Terry Jordan selected as Writer-in-Residence for 2011 -- 2012

Saskatoon author Terry Jordan has been selected as the Winnipeg Public Library's Writer-in-Residence for 2011 - 2012. Starting October 1 and ending April 2012, Terry will work with local writers through individual consultations and workshops, in addition to allocating time to his own writing. Established in 1985, the Library's Writer-in-Residence program is designed to give new, emerging, and established writers a chance to have their manuscripts read and critiqued.

Terry Jordan is an accomplished writer, editor, educator and playwright. His book of stories It's a Hard Cow won a Saskatchewan Book Award and was nominated for a Commonwealth Book Prize. His novel Beneath That Starry Place was published internationally and was nominated for two Saskatchewan Book Awards and the Chapters/Books in Canada First Novel Award. He has won awards for both non-fiction and for his work as a playwright.

Terry also has experience in writing for the screen and is currently working on a radio play for the BBC in London. As an educator and mentor, he has worked extensively with many forms of writing in previous Writer-in-Residence positions in Saskatchewan and at Trent University, including time as an instructor at the Sage Hill Writing Experience.

Copies of manuscripts may be dropped off at any Winnipeg Public Library branch, emailed to wpl.writerinres@gmail.com or mailed to:

Writer-in-Residence, Reader Services
Millennium Library
251 Donald Street
Winnipeg, Manitoba
R3C 3P5

Manuscripts must follow specific submission guidelines:

- Typed in 12-point font (prose: double-spaced, poetry: single-spaced), on one side of the page only.

- Prose submissions should not exceed 15 pages; poetry submissions should not exceed six poems.

Writers should include a cover letter containing a brief description of their writing background and the specific feedback they need, as well as all contact information including an email address.

Manuscripts will be accepted beginning October 1. The Writer-in-Residence service is free.

- Download Writer-in-Residence 2011 - 2012 poster.

With the program well underway, the Library applied for a grant from the Canada Council to provide 50% of the funding for the program. Under Canada Council rules, the Library was obliged to choose a writer who did not live in the province. Over the next few years, the Library hosted several Canadian writers including Anne Szumigalski, Geoffrey Ursell, and Merna Summers.

During the mid 90s, the Library was unable to continue to fund its portion of the program and so it was suspended. In 1997, the Manitoba Writers' Guild decided to initiate its own program and offered the services of a writer-in-residence at the University of Winnipeg. Although the program was a success, the Guild recognized that the Library setting was more accessible to the general public.

In 1998, the Guild approached the Library to begin the program again as a partnership. The next residency was a short term one at the St. Boniface Library with Marcien Ferland working in French. The Guild and the Library successfully applied for a grant from the Manitoba Arts Council for a 9-month term and in the fall of 1999 Linda Holeman began her term as the Writer-in-Residence.

The next year, the Library took over the financial responsibility for the program and was successful in applying for funds from a variety of sources including the Manitoba Arts Council, the Winnipeg Arts Advisory Council, Friends of Winnipeg Public Library and the Winnipeg Public Library Board. With the assistance of the Manitoba Writers' Guild, George Amabile was chosen for a 6-month term beginning in the fall of 2000.

Since then, the Winnipeg Public Library has hosted poets (John Weier, Maurice Mierau), short fiction writers (Chandra Mayor, Melissa Steele), young adult writers (Duncan Thornton), genre authors (Doug Whiteway), and award-winning literary novelists (David Bergen, Miriam Toews, Terry Jordan). In 2008 the program chose its first playwright, Bruce McManus.