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About
Programming
- Conference
  - 2021 Conference Sessions
  - 2021 Presenter Bios
- Webinars
CNF contest
Contact us
Blog
Resources
Member-only area
Join the CNFC

Featured member

Marion Agnew

CNFC member, writer, and editor.

Beth Kaplan

CNFC board member at large and author of three non-fiction books.

Leona Theis

2020 CBC Nonfiction Prize shortlisted writer

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A Man of Many Gifts: Omar Mouallem

January 26, 2022

Protected: January Webinar Recording: How to Write Winning Applications for Writer Residencies and Grants

January 26, 2022

The Canada Council “Doesn’t Like Fact”?

December 27, 2021

Protected: CNFC Member Book Launch Recording

December 27, 2021

Protected: Writing Partnerships: Find Your Perfect Match

November 24, 2021

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NEW BLOG POST: “The Canada Council ‘Doesn’t

NEW BLOG POST: “The Canada Council ‘Doesn’t like fact?” by Christopher Moore, CNFC vice-chair:

“Ken Whyte runs Sutherland House, a newish publisher dedicated to Canadian nonfiction. And he is worried about Canadian nonfiction.

Memoir is doing fine, he acknowledges, and it is part of his publishing program. His concern is the decline in Canadian publishing of what he calls ‘works of history, biography, natural science, philosophy, religion, politics, criticism, and any other researched non-fiction that intends something other than personal reflection.’

He’s concerned that part of the problem is the Canada Council….”

To read more, click the link in bio! 👆

And share your thoughts below! 👇
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#creativenonfiction #creativenonfictionwriters #authors #cnfc #funding #artsfunding #grant

Everyone struggles with those intimidating applica

Everyone struggles with those intimidating application forms for grants and programs that can make all the difference in our writing projects.

Join us TOMORROW (Wednesday January 12) for our next webinar in our 2021-22 series:

“How to Write Winning Applications for Writer Residencies and Grants” with Elizabeth Philips and Andrew Steinmetz.

This session will demystify the process of applying for writer residencies and supporting your writing with Canada Arts Council grants.

ELIZABETH PHILIPS was the director of the Banff Centre’s Emerging Writer Intensive for eight years. She is the author of four poetry collections, most recently Torch River. In 2015, she published her first novel, The Afterlife of Birds (Freehand Books), winner of the City of Saskatoon Book Award and a finalist for the Amazon.ca First Novel Award. She is a former editor of Grain magazine, and is now the newly appointed Acquisition Editor for Thistledown Press. She lives in Saskatoon.

ANDREW STEINMETZ is a program officer in the Explore and Create program at the Canada Council for the Arts. Andrew is the author of several books including Eva’s Threepeny Theatre (Gaspereau Press 2008) and most recently This Great Escape: The Case of Michael Paryla (Biblioasis 2013), a finalist of the Hilary Weston Writers' Trust Prize for Nonfiction.

Date: 12 Jan 2022
Time: 1:30 - 3:00 pm
Location: online via Zoom
Cost: Free for CNFC members!

Find the registration link in our bio - just click on the linker.ee/cnfcollective!
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#workshop #grant #writingworkshop #professionaldevelopment #creativenonfictionwriters #cnf

📣 Announcing our next session in the 2021-22 se

📣 Announcing our next session in the 2021-22 season of CNFC webinars - free for members!

✍️ January 12, 2022: “How to Write Winning Applications for Writer Residencies and Grants” with Elizabeth Philips and Andrew Steinmetz.

Everyone struggles with those intimidating application forms for grants and programs that can make all the difference in our writing projects. This session will demystify the process of applying for writer residencies and supporting your writing with Canada Arts Council grants.

ELIZABETH PHILIPS was the director of the Banff Centre’s Emerging Writer Intensive for eight years. She is the author of four poetry collections, most recently Torch River. In 2015, she published her first novel, The Afterlife of Birds (Freehand Books), winner of the City of Saskatoon Book Award and a finalist for the Amazon.ca First Novel Award. She is a former editor of Grain magazine, and is now the newly appointed Acquisition Editor for Thistledown Press. She lives in Saskatoon.

ANDREW STEINMETZ is a program officer in the Explore and Create program at the Canada Council for the Arts. Andrew is the author of several books including Eva’s Threepeny Theatre (Gaspereau Press 2008) and most recently This Great Escape: The Case of Michael Paryla (Biblioasis 2013), a finalist of the Hilary Weston Writers' Trust Prize for Nonfiction.

🗓 Wednesday January 12, 2022
⏰ 1:30 - 3:00 pm EST
📍online via Zoom
💰Free for CNFC members!

Find the registration link in our bio 👆 Just click on the linker.ee/cnfcollective!
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#webinar #workshop #grants #writingresidency #howto #cnf #creativenonfictionwriters #creativenonfiction #letszoom

“Hope Smiles from the threshold of the year to c

“Hope
Smiles from the threshold of the year to come,
Whispering 'it will be happier'...”
― Alfred Lord Tennyson

Wishing you and yours a creative, productive and brighter 2022!

📚Join us on December 11, 2021 for the annual Me

📚Join us on December 11, 2021 for the annual Members' Book Launch Webinar, featuring CNFC members reading a short excerpt from their newly-released books.
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⏰ 1:30 - 3:00 PM EST
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Moderated by LesleyBuxton, listen to readings from fellow CNF writers with the chance to win a copy of their book!

The readers are (in alphabetical order):
* Donna Besel, The Unraveling
* Pat Butler, Through Her Opera Glasses
* Gregor Craigie, On Borrowed Time
* Moira Dann, Craigdarroch Castle in 21 Treasures
* Margaret Nowaczyk, Chasing Zebras
* Molly Peacock, Flower Diary
* Concetta Principe, Stars Need Counting
* Elizabeth Templeman, Out and Back.

Registration is now open! Free for CNFC members. Link in bio 👆

We gratefully acknowledge support for this webinar from the University of King's College Halifax.

#booklaunch #bookreading #CNFauthors #canadianauthors #booklovers #creativenonfiction #CNFC #letszoom #newrelease

📣 The Humber Literary Review (HLR) and the Crea

📣 The Humber Literary Review (HLR) and the Creative Nonfiction Collective (CNFC) have joined forces once again to bring you a Canada-wide creative nonfiction contest.

The 2022 Contest is now open!

👩🏻‍💻 WHO: The competition is open to Canadian citizens and permanent residents of Canada.

📓WHAT: Original previously unpublished creative nonfiction – maximum word length 3,000 words (no minimum). Literary journalism, memoir, and the personal or lyric essay—all are welcome.

🗓 WHEN: Contest Closes Monday February 21, 2022 at 11:59pm PST.

🏆 Winners will be announced in June 2022 during the 2022 CNFC annual conference. First prize will include a payment of $750 and publication in The Humber Literary Review.

💰FEE: General public $20; CNFC members $15.

👆 Full info online - follow the link in bio! 👆

#CNFC #CNF #creativenonfiction #writingcontest #nonfictionwriting #canadianwriters #literaryjournalism #memoir #personalessay #nonficitonwriter

📣 New blog post 📣 . Recently CNCF’s Lesley

📣 New blog post 📣
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Recently CNCF’s Lesley Buxton had the pleasure of interviewing new board member Fiona Campbell, who has been the “I” behind these squares since June and is a member of the 2023 conference planning committee.
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Fiona Campbell (she/her) is a CNF writer, journalist, editor and communications professional. She’s also a passionate storyteller who never outgrew her love of the question, “Why?” For 20 years she’s written for national magazines, websites and non-profits on topics related to the arts, sustainable agriculture, the environment, travel, running and social justice.

She has an MFA in creative nonfiction (University of King’s College), a BAA in journalism with a specialty in magazine writing and publishing (Ryerson University), and a BA in international development (University of Guelph). Fiona is working on a collection of lyrical essays from her home in Madoc, Ont., (treaty territory of the Anishinabewaki people) where she currently lives with her two teenage kids (ages 19 & 17), one dog, and too many books. She hopes to move to the East coast very soon. When she’s not working, she likes to run, a lot, and really far.

To read the interview, follow the link in bio! 👆
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#newblogpost #creativenonfiction #writingcommunity #CNFC

The CNFC is deeply sorry to learn of Lee Maracle’s passing this morning. Her voice was a powerful and necessary one in the fight against Indigenous oppression. She was a brilliant mind and writer, and tireless in elevating and amplifying Indigenous voices and experiences. She will be missed.
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Posted @withregram • @cbcbooks Celebrated poet, author and activist Lee Maracle has died at the age of 71 on Nov. 11, 2021.
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Maracle, a member of the Sto:lo Nation, is the creator of iconic books such as Celia's Song, I Am Woman, My Conversations with Canadians and Ravensong.
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You can learn more about her life and work at cbcbooks.ca.

🌺 In Flanders Fields 🌺 BY JOHN MCCRAE In Fl

🌺 In Flanders Fields 🌺
BY JOHN MCCRAE

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie,
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

#weremember #rembranceday #inflandersfields #poetry #lestweforget🌹

📣 JUST THREE DAYS LEFT!!! Join us for our next

📣 JUST THREE DAYS LEFT!!!

Join us for our next webinar on Saturday November 13 on the subject of Writing Partnerships: Find Your Perfect Match - it’s Free for CNFC members!

Join Cooper Lee Bombardier, Moira Dann, and Fiona Tinwei Lam for a fascinating discussion of how writers work together, from one-on-one writing partnerships to writing groups to formal mentoring. Whether you’re looking to consult, collaborate or critique, find the model that works best for you by understanding the accountability, boundaries, and trust involved in these types of partnerships.

Registration is open. Link in bio! 👆(Includes additional information about each presenter.)

🗓 November 13: 2:30 pm Atlantic, 1:30 pm Eastern, 10:30 am Pacific

We gratefully acknowledge support of this webinar from the University of King’s College Halifax.

#writingworkshop #cnfwriting #writingcommunity #writershelpingwriters #creativenonfiction

📖 “The Forest for the Trees: An Editor’s Ad

📖 “The Forest for the Trees: An Editor’s Advice to Writers”by Betsy Lerner

Apparently Editor Appreciation Day isn’t until November 24, but we’re going to celebrate it a bit early.

I was a writer for almost 10 years before I started working as an editor. Now I do both. Not only does editing give me the opportunity to flex another part of my brain, but it’s helped me become a better writer. I’ve found I love language a little more deeply, I’m less afraid to cut the extra bits (even the well written ones!) if they don’t add to the story, and I’ve become braver with my storytelling.

What’s your relationship with your editor(s) and editing?

#creativenonfiction #nonfictionauthors #writingcommunity #writershelpingwriters #editors

NEW BLOG POST: CNCF board member Lesley Buxton in

NEW BLOG POST: CNCF board member Lesley Buxton interviewed Rachel about writing in different forms, teaching, and her recent book crush.

Rachel Rose’s fiction debut, The Octopus Has Three Hearts, was published by Douglas & McIntyre in 2021, and was longlisted for the Scotiabank Giller Prize. She is the author of four collections of poetry, including Marry & Burn, which received a 2016 Pushcart Prize, and was a finalist for a Governor General’s Award. From 2014 to 2017, she was Poet Laureate of Vancouver. Her memoir, The Dog Lover Unit: Lessons in Courage from the World’s K9 Cops, was shortlisted for the 2018 Arthur Ellis award for best non-fiction crime book. A former fellow at The University of Iowa’s International Writing Program, and a former fellow at The University of Iowa’s International Writing Program, she has taught creative writing at Simon Fraser University’s The Writer’s Studio (TWS), Simon Fraser University’s Continuing Education Program, Washington State’s Poets in the Schools, the University of British Columbia, Kwantlen University, and, at present, Vancouver Manuscript Intensive (VMI).

Link in bio! 👆
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#cnf #creativenonfiction #writing #writersofinstagram #author #nonfictionauthor #poetry #writerscommunity

Join us for our next webinar on Saturday November

Join us for our next webinar on Saturday November 13 on the subject of Writing Partnerships: Find Your Perfect Match - it’s free for CNFC members!

Join Cooper Lee Bombardier, Moira Dann, and Fiona Tinwei Lam for a fascinating discussion of how writers work together, from one-on-one writing partnerships to writing groups to formal mentoring.
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Whether you’re looking to consult, collaborate or critique, find the model that works best for you by understanding the accountability, boundaries, and trust involved in these types of partnerships.

Registration is now open. Link in bio 👆! (Includes additional information about each presenter.)

🗓 November 13: 2:30 pm Atlantic, 1:30 pm Eastern, 10:30 am Pacific

We gratefully acknowledge support of this webinar from the University of King’s College Halifax.
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#creativenonfiction #cnfwriter #cnf #writingworkshop #writershelpingwriters #writingcommunity

Posted @withregram • @writerstrust Take a paus

Posted @withregram • @writerstrust

Take a pause today to commemorate Canada's first National #TruthandReconciliationDay 🧡📙 Make it a habit to dedicate time to reading some of the incredible books written by #Indigenousauthors.

◥ “#NISHGA by Jordan Abel @jordoisdead fully realizes the complexity of the self and home, and the way atrocity reverberates through generations.”

◥ #AliciaElliott's @ellialic #AMindSpreadOutontheGround reveals "the subtle and not-so-subtle persistence of the colonial, racist mindset as it continues to impact #Indigenouslives today."

◥ "@Creeborn Michelle Good’s #FiveLittleIndians is a unique portrayal of unvanquished #Indigenous spirit rising above Canada’s shameful history.”

◥ "#PermanentAstonishment by #TomsonHighway is a mesmerizing story rich in detail about growing up in a #Cree-speaking family in Northern Manitoba and later in a residential school."

◥ Peace and Good Order by @HaroldR.Johnson provides "a caustic, clear, and compelling indictment of Canada’s criminal justice system and its impact on the lives of #IndigenousCanadians."

◥ "#AllOurRelations by @TanyaTalaga is a call to action and a testament to the strength and tenacity of #Indigenouspeople around the world."
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#ntdr2021 #truthandreconciliation #wearorange #indigenousauthors

🗓 One week today! The CNFC is excited to kick

🗓 One week today!

The CNFC is excited to kick off our 2021-22 webinar series on Saturday October 2, 2021 featuring CNFC member and board member Darryl Whetter on the subject “From Hermit Crabs to Talking Skeletons: Playing with Form in CNF.”

⏰When: 2:30 pm Atlantic, 1:30 pm Eastern, 10:30 am Pacific

Novelist, poet, journalist and memoirist Professor Darryl Whetter will present a workshop which introduces numerous examples and opportunities for you to splice other found or curated text ( from family letters, legislation to medical documentation) into your own while discovering new modes of creativity and new opportunities for making nonfiction creative.

Registration is open - link in bio 👆

The webinar series is FREE for CNFC members! (Not yet a member? Check out the benefits of membership : link in bio 👆)
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#writingworkshop #creativenonfiction #CNF #nonfictionwriting #professionaldevelopment #writingcommunity

Congratulations to all 15 finalists of The Fiddleh

Congratulations to all 15 finalists of The Fiddlehead’s 2021 Creative Nonfiction Contest, judged by Chelene Knight, including these CNFC members:

Margo LaPierre — "A Spectre in Blue"

Catherine Lewis — "Late Bloomer"

Rayya Liebich — "Brooch Diptych"

Darryl Whetter — "Hinge Wood"

Darryl Whetter — "My First, and Probably Only, 'Sweat'"

The winner of the $2,000 contest prize will be announced on October 1 and the winning essay will appear in the Autumn 2021 issue (289).

#cnfcontest #shortlist #cnfwriters #creativenonfiction #cnfc #writingcommunity

"Write the tale that scares you, that makes you fe

"Write the tale that scares you, that makes you feel uncertain, that is uncomfortable. I dare you. In a world that entices us to browse through the lives of others to help us better determine how we feel about ourselves, and to, in turn, feel the need to be constantly visible, for visibility these days seems to somehow equate to success. Do not be afraid to disappear, from it, from us, for a while, and see what comes to you in the silence."

- MICHAELA COEL

#quoteoftheday #writingwisdom #bebrave #creativenonfiction #CNFwriters #writinginspiration

🎉 Congratulations to CNFC member Kelly S. Thomp

🎉 Congratulations to CNFC member Kelly S. Thompson (top right) for making the CBC Nonfiction Prize long list with her submission “Dear CAF.”
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The long list was selected from more than 2,000 English-language submissions.
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The shortlist will be announced on Sept 22, and the winner on Sept. 29.
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Posted @withregram • @cbcbooks

Congratulations to the 28 writers from across Canada that have been longlisted for the 2021 CBC Nonfiction Prize. The winner will receive $6,000 from @canada.council and will have the opportunity to attend a two-week writing residency at the @banffcentre

The complete longlist is:

* Are You Still Dead This Summer? by Ellen Adams (Montreal)
* Sandwiches by Georges Ajami (Montreal)
* To Pluto and Back by Kayode Ajayi (Ottawa)
* One Route, Over and Over by Nicole Boyce (Calgary)
* Ma by Kirsten Dunbar (Creston, B.C.)
* The Mouse by Gena Ellett (Vancouver)
* The Archaeologist's Last Visit by Machenka Eriksen (Victoria)
* Raining Glitter by Jennifer Goodman (Ottawa)
* Whitefish by Libby Gunn (Gabriola Island, B.C.)
* Funhouse Mirrors by Alison Hughes (Edmonton)
* Bone Shadows by Basma Kavanagh (Canning, N.S.)
* Northern Spring by Barbara Mackenzie (Yellowknife)
* Gary Fisher by Yohani Mendis (Toronto)
* The Brother by Baijayanta Mukhopadhyay (Montreal)
* 1975 by Valda Organ (St. John's)
* For Sale by Lue Palmer (Toronto)
* The Time with Moiz, The Pants and the Curtain by Zahida Rahemtulla (Vancouver)
* The Pink Palace by Dawn Ruddick (London, Ont.)
* Guests, Ghosts, Hosts by Clarisse Baleja Saïdi (Toronto)
* Cut Out of Something Holy by Yvette Sin (Toronto)
* Impossible Math by Michelle Spencer (Pincher Creek, Alta.)
* Umbrella by Chanel M. Sutherland (Montreal)
* My Summer Body by Lee Thomas (Fredericton)
* Dear CAF by Kelly S. Thompson (Greenwood, N.S.)
* A Borrowed Husband by Sarah Van Goethem (Bothwell, Ont.)
* An Ounce of Care by Kasia Van Schaik (Montreal)
* The Tending of Small Gardens by Tina Wayland (Montreal)
* The Coyote and the Wren by Alice Irene Whittaker (Chelsea, Que.)

To read the longlisted entries and find out more about these writers, head to cbcbooks.ca

📣 NEW BLOG POST! CNFC member Sandra Phinney an

📣 NEW BLOG POST!

CNFC member Sandra Phinney and CNFC board member Darryl Whetter co-authored a new blog post, “A mentor, a mentee and a beautiful residency” about Sandra’s writing residency at Joggins Fossil Cliffs, in Joggins, NS., and her evolution from student to mentee, and from journalist to CNF writer.

Writes Sandra: "Already I see improvements in my writing. I spent so many years trying to be true to the journalistic style I had embraced (keeping myself out of other people’s stories) that it’s taking me time to find my voice and to provide the emotional depth/honesty required in CNF. But it’s happening, and I am finding great joy in this new venture."

Adds Darryl, "Reconnecting with Sandra in writing classes and now again across kitchen tables shingled with manuscripts was a great return for me after my recent years directing the first master’s writing program in Singapore and one of the first in Southeast Asia. I’m delighted to help mentor Sandra’s transition from professional journalism to more personal CNF, in part because I too have been blessed with some positive serendipity around CNF mentors."

To read the full blog post, follow the link in bio! 👆
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#cnf #creativenonfiction #mentor #writingmentor #writingtrue #creativenonfiction #nonfictionwriter #blog #blogpost

📣 Coming Soon: The CNFC webinar series 2021-22

📣 Coming Soon: The CNFC webinar series 2021-22

👩🏻‍💻 CNFC is thrilled to launch our new season of webinars with our first event featuring CNFC member and board member Darryl Whetter on the subject "From Hermit Crabs to Talking Skeletons: Playing with Form in CNF.”

Novelist, poet, journalist and memoirist Professor Darryl Whetter will present a workshop which introduces numerous examples and opportunities for you to splice other texts (for example, family letters, legislation, medical documentation) into your own while discovering new modes of creativity and new opportunities for making nonfiction creative.

Professor Darryl Whetter is the author of four books of fiction and two poetry collections. His most recent books are the climate-crisis novel Our Sands, from Penguin Random House, and Teaching Creative Writing in Asia, with Routledge. A Canadian, he was the inaugural director of the first Creative Writing master’s degree in Singapore. His essays have been published by Oxford University Press, Routledge, Presses Sorbonne Nouvelle, The Brooklyn Rail, The Walrus, etc.

🗓 MARK YOUR CALENDAR! Saturday October 2, 2021. 2:30pm Atlantic, 1.30pm Eastern, 10:30am Pacific.

Free for CNFC members. Registration now live. Link in bio! 👆

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#cnfc #creativenonfiction #cnfwriting #workshop #writingworkshop #professionaldevelopment #webinar #creativenonfictionwriters

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