MANITOULIN—Seventeen Northern Ontario writers, including some familiar Manitoulin voices, are featured in a new collection of prose and poetry released by the Sudbury Writers’ Guild in November 2016.
Former Little Current resident Vera Constantineau is an internationally published, award-winning haiku poet and short story writer. She is a long time member of both the Guild and the Manitoulin Writers’ Circle. She is a member of Haiku Canada and the Writers’ Community of Durham Region. Island readers will recall her work in Manitoulin Morsels, Canadian Crossroads and Cross-pollination Two. Her Sudbury Ink stories, Daisy Chained and Invisible, demonstrate why her writing is receiving positive acceptance in Canada and beyond.
Margo Little, a charter member of the Guild and founder of the Manitoulin Writers’ Retreat, has penned three short stories for Sudbury Ink: Endangered, Mother Pride and Courting Lady Luck. Her short fiction has appeared in the Toronto Star, the Sudbury Star, Northern Life, The Manitoulin Expositor, Outcrops, Meg’s Solo, Spirit of the Island, Sulphur, Terra Nord, Morsels, Canadian Crossroads, Manitoulin Cross-pollination Two and Whisper Tangerine. Her memoir of childhood in Mills Township, ‘Pilgrims at Poplar Corners,’ was published in July 2016.
The Guild and the Circle have been closely affiliated since 2006 with members participating in cross-pollination projects. The Guild was established in 1992 with the goal of developing and promoting writers in Northeastern Ontario. Short story writers Clay Campbell and Laura Foreshew, novelist Rosanna Battigelli, young adult literature author Emily Deangelis and poets Tom Leduc, Irene Golas and Melanie Marttila will be readily recognized by island book fans since they often participate in Writers’ Circle events at Gore Bay Harbour Centre, Misery Bay and Central Manitoulin.
Sudbury Ink was released to coincide with the Wordstock Literary Festival November 3 to 5 in Sudbury. The Guild’s official launch took place Saturday, November 12 at the main branch of the Greater Sudbury Library.
Levack native Mark Leslie selected the array of stories and poems for Sudbury Ink. He publishes many spooky narratives himself including Tomes of Terror and Creepy Capitol. He serves as the Writing Life Director for Kobo. “I am delighted to help introduce readers to the incredible voices and talents of these local writers,” he notes in his introduction.
Copies of Sudbury Ink are available through the Guild website www.sudburywritersguild.com or by contacting co-chair Andy Taylor 705-507-4931 or MWC facilitator Margo Little at 705-282-1714.
