24, 2012. Cost is $300 per week for Saskatchewan Writers' Guild or CARFAC SASK members (Saskatchewan Residents), $475 (Out of Province residents, members of SWG or CARFAC SASK ) or $550 per week (Out of Province residents, non-members of SWG or CARFAC SASK). Deadline for receipt of applications is 4:30 pm, November 30, 2011. Please send completed applications to: Saskatchewan Writers' Guild, Attention Retreat Coordinator, Box 3986, Regina, SK, S4P 3R9. To apply online please visit: http://www.skwriter.com/?s=retreats&p=2010retreatapplicationform For more information, please contact the retreat coordinator at skretreats@skwriter.com.