The School of Creative Writing welcomes several new faculty members this fall.
“We are thrilled to have four new faculty members that bring a delightful breadth of writing experience to our program. We’re so pleased to see our diverse student body reflected in the genre specializations and interests of these industry experts in poetry, fiction, screenwriting, and playwriting. We invite the Creative Writing community to join us in giving our newest members a warm welcome,” says Director Annabel Lyon.
A.W. Hopkins, Frances Koncan, Cecily Nicholson and Danny Ramadan joined Creative Writing in September. Read more to learn what they are teaching, reading and their advice for students.
A.W. Hopkins
Adjunct Professor
Screenwriting
What is your area of teaching?
I write and teach feature length screenwriting. I’m also a working director, which gives me insight and practical experience on how the words on the page are transformed into a finished film.
Why are you excited about being at UBC?
The two years I spent in the Creative Writing MFA program at UBC were among the most productive and creative years of my lifetime. My sincere wish is to provide students with a similar artistic experience. I’m honoured to be a part of such an illustrious faculty.
What is one piece of advice you have for Creative Writing students?
Take the time to explore the many approaches to writing a screenplay. Read the books, take the classes, and listen to the podcasts. Then take what makes sense for you and your story and ignore the rest.
What are you currently reading or watching that you would recommend, and why?
For feature films I would recommend Emily the Criminal. I like the psychological dance/dilemma of when a good person is forced (or makes the decision) to do bad things. For the same reasons I would recommend the series, The Crowded Room, and the series, Full Circle.
Frances Koncan
Assistant Professor in Playwriting
What is your area of teaching?
Playwriting!
Why are you excited about being at UBC?
I’m very excited to join this incredible community full of brilliant writers and artists, and as an Anishinaabe person born in Ontario and raised in Manitoba, I’m also honoured for the opportunity to live and work on the unceded land of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations, and to be in community with them.
What is one piece of advice you have for Creative Writing students?
As a playwright, I have more experience working with actors than with writers, and my usual advice for actors is a variation of “Make big choices!”
What are you currently reading or watching that you would recommend, and why?
I’m rewatching The X-Files right now since it seems like aliens might actually exist after all. Before that, I was high-key obsessed with Succession. I still sort of am. And I re-watch Twin Peaks literally every October – it’s my favourite TV show of all-time and honestly it should be yours, too. You might have assumed from this response that I watch a lot of TV, and you’re right, but since I’m in the School of Creative Writing now I’m going to try to read more actual books now.
Cecily Nicholson
Assistant Professor in Poetry
What is your area of teaching?
My teaching involves the practice of poetry and other creative writing forms as they interrelate with ecology, geological time, and movement—centring poetry itself as a place that can enact liberation, refuge, and belonging. My writing involves poetic research and technique as a mode of embodiment and critique that engages documentary forms, as well as collective organizing and archival practices. I am a long-time collaborator with community impacted by carcerality and food insecurity. I often collude with artists.
Why are you excited about being at UBC?
I am excited to be a part of the School of Creative Writing and a thriving community. I am grateful to work on the homelands of the hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓-speaking xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) people.
What is one piece of advice you have for Creative Writing students?
Find joy in revision and delight in the difficulty!
What are you currently reading or watching that you would recommend, and why?
I am currently reading Black Food: Stories, Art & Recipes from Across the African Diaspora by Bryant Terry which is a nourishing read on “foodways” at crossroads of memory and critical theory. I’m also reading Mercy Gene by JD Derbyshire, a wonderful experiment in form and autofiction. And I am re-reading Kindred by Octavia Butler because I always read science or speculative fiction before I go to sleep (good dreams!). www.windpoetry.ca is a current focus for study and writing on aleatory and elemental poetics.
Danny Ramadan
Adjunct Professor in Fiction
What is your area of teaching?
I will be focusing on fiction: fiction is my sword and shield, it feels like an armour. It feels both powerful and protective at the same time. I am hoping to pass on the ability to mold fiction into whatever tool you hope to use in your creative writing. In a way, I hope to open up the possibilities your talent can accomplish with the tools I can provide.
Why are you excited about being at UBC?
UBC is my home turf, I did my MFA here back in the day. I’m excited to replicate the engaging, collaborative and informative classes that made me the author I am today, and possibly inspire others the way I was inspired.
What is one piece of advice you have for Creative Writing students?
Kindness is king: we tend to be the cruelest voice in our heads, telling us we are not enough, and our art is not enough. It’s ludicrous to think that your first attempt at writing a piece [or even your fifth] will be a masterpiece. We are all meant to write bad fiction until it becomes good. So, be kind to yourself through the process.
What are you currently reading or watching that you would recommend, and why?
I am currently playing Mortal Kombat 1 on my PlayStation. The game premise is a relaunch of the franchise and an attempt to realign the many stories of the past into one large thread. It assigned old villains with good roles, and offered paths of redemption to new ones, too. It’s exciting and bloody and fantastical and I’m all for it.
