Matthew Fox is the author of the story collection Cities of Weather. He grew up in Ontario, before moving to Montreal, London and New York, where he received his MFA in Creative Writing from The New School. His work has appeared in Grain, The New Quarterly, Big Fiction, Toronto Life and Maisonneuve. He currently lives in Berlin.

Robert E. Hawkins is the past President & Vice-Chancellor of the University of Regina and, until 2023, he was a law professor in its Johnson-Shoyama Graduate School of Public Policy. Bob grew up in Western Manitoba and is a graduate of St. John’s College, University of Manitoba, which has awarded him an Honorary Doctorate. For the past twelve years, Bob has served on Regina City Council. Bob has published extensively in leading Canadian law journals on constitutional and administrative law, and on the legal history of the Prairie region, including Lillian Benyon Thomas’ role in the suffrage movement.

Pam Withers is an award-winning speaker and author of 23 bestselling young-adult adventure novels. A sports-loving former journalist and outdoor guide, she’s also a two-times Silver Nautilus Book Awards winner, three-times Ontario Library Association Red Maple Award nominee and founder of www.YAdudebooks.ca. She lives with her husband and cat in Vancouver and can be found at https://pamwithers.com/

Robyn Braun is a professor at the University of Alberta. Her science writing has appeared in Today’s Parent, Scientific American, New Scientist, and Discover. Her poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction have appeared in Thirds, samfiftyfour, Coin Operated Press Zines, Wrongdoing Magazine, and Flight of the Dragonfly among others. Her essay, “The Stutter of Emmett’s Stutter” won subTerrain’s 2021 Lush Triumphant prize for CNF. The Head is her first novella.

Carol Youngson is a retired registered nurse who has spent over two decades working in operating rooms and served as investigator for the Manitoba Department of Justice for the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. Carol lives in Winnipeg. Take Your Baby and Run is her first book.

Deborah Kerbel is the critically acclaimed author of numerous books for young readers. Her titles include the wordless picture book Whirl and the middle grade novels Feathered, Under the Moon (which was shortlisted for the Governor General’s Literary Award), and Fred and Marjorie: A Doctor, a Dog, and the Discovery of Insulin (a Junior Library Guild gold standard selection). Deborah lives with her family in Thornhill, Ontario.

J.R. Burgmann is a British-Australian writer and critic. A graduate of the University of Melbourne, he is currently based at the Monash Climate Change Communication Research Hub. Children of Tomorrow is his debut novel.

Craig Russell grew up on what may be the flattest half-section of land on the planet, six miles north of Carman, Manitoba. He is now a retired lawyer and lives in Winnipeg. NOAA (The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) has selected his second novel, Fragment for their Planet Stewards Project.

Jake MacDonald wrote many books on Canada’s north country and lived on a houseboat at Minaki for as much of the year as he could.

Kevin Marc Fournier is a native to the West End neighborhood of Winnipeg. He has written two novels for young adults: Sandbag Shuffle, in which two cheerful scam artists make the most of Winnipeg’s great flood of 1997, and The Green-Eyed Queen of Suicide City, which invites readers into a twisted alternate reality. Both books won the McNally Robinson Book for Young People Award (older category). Fournier was shortlisted for the John Hirsch Award for Most Promising Manitoba Writer in 2013. He recently completed an artist residency at the Deep Bay Cabin in Riding Mountain National Park.Seraphina’s Circle. She lives in Toronto and on Vancouver Island.

Four time finalist for the Governor General Literary Award, Jan Andrews is an internationally celebrated storyteller and author to more than a dozen books.

DEBORAH COWLEY is an Ottawa author and broadcaster with extensive international experience. In 2000 she travelled to Ghana to interview Kathy Knowles for a cover story that appeared in Reader’s Digest the next year. Since then, she has continued to work closely with Kathy as a volunteer, and has visited Ghana with her on fifteen trips. She has seen first-hand how Knowles’ dedication and determination have brought books, reading and libraries to Africa. This is her fifth book.

Lee Kvern is an award-winning author of short stories and novels. Her stories in 7 Ways To Sunday have won the CBC Literary Award, Western Magazine Award, Hazel Hilles Memorial Short Fiction Prize, and the Howard 'O' Hagan Award.  Afterall was selected for Canada Reads (Regional) and nominated for Alberta Books Awards. The Matter of Sylvie was nominated for Alberta Book Awards and the Ottawa Relit Award and Alberta Magazine Awards. Her work has been produced for CBC Radio,  and published in Funicular, Grain, Event, Descant, Air Canada enRoute, Tishman Review, Globe&Mail, and subTerrain.

STAN MILOSEVIC is a Winnipeg-based photographer and collector who runs the website manitobaphotos.com.
This is his first book.

LEONARD FLETT was a Cree status member of the Big Trout Lake Ontario First Nation. Originally from Cumberland House, Saskatchewan and Shamattawa, Manitoba, he had an extensive 42-year background with the Hudson’s Bay Company and the North West Company, retiring as vice-president in 2005. He was recognized by the Aboriginal community with the bestowal of a National Aboriginal Achievement Award in 2002, by the province of Manitoba with the Order of Manitoba in 2012, and by Canada with the induction into the Order of Canada in 2004. He was also a recipient of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee medal.

Justice reporter, national radio show host, and best-selling author Mike McIntyre reflects on 20 years of Canadian crime coverage by offering up some of his most memorable true tales from the police blotter and court docket. From the lighter side of the law to the worst society has to offer, Mike has pretty much seen and heard it all.

“[McIntyre] is worth reading to find out what happens on these voyages into conflict and casualty from the absurd to the bizarre to the horrific, and from the sad to the unlucky.  Mike on Crime is an easy waltz through human weakness -- it is fact without puffery.” – Winnipeg Free Press

Gail Sidonie-Sobat is an award-winning writer and educator and a Serbian-Ukrainian Canadian. She is the author of a dozen books, the creator-director of YouthWrite multidisciplinary camps for young writers, and is an educator. She has frequently been writer in residence and has presented across Canada, US, Qatar, Vietnam, Switzerland, Finland, and Turkey. She currently lives in Edmonton and on the Sunshine Coast of British Columbia.

You can read more about her at www.gailsidoniesobat.com

GAIL SIDONIE SOBAT is a witch at heart, a pirate in her dreams, and a gypsy in practice. She has assumed any number of disguises in her lifetime, including that of teacher, adjunct professor, woman-in-black, professional actor and singer, grounds keeper, flag girl, parimutuel seller and flower seller. She is the creator/ coordinator of YouthWrite, a camp for kids who love to write.  She lives in Edmonton.

SPYDER YARDLEY-JONES is an Edmonton based, internationally recognized cartoonist, painter, sculptor, and instructor. Spyder’s artwork has been on exhibition in the US and Canada, including the Art Gallery of Alberta, Harcourt House Gallery, the Tu Gallery and the McMullen Gallery. He teaches the art of cartooning/illustration and the love of art in elementary, junior and senior high schools.

GARRY MOIR has had a career in broadcasting that spans more than 40 years, and includes work at CBC radio and several other private radio and television stations. He has served as a correspondent for Maclean’s magazine, a contributor to Time, and broadcasting instructor at Red River College.

ADAM LINDSAY HONSINGER is a writer, teacher, and illustrator. He completed an MFA in Creative Writing at the University of Guelph. His debut novel Gracelessland (Enfield & Wizenty) was published in 2015. Adam lives and writes in Guelph, Ontario.

Richard Van Camp is a proud Tłı̨chǫ Dene from Fort Smith, NWT, now living in Edmonton, Treaty 6 Territory with his family. A recipient of the Order of the Northwest Territories, Richard is an internationally renowned storyteller and award-winning author of 32 books for all ages. His novel, The Lesser Blessed, and his graphic novel, Three Feathers, have been made into feature films. He is a mentor with the Audible Indigenous Writers' Circle and Indigenous Storyteller in Residence at the University of Victoria's where he teaches about reclaiming family medicines. You can visit Richard on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, SoundCloud, and at www.richardvancamp.com.

A lawyer for 35 years, TOM GOODMAN was appointed Queen’s Counsel in 1992. He served as an adjudicator under the Human Rights Code and the Canada Labour Code. Goodman ran as a Progressive Conservative candidate for the House of Commons in Selkirk-Interlake in 2000; he ran as a Green Party candidate in the same riding in 2006. More recently, Goodman served as chair of the Manitoba Horse Racing Commission. A Canadian of Icelandic decent, he lives in Stonewall, Manitoba.

LYSE CHAMPAGNE writes in French and in English. Her stories have appeared in Descant, The New Quarterly, The Antigonish Review, Room of One’s Own, Windsor Review and Wascana Review. Her first book, Double Vision, a memoir about growing up French in Ontario was published by Key Porter and her play, Chicane de famille, won the David Smith Playwriting Prize. She lives in Ottawa with her family.

TYLER ENFIELD is the author of Wrush, a multi-award winning children's fantasy series, as well as the adult novel, Madder Carmine. He is also a photographer, and lives with his family in Edmonton. You can visit him here:
http://www.tylerenfield.com/

Writer THOMAS TROFIMUK’s first novel, The 52nd Poem, won the George Bugnet Novel of the Year Award and the City of Edmonton Book Prize. His second novel, the critically acclaimed Doubting Yourself to the Bone, was named as one of the Globe and Mail’s top 100 must-read books for 2006. A third book, Waiting for Columbus, was released in 2009 in the US, Canada, the UK, Serbia, Poland, Brazil, China and Quebec (in translation). Waiting for Columbus won the City of Edmonton Book Prize and was a nominee for the 2011 International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award. He lives (and writes) in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Visit: www.thomastrofimuk.com.

Born and raised in Winnipeg, Darren Bernhardt was seven years old when he began scribbling stories in Hilroy notebooks, recounting family outings and adventures with friends. As a journalist, he still scribbles stories, but now specializes in local history and the offbeat.

He is the co-author of the 2005 JackPine Press chapbook, To Kerouac and Back and co-author of the play, Alison’s Leather Couch, and author of the best-selling The Lesser Known: A History of Oddities from the Heart of the Continent.

Katherine Koller is an award-winning playwright, screenwriter, novelist and short story writer. Books are Voices of the Land: The Seed Savers and Other Plays; Art Lessons, a novel; and Winning Chance: Stories, winner of a High Plains Book Award. Short fiction has appeared in Grain, Room, Epiphany, Alberta Views, LitSphere, EDify, The Fiddlehead, and Through the Portal. An avid gardener, Katherine is a founding producer of Edmonton Script Salon, a longstanding monthly new play reading series. www.katherinekoller.ca.

GORDON GOLDSBOROUGH is an active member of the Manitoba Historical Society. He has written four books on Manitoba history including the national bestsellers Abandoned Manitoba and More Abandoned Manitoba, the latter receiving the McNally Robinson Book of the Year Award in 2019. He has a weekly series on Manitoba history on CBC Radio 1, a weekly column on Manitoba history in the Manitoba Cooperator newspaper, and is secretary to the Board for the Manitoba Agricultural Museum. In recognition of his historical and scientific work, he was inducted into the Order of Manitoba in 2021.

Richard Cumyn is the author of nine books of literary fiction. A past fiction editor of The Antigonish Review, he has been published widely in Canadian literary journals. He has been shortlisted for the ReLit Award, longlisted for Frank O’Connor International Short Story Award and won a Linda Joy Media Arts Award. He lives in Edmonton.

KEITH CADIEUX’s 2010 novella Gaze was listed for a Manitoba Book Award and the ReLit award. His short fiction has most recently appeared in Prairie Fire, Grain, ELQ, and the Exile Book of New Canadian Noir. He lives in Winnipeg.

DUSTIN GEERAERT holds degrees in literature from the University of Saskatchewan and the University of Manitoba. After eight years in Winnipeg, he has nearly completed his PhD. He has one previous collection of stories, The Celestial Puppeteer (Kindle edition 2012) and his academic work has appeared in The Lovecraft Annual (2014) and The Journal of the William Morris Society (2012).

Photo of Keith & Dustin by Coleman Geeraert

One of the best parts of being a writer for NATASHA DEEN is presenting at schools, conferences, and workshops. She is published in a variety of genres, from creative non-fiction to YA and romance and has also appeared in a variety of media outlets as a literacy advocate. She lives in Edmonton.

JODI CARMICHAEL has lived most of her life in Winnipeg, Canada, but spent two years in Hertford, England where she left a wee bit of her heart. She is the author of two award-winning books; young adult novel Forever Julia and chapter book Spaghetti is NOT a Finger Food and Other Life Lessons. When not channeling characters from her books, Jodi can be found strolling Manitoba beaches with her family. Look for Jodi online at jodicarmichael.com.

Larry Verstraete is an award-winning Winnipeg author of eighteen books of fiction and non-fiction for kids and teens. A former middle-years teacher with a penchant for storytelling, his books have been on recommended reading lists and have received honours ranging from the McNally Robinson’s Book of the Year for Young People Award to BC’s Red Cedar Award and Ontario’s Silver Birch Award for Non-fiction.

MONICA NAWROCKI lives with her partner and dog on a remote island off the west coast of British Columbia. She earns her living as a substitute teacher—often reading under-construction manuscripts to captive classroom audiences and happily impersonating someone different every day. She is the author of three books, and her fiction and non-fiction pieces have appeared in various journals and anthologies in Canada and the U.S. You can visit her at www.monicanawrocki.com.

At night and while working full time, Deborah-Anne Tunney attended Carleton University and the University of Ottawa, earning degrees in English Literature and Language. She also studied at the Humber School for Writers where she was awarded a letter of distinction and was chosen by them to receive the centennial scholarship for most promising writer from the Heliconian Club. Her prose and poetry have appeared in Canadian, American and U.K. journals, notably the Missouri Review, Narrative, Grain, Fiddlehead, among others. A story originally published in Narrative was translated into Arabic. Her poetry has also appeared in Canadian and American anthologies. In 2014 her book of linked short stories, The View from the Lane, was published by Great Plains Publications. The winner of the 2018 Diana Brebner award for poetry, she resides in Ottawa with her husband and three cats.

Nicole Luiken wrote her first book at age thirteen and was published while still in high school. She is the author of seventeen novels, most of them written for teens. Her titles include Violet Eyes and Silver Eyes. She lives in Edmonton with her family. It is impossible for her to go more than three days in a row without writing.

David Elias is the author of six books, most recently Elizabeth of Bohemia. His fiction has been nominated for a number of awards, including the Margaret Laurence Award for Fiction for Elizabeth of Bohemia, The Books in Canada First Novel Award for Sunday Afternoon and The Journey Prize for his short story, How I Crossed Over. His work has appeared in literary magazines and anthologies across the country, and in addition to writing he spends time as an editor, writer-in-residence, mentor and creative writing instructor. He lives in Winnipeg, Canada.

Colleen Nelson examines the consequences of choice in her novels, through believable teen characters in juxtaposing situations and social structures.  She has lived in Japan and New York City, and currently resides with her husband in Winnipeg.  This is her second novel.

COLLEEN NELSON earned her Bachelor of Education from the University of Manitoba in her hometown of Winnipeg. Her previous novels include Sadia, winner of the Ruth and Sylvia Schwartz Award, Blood Brothers, selected as the 2018 McNally Robinson Book of the Year for Young People, and Pulse Point, selected as one of the CBC’s Most Anticipated YA Books of 2018. Colleen writes daily in between appearances at hockey rinks and soccer fields in support of her two sports-loving sons.

NANCY CHAPPELL-POLLACK initially started writing for her career in communications, but once a maternity leave yielded more time with her sister Colleen Nelson, an award-winning author, a likely partnership was formed.  Colleen is the heavy in the writing relationship, with Nancy providing some insight or perspective as the process progresses.  Nancy lives in Winnipeg with her four children and her husband.

GEOFF KIRBYSON is a veteran journalist who spent much of his career at the Winnipeg Free Press. Today, he's a marketing executive with a side hustle as publisher of Manitoba Inc. business magazine. He has also written for Canadian Business Magazine, The Hockey News, and numerous trade publications. He coached minor hockey for many years and is a stay-at-home defenceman on The Sofa Kings

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SHEILA NORTH is an activist and journalist. She is the winner of a Radio Television Digital News Association Award. She is a Gemini Award nominee, and in 2015 was featured  in Chatelaine Magazine as one of the Top 30 Women of 2015. She lives in Winnipeg.

Ty Dilello is the author of Golden Boys: The Top 50 Manitoba Hockey Players Of All Time. He is an accredited writer with the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) and is a member of the Society for International Hockey Research (SIHR). He has been a hockey fan since Peter Bondra led the Washington Capitals to the Stanley Cup Finals in 1998. Ty plays extensively on the World Curling Tour in the winter and can probably be found on a tennis court during the summer months. He lives in Winnipeg.

K.R. BYGGDIN grew up on the Prairies and now calls the East Coast home. They are an alum of the Writers’ Federation of Nova Scotia’s Alistair MacLeod Mentorship program, the Banff Centre’s Emerging Writers Intensive, and Dalhousie University’s English and Creative Writing program. Their writing has appeared in anthologies and journals across Canada, the UK, and New Zealand. Wonder World is their first novel.

Morwenna was born and raised in Winnipeg and, while she loves to travel, and has lived in other places, she is proud to make Winnipeg her home with her husband and Charlie – the very best dog. She has always fancied herself an artist, living as an actor, musician, dancer, and now is thrilled to get to add “writer” to the list. She is a licensed REALTOR® and decorator in Manitoba, and gets her arts “fix” whenever she can. She can usually be found out for forest walks, at live shows, with her friends and family, and/or wherever there is cake or ice cream.

Lifelong Manitoban Bartley Kives has spent three decades in journalism, covering politics, music, food, science and outdoor recreation at CBC and other publications. He’s the author of the Canadian bestseller A Daytripper’s Guide to Manitoba: Exploring Canada’s Undiscovered Province. He’s also the co-author of two collaborations with photographer Bryan Scott: Stuck in the Middle: Dissenting Views of Winnipeg — the 2014 winner of the Carol Shields Winnipeg Book Award — and Stuck In The Middle 2: Defining Views of Manitoba. His work has also appeared in publications such as The Guardian and Explore magazine.

GMB Chomichuk is an award-winning writer and illustrator whose work has appeared in comics, graphic novels, books, role-playing games, film, television and theatre. He is the host of Super Pulp Science a podcast about how genre gets made. His work in words and pictures ranges from the heartwarming to bloodcurdling. Other books by GMB Chomichuk include Apocrypha: The Legend of Babymetal from Z2, Will I See? from Portage and Main Press, The Automatic Age from Great Plains, The Eye Collector from HEAVY METAL, Dragon Nanny from Chasing Artwork and Dead Work from The Dead Work Collective.

Anne Mahon is interested in people, their stories and making meaningful connections. She is chancellor of the University of Manitoba, and a committed life-long volunteer. Her three books all focus on marginalized communities where biases are being broken. The books are philanthropic endeavours with all author proceeds donated to an organization that supports the community each book represents. Her first book The Lucky Ones won the On the Same Page Manitoba Library Award. Anne was nominated for the John Hirsch Award for Most Promising Manitoba Writer. She had the honour of interviewing Michelle Obama in 2019. Anne lives in Winnipeg with her husband. Together they have three adult children.

Anna Rosner is a Toronto teacher and author who has published short-story fiction, numerous scholarly articles and the children’s biography Journeyman: The Story of NHL Right Winger Jamie Leach, which was selected as a “Best Book” by the Canadian Children’s Book Centre and was a finalist for the High Plains Book Award. Dedicated to promoting her love for words, Anna has taught language and literacy to children and adult ages five to seventy-five. Anna is the director of Books with Wings, which provides new, quality picture books for Indigenous children who reside in isolated Canadian communities. Learn more at www.annarosner.com

SHANE NEILSON is a writer and a family physician. His previous books include Meniscus, Gunmetal Blue, and Complete Physical, which was shortlisted for the Trillium Poetry Award, and the short story collection Will. Neilson has published essays and reviews in many Canadian literary magazines and newspapers. He lives in Guelph, Ontario.

Amy LeBlanc is a PhD student in English and creative writing at the University of Calgary. Amy's debut poetry collection, I know something you don’t know, was published with Gordon Hill Press in 2020 and was long listed for the ReLit Award and selected as a finalist for the Stephan G. Stephansson Award for Poetry. Her novella, Unlocking, was published by the University of Calgary Press in 2021 and was a finalist for the Trade Fiction Book of the Year through the Book Publishers Association of Alberta. Amy’s second full-length poetry collection, I used to live here, is forthcoming with Gordon Hill Press in spring 2025. Her work has appeared or is forthcoming in Room, Arc, CV2, Canadian Literature, and the Literary Review of Canada among others. Homebodies is Amy’s first short story collection.

MARIE-RENÉE LAVOIE is the author of four novels, including Autopsy of a Boring Wife–which was a finalist for the Forest of Reading Evergreen Award and a CBC Best Books of the Year–A Boring Wife Settles the Score, and Some Maintenance Required. She lives in Limoilou Quebec.

Translated from the French by Arielle Aaronson

Arielle Aaronson is a Montreal-based translator. She has translated several literary works into English, including Marie-Renée Lavoie’s titles for adult readers.

ANITA DAHER is an author and actor based in Winnipeg, MB. She has been entrenched in the book publishing industry since 1995 and has seventeen books published in print, audio and e-book format in Canada, the United States. Anita is the former Chair of the Writers’ Union of Canada. She loves ancient things, and in summer can often be found renovating an old trailer in the heart of New Iceland.