UBC professor Keith Maillard wins the Lieutenant Governor’s Award for Literary Excellence
Professor Keith Maillard recently won the 2024 Lieutenant Governor’s Award for Literary Excellence from the BC and Yukon Book Prizes. The award recognizes annually a British Columbian writer who has contributed to the development of literary excellence in the province.
UBC professor emeritus George McWhirter receives largest international award for poetry
UBC School of Creative Writing professor emeritus George McWhirter recently won the 2024 Griffin Poetry Prize for his English-language translation of Self-Portrait in the Zone of Silence, written in Spanish by Mexican poet Homero Aridjis.
Alum ’00 Tammy Armstrong discusses latest novel Pearly Everlasting
Tammy Armstrong’s latest novel Pearly Everlasting is now available in Canada and will release in the US on October 7. Pearly Everlasting is based on Armstrong’s manuscript “Ursula” that won the HarperCollinsPublishersLtd/UBC Prize for Best New Fiction in 2022.
Indigenous Writer in Residence Leanne Betasamosake Simpson brings creativity and insight to UBC
The School of Creative Writing is welcoming Michi Saagiig Nishnaabeg scholar, writer, and artist Leanne Betasamosake Simpson as writer in residence from January 15 to January 26.
New books from Creative Writing alumni invite us into tenderly crafted worlds
Our Creative Writing alumni published compelling work over the last year, including a horror novel soaked with dreams, an intimate family saga set in a beachfront hotel, and a love letter to a son lost to overdose.
What postmemory makes possible: A conversation with poets Brandon Shimoda and Victoria Chang
As part of our Visiting Writer series, we were honoured to host a poetry panel with Brandon Shimoda and Victoria Chang, hosted by Lecturer Sheryda Warrener. We’ve gathered some excerpts from the poetry panel to share with you on the page.
Virtual Writer in Residence Oliver Baez Bendorf brings mystery and transformation to UBC
The School of Creative Writing is welcoming poet Oliver Baez Bendorf as virtual writer in residence from January 23 to February 3. Oliver will lead workshops within Creative Writing classrooms, and also has openings for virtual one-to-one consultations on February 1 and 2.
New publications from Creative Writing faculty expand our ideas on belonging and connection
Over the last year, Creative Writing faculty published fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and hybrid works that see the world through collaborative acts of art-making—with family, ancestors and communities, and with illustrators, teachers and screenwriters.
Writer and educator Noor Naga to visit UBC Creative Writing
We’re pleased to welcome poet, novelist and essayist Noor Naga to UBC in July for the Geoffrey and Margaret Andrew Fellowship in Creative and Performing Arts. Naga will engage with Creative Writing students, while working on a collection of essays about home, citizenship and (be)longing in the Arabian Gulf.
Redefining the undergraduate learning experience in Creative Writing
The Teaching and Learning Enhancement Fund (TLEF) supports UBC’s strategic plan by advancing transformative learning at the university. TLEF projects can be small or large in scope, from creating innovative resources for a single course, to redefining the learning experience for an entire department. UBC’s School of Creative Writing instructors attempted the latter option, and strengthened their cohesion in the process.