Date Posted: May 13, 2011
Print Edition: May 13, 2011
By Sasha Moedt (Contributor) – Email
The future looks bright for budding writers at UFV, although it is a developing university; there is a vision and initiative in poetry and creative writing emerging in the Fraser Valley. As new courses and concentrations are being developed, more students are being given opportunities to be involved in writing academically and creatively. Outside of that setting, resources are being provided for emerging writers by the UFV administration and by students who want to connect and share with other writers.
Writer-in-residence Elizabeth Bachinsky gave her final reading April 7th after a very rewarding term at UFV. Author of poetry collections Curio (2005), Home of Sudden Service (2006), and God of Missed Connections (2009), Bachinsky worked at UFV from January until April, helping students and instructors with their writing. She worked one-on-one with writers, dropped by creative writing classes, and appeared at various UFV readings and events. At her final reading, several students who were mentored by Bachinsky read their poetry and prose.
Bachinsky’s impact could be clearly seen through the interactions between herself, students and instructors. Perpetually energetic and friendly, she created a positive atmosphere. Miriam Huxley, who read her poems “Montmartre” and “Memento Mori” at Bachinsky’s farewell, says that “Elizabeth was so helpful, and really made the whole reading process less daunting. She’s had so much experience as far as presenting her own work goes, and she honestly helped build my confidence.”
After the student readers, Bachinsky read a few poems from Home of Sudden Service. Her reading style is inspiring, her voice strong and self-assured.
A writer-in-residence is an invaluable resource for writing students. Bachinsky made herself very available to one-on-one meetings with writers; students could bring in course assignments or just their own personal writing and receive advice and suggestions.
Students at Bachinsky’s wrap-up reading commented on her ability to make the writer comfortable during these appointments. UFV student Katie Stobbart, who read a few pieces, met with Bachinsky, and was enthusiastic about her experience. “Liz was so encouraging and I feel that she has been a major contributor to my success in creative writing this semester and to my future writing.”
“Elizabeth’s readings are so inspiring,” Stobbart continues, “a poem is at it’s strongest when it is read in the voice of the poet, when the intent of the writer and the interpretation from her audience is fused.”
“I look forward to working with other writers who come to share their experience and knowledge at UFV.”
English Department Head John Carroll says that a writer-in-residence will “become a permanent fixture at UFV, since the English department argued persuasively to make funds for this position a line item in the UFV budget.” Bachinsky, Carroll notes, “was a positive, inspirational, and professional presence, everything a writer-in-residence should be.”
A week later, on April 14, readers, contributors, and editors celebrated the third edition of UFV’s Louden Singletree. Pieces were read by authors published in UFV’s literary magazine.
I’ll admit, I had to Google ‘louden singletree’ before covering this reading. The only thing that popped up was some agricultural device “for use in raising loose hay in the barn or stacks with horse forks or slings.” Well.
Sophie Isbister, an editor of the Louden Singletree, confirmed that yes, it is a piece of farming equipment – circa 1885. Isbister explained that when the founders were choosing a name, they were looking for something that “sounded nice and also kind of mysterious, but which had some relevance to the community that the magazine comes from.” I’m thinking they had a nasty sense of humour, and wanted to doom future editors to the fate of forever answering the question: Louden Singletree? What the hell is that?
To be honest, she’s got it right. Louden Singletree does sound good. We’ve got the conviction in the loud, individuality in single – and then tree, which always has good connotations. Mysterious farming equipment, I’d write for that.
The launch reading was quite a success. Editor Miriam Huxley was pleased with the turnout and atmosphere. “People were really excited about the reading and the third issue,” Huxley remarks.
Isbister comments that “it was also great to put some faces to names; we worked all semester with these people’s writing, and it was nice to finally meet some of them and hear their work the way it was meant to be heard.”
Andrea MacPherson, Faculty Advisor of the Louden Singletree, was pleased with the level of writing: “We’ve definitely got a wider range of submissions and, therefore, a wider range of voices and style, which is always a good thing.” MacPherson hopes that “the fourth issue will grow in this way, seeing not only fiction and poetry, but also non-fiction, monologues, and children’s lit.”
The Spring 2011 edition contains poetry, fiction, and visual art by students, alumni, and faculty. The poetry is diverse, spanning from the short, clipped voice of Robert Martens’s “I Take My Coffee Black,” to the lovely, wistful imagery in Shannon McConnell’s “Tangled Coasts,” to the darker tone of Miriam Huxley’s “Memento Mori.” The short stories are well written, with Chris Scarrow’s gruesomely captivating “Sandbox,” and Sonja Szlovicsak’s poignant “A Day in the Life of the Fabulous Mrs. Poulivard.” For visual art – both Jessie Somers’s Into the Tide and Brian Carlisle’s Tofino Sunset and Surf 2010 are stunning.
Contributor Paul Falardeau says that “the journal is getting better every year. We do a good job with what we have.”
“For me a big improvement, as a school, is to have more and more people contribute. The quality will get better and better the more poems we have submitted.”
Falardeau also adds that an improvement might be to have the reading at Casey’s – “it’d be a bit rowdier!”
Other readers included Lacey Hall, Sherylynn Niezen, Shannon McConnell, and Jennifer Colbourne.
Miriam Huxley explains that submissions are open now until December 14, 2011. “Guidelines are available on the Louden Singletree’s UFV page. (http://www.ufv.ca/english/Louden_Singletree.htm). Submissions must be submitted via email to louden.singletree@ufv.ca.
These two reading events show that the poetry scene at UFV is very vibrant and growing. Elizabeth Bachinsky’s reading revealed dedicated and enthusiastic writers at UFV. The Louden Singletree, just three years in print, contains brilliant writing and has made considerable advancements in those years as far as contribution and quality goes.
Editor Miriam Huxley urges UFV writers to, “write, constantly, and share your work! Form writing communities, take classes, submit to lit mags, just get your work out there. Sharing my work has meant that my style has changed and developed, and I’ve really found my own voice.” Though the Creative Writing program is “small and growing,” Huxley says it is “moving in the right direction.”
“It would be great to see more classes, and more levels in each genre.”
Though UFV hasn’t had the options of a major or minor in Creative Writing in the past, there is the option of a concentration in Creative Writing. Currently, a major in English can be divided into three groups – Drama/Theatre, Literature, or Writing and Rhetoric.
Sophie Isbister observes that, at UFV, “the quality of instruction is great.”
“Creative Writing at UFV has forced me to output a lot of work. I definitely feel that my quality of work has improved, as well as my ability to take criticism in a workshop setting.”
Isbister also would like to see Creative Writing become more available at UFV. “I think that for the Creative Writing departments to progress into a machine that can nurture and develop a lot of the raw talent in the Fraser Valley, it needs to grow into a full degree program or at least a minor.”
Katie Stobbart is impressed with UFV’s Creative Writing courses. She describes her professors as “encouraging and inspiring.”
“I feel that work-shopping my writing with other students has given me a lot of insight into what it means to be a community of writers.”
“Writing in a group and opening yourself up to other people is an integral part of being a writer. That, to me, is one of the best parts of taking a creative writing course: you get the opportunity to form a small community of writers who support, encourage, and learn from each other.”
Currently, UFV administration is making moves to further expand and strengthen Creative Writing at UFV.
According to John Carroll, the ministry has recently approved a package of extended minors, including Creative Writing. Students can now combine this extended minor with extended minors in art history, visual arts, digital and graphic design, theatre, fashion design, media and communications, and visual studies. Additionally, the English department has put through a concentration in Creative Writing – now students completing a BA in English can focus on Creative Writing. Carroll comments that Creative Writing serves to give students “a solid grounding in the literary traditions.”
This expansion is exciting. This past year, experimental poetics was offered for the first time, Carroll noted, while a 300 level screen writing course will be offered in the next academic year. While there will be more Creative Writing courses offered, new courses are being considered for development. Carroll described a course in song lyrics, as well as a course cross listed with visual arts – the graphic novel.
Carroll states that “within the discipline of English, the teaching of Creative Writing can, among other things, serve the function of studying literature from another perspective – not as the critic or scholar, but as the creative artist.”
This exciting growth of Creative Writing fits well with UFV’s wide-range of programs and courses offered. With more opportunities for young writers, it can be hoped that students will become a driving force behind the expansion of poetry and Creative Writing at UFV.
