Genre

B.R. Myers

Always in the mood for a good scare, B.R. Myers spent most of her teen years behind the covers of Lois Duncan, Ray Bradbury, and Stephen King. She is the author of the Mary Higgins Clark Award winning novel, A Dreadful Splendour, as well as numerous books for teens. Her YA novels have been chosen by the School Library Journal, Reader’s Digest, and the CCBC as top picks. Before she became a full time writer, she was a registered nurse for thirty-two years. A member of the Writers’ Federation of Nova Scotia, she lives in Halifax with her family—and there is still a stack of books on her bedside table.

B.R. Myers Read More »

Geraldine Tuck

Geraldine Tuck writer, world traveller and retired elementary teacher, is known for her Mystery Marauder Series for readers 8-14. Setting is along the south shore of Nova Scotia during the 1930’s. The first three books deal with rum running, gold mining and the Oak Island Mystery. All are suitable for grades 3-6. During a school visit, students are dressed as characters and books are discussed. Time to draw a treasure map or give a verbal lesson, ‘Improving Detail’, is also offered.

New: Checkout a recent interview in the WITS  Video library.

Her newest book, Halifax Explosion Mystery, was published in time for the 100 anniversary of the explosion. The content is suited to grades 5-7. The hour visit involves: a power point presentation on the history of the explosion, an explanation how artifacts and newspapers are used to plot a story and an interactive lesson showing students how she weave facts with fiction.

Midnight Marauders ,Moonlight Marauders, Mystery Marauders and Halifax Explosion Mystery appear on the Education Book Order List for Nova Scotia teachers.  You can buy directly from the author’s email,  intuitionwg@gmail.com

Check out Geraldine’s website:    geraldinetuck.com

Geraldine Tuck Read More »

Rachel Cooper

Rachel is a freelance writer, editor and instructor with 20+ years’ experience. Clients include fiction and memoir authors, businesses, government, not-for-profits, and universities.

Rachel Cooper Read More »

Sal Sawler

Sal Sawler is the award-winning author of three non-fiction books: 100 Things You Don’t Know About Nova Scotia; 100 Things You Don’t Know About Atlantic Canada – For Kids; Be Prepared: The Frankie MacDonald Guide to Life, the Weather, and Everything; and one picture book: When the Ocean Came to Town (illustrated by Emma FitzGerald).

Be Prepared was nominated for both Hackmatack and Forest of Reading Awards, and won a Moonbeam Children’s Award. 100 Things You Don’t Know About Atlantic Canada – For Kids was also nominated for a Hackmatack Award.

When they’re not writing books, Sal is working as a publicist for graphic novel publisher Conundrum Press, reviewing children’s literature, and writing web content for tech companies. They live in Nova Scotia with their partner, two kids, two dogs, and two cats.

Sal Sawler Read More »

Julian Smith

Julian Mortimer Smith has published more than a dozen science fiction and fantasy stories in some of the world’s top speculative fiction magazines, including Asimov’sTerraform, Lightspeed, and Best American Science Fiction & Fantasy. His first collection, The World of Dew and Other Stories, will be published in 2021 by Indiana University Press. Julian is a member of the Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA) and SF Canada.

Julian lives in Yarmouth and spends his days writing copy for a web design company. He previously made a living as a freelance editor, working on projects ranging from romance novels to board games. When he lived in Edinburgh he worked as the books section editor of The Skinny, a Scottish arts and entertainment magazine.

In 2017, Julian led the “So You Want to Write Science Fiction” session at the WFNS in Halifax along with Professor Jason Hazlam. In April 2018, he led the four-week “Out of Your Head, Onto the Page” workshop at Waves of Confetti Creative Space in Yarmouth. He has also delivered workshops at schools throughout Southwest Nova as part of the Writers in the Schools program and has been an invited panel speaker at Hal-Con.

Julian has a bachelor’s degree in English literature from McGill Univeristy in Montreal and a Master’s in Communication and Culture from York University in Toronto. You can find out more about his writing at his website: http://julianmortimersmith.com/

Julian Smith Read More »

Justin Gregg

Justin Gregg is science writer and author of the book Are Dolphins Really Smart? He writes about animal behavior and cognition, with articles and blog posts appearing in The Wall Street Journal, Aeon Magazine, Scientific American, BBC Focus, Slate, and other print and online publications (more info here). Justin produced and hosted the dolphin science podcast The Dolphin Pod, and has provided voices for characters in a number of animated films (more info here). Justin regularly lectures on topics related to animal/dolphin cognition (more info here). He also blogs about science and humor/nerd/pop culture topics on his personal blog at justingregg.com

Justin received his PhD from the School of Psychology at Trinity College Dublin in Dublin Ireland in 2008 having studied dolphin social cognition. He is currently a Research Associate with the Dolphin Communication Project, and Adjunct Professor at St. Francis Xavier University. Justin has a research focus in dolphin social cognition, and a background/interest in linguistic and the evolution of language. A list of Justin’s academic publications can be found at this link.

Follow Justin on twitter: @justindgregg

An article in Vermont Quarterly about Justin’s career can be found at this link.

Justin Gregg Read More »

Patrick Woodcock

Patrick Woodcock is the author of 10 books of poetry and countless reviews.  His work has been translated and published in 14 languages.  Since travel is so essential to his work, Mr. Woodcock has lived and worked in such diverse countries as Iceland, Poland, Russia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, The Sultanate of Oman, Saudi Arabia, Colombia, The Kurdish North of Iraq and Azerbaijan.  Within Canada he has travelled from the West to East coasts, as well as working as a volunteer for almost a year with the elders of Fort Good Hope, NT – 20km south of the Arctic Circle.  His seventh book Always Die Before Your Mother was shortlisted for Canada’s ReLit award in 2010 and reached the number one spot on the Globe and Mail’s bestseller list.  His 8th book Echo Gods and Silent Mountains was extremely well reviewed all over the world and was called “…the most beautiful, deep and touching collection of poetry written on Kurds by a non-Kurd.” by the Kurdish media network, Rudaw.   He has read at International poetry festival’s in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Slovenia, the Kurdish North of Iraq, Azerbaijan, England, The Republic of Georgia, Tanzania, Kenya and Canada’s Winnipeg International Writers Festival.  While living in Colombia he read at the Ibague Poetry Festival, The XVIII Medellin International Poetry Festival and was the first poet from outside of Latin America to ever read at the Bogota Poetry Festival.  Patrick’s ninth book of poetry You can’t bury them all which is set in the Kurdish North of Iraq, Fort Good Hope, NT Canada and Azerbaijan was published by ECW Press in 2016.  You can’t bury them all won the Alcuin Society Book Design Award for Poetry and was shortlisted for the JM Abraham Poetry Award in 2017.  After living for two years in Tanzania as a volunteer at Baraa Primary School, Arusha, Patrick moved to the hamlet of Paulatuk in the Inuvik region of the Northwest Territories to work while completing his new manuscript Farhang Book I which was published by ECW Press, Toronto, Canada, September 5th 2023 and called by CBC Books one of Canada’s must reads in 2023. The album “Bill Pritchard Sings Poems By Patrick Woodcock”  was released by Tapete records May 5th, 2023. He now lives in between Iqaluit, Nunavut and Toronto Ontario where he is the Regional Instructor/ Coordinator for United for Literacy. In September 2024 he was awarded the 2024 Council of the Federation Award in recognition of his outstanding achievement in literacy from the Premier of Nunavut, The Honourable P.J. Akeeagok. Farhang Book II will be published by ECW Press in 2026 along with his first collection of short stories entitled Animare (Tidewater Press, 2026).

Patrick Woodcock Read More »

Sarah Mian

Sarah Mian’s debut novel, When the Saints (HarperCollins), is about a dysfunctional family in rural Nova Scotia. It won the Jim Connors Book Award, the Margaret & John Savage First Book Award, and was a finalist for the Stephen Leacock Medal for Humour. After completing the film adaption, she is currently working on a second novel, a ghost story titled, The World in Awful Sleep.

Sarah Mian Read More »

Joanne Light

Joanne Light holds degrees in psychology, education and fine art (painting) from Acadia and NSCAD universities (influences ranged from Blake, Jung, Teilhard de Chardin, Vanier, Frye, Plath, Elizabeth Bishop and Roethke to Rothko, Borduas, Riopelle and Beuys).  She taught in six provinces in Deschambault and Big Trout Lakes and Davis Inlet, Whapmagoostui and Kuuguarapik, Kimosoompotnak, Kitchee Nuhmay Koosib and Natuashish and five countries in Korea, Brunei Darussalam, Hong Kong and in Abu Dhabi.

She has three juried acceptances at the Banff Centre’s Wired Writing Studio and Advanced Seminar in poetry with mentors Irving Layton, Barbara Klar, Sid Marty, Fred Stenson and Alison Pick; also, Yvonne Trainor at the Maritime Writers’ Workshop; Daphne Marlatt at Sage Hill Writing Experience’s Poetry Colloquium; Mick Burrs at the Saskatchewan Writer’s Guild and Thomson Highway and Allen Ginsburg at the WFNS. Her most recent journal publication was two poems in Toronto’s Arc Magazine.

Light has published two trade books with Nimbus Publishing and three titles under her own press–Tapwema. She is presently finishing up a memoir: On, On, On, On: Stories of Teaching and Travelling.

Having travelled to twenty-five countries, she has lived for the past six years in her birthplace–Halifax.

She has given writing workshops in poetry nd travel writing at Dalhousie University and the Saint John Arts Centre and is a seasoned teacher and facilitator.

Joanne Light Read More »

Laurie Glenn Norris

Laurie is a writer of historical fiction and non-fiction, and is particularly interested in nineteenth-century Canadian history and the lives of girls and women during that period. She is the author of Found Drowned (Vagrant, 2019), Haunted Girl: Esther Cox & the Great Amherst Mystery (Nimbus, 2012; and Cumberland County Facts and Folklore (Nimbus, 2009).

Currently she is working on two projects, a biography of the Amos “King” Seaman family of Minudie, Nova Scotia, and an historical novel set in London, England.

She holds a B.A. in Anthropology, a B.Ed. in Social Studies and Language Arts and an M.A. in Art History.

Her first novel,  Found Drowned, in 2024, was optioned by the Langley Fine Arts School, Langley, BC, and produced into a one-act play. In November of that year, it was performed at a Langley Theatre  Festival.

Laurie lives in River Hebert, Nova Scotia, with her husband, Barry Norris, and kittycat Dinah.

 

 

Laurie Glenn Norris Read More »

Scroll to Top

Experience Levels

The Writers’ Federation of Nova Scotia (WFNS) uses the following terms to describe writers’ experience levels:

  • New writers: those with less than two years’ creative writing experience and/or no short-form publications (e.g., short stories, personal essays, or poems in literary magazines, journals, anthologies, or chapbooks).
  • Emerging writers: those with more than two years’ creative writing experience and/or numerous short-form publications.
  • Early-career authors: those with 1 or 2 book-length publications or the equivalent in book-length and short-form publications.
  • Established authors: those with 3 or 4 book-length publications.
  • Professional authors: those with 5 or more book-length publications.

Please keep in mind that each form of creative writing (fiction, nonfiction, poetry, writing for children, writing for young adults, and others) provides you with a unique set of experiences and skills, so you might consider yourself an ‘established author’ in one form but a ‘new writer’ in another.

Occasionally, WFNS uses the phrase “emerging and established writers/authors” to mean ‘writers and authors of all experience levels.’

The “Recommended experience level” section of each workshop description refers to the above definitions. A workshop’s participants should usually have similar levels of creative writing and / or publication experience. This ensures that each participant gets value from the workshop⁠ and is presented with info, strategies, and skills that suit their experience. 

For “intensive” and “masterclass” workshops, which provide more opportunities for peer-to-peer feedback, the recommended experience level should be followed closely.

For all other workshops, the recommended experience level is just that—a recommendation—and we encourage potential participants to follow their own judgment when registering.

If uncertain about your experience level with respect to any particular workshop, please feel free to contact us at communications@writers.ns.ca