UBC Okanagan's third annual writer-in-residence, novelist and poet Laisha Rosnau
Novelist and poet Laisha Rosnau is UBC Okanagan’s third annual writer-in-residence. Sponsored by the Department of Creative Studies, this program allows 16 selected local writers to get free critiques of their work.
“Laisha Rosnau, who grew up in Vernon, is back in the Valley as our writer in residence and we’re delighted!” says Nancy Holmes, Head of the Department of Creative Studies. “I hope new and developing local writers take advantage of this rare opportunity to benefit from the advice of someone who’s been there.”
Rosnau is an award-winning poet and novelist. Her second collection of poetry, Lousy Explorers, was released by Nightwood in April 2009, and her first, Notes on Leaving (Nightwood), won the Acorn-Plantos Poetry Award in 2005. Her novel, The Sudden Weight of Snow (McClelland & Stewart), was an honourable mention for the Amazon.ca/Books in Canada First Novel Award.
Rosnau's second collection of poetry, Lousy Explorers, was released by Nightwood in April 2009
Rosnau has a Master of Fine Arts degree from UBC, where she was the Executive Editor of Prism International. Born in Montreal, Rosnau moved to Vernon as a girl and attended Okanagan University College – in fact, her first writing classes took place alongside the construction of the then-brand-new Kelowna campus that is now UBC Okanagan. Laisha has recently moved back to Vernon with her family.
Rosnau will spend two weeks on the UBC Okanagan campus from March 1 to 15, 2010. In addition to meeting with local writers, she will be giving a free public reading on Thursday, March 4, at 7 p.m. at the downtown Kelowna branch of the Okanagan Regional Library, 1380 Ellis St.
Writers in the Central Okanagan are invited to have their work critiqued and to participate in a one-on-one meeting with Rosnau. Appointments are limited to 16, with six of the 16 spaces reserved for UBC Okanagan students.
Writers who would like to be considered for an appointment are asked to send a maximum of 15 double-spaced pages of their fiction or poetry (plus a one-page synopsis if it is an excerpt from a longer work). Work should be sent in an email between January 12 and January 31 to irma.ronkkonen@ubc.ca. In the email, provide name, student number (if applicable), phone number, and email address, and put “Writer in Residence” in the subject line.
For more information about the public reading or the writer in residence program, contact Nancy Holmes, Dept. of Creative Studies at UBC Okanagan, 250-807-9369 or nancy.holmes@ubc.ca.
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