October in the Soo Poetry and photography by Shelly (Tal) Bressette Staring out the hotel window at choppy river water rippling fast below, cold as Algoma Steel. Tom Thomson shades of muted rust and gold rim distant shorelines and unseen winds billow beneath playful gulls’ wings. Stacks of spongy clouds climb above… Continue Reading October in the Soo
Extracting Hope from Poison: On Quitting the Writer’s Life Essay and artwork by Ashley Obscura When I was presented with the opportunity and encouragement to write this essay I was in the midst of a personal crisis. I had just received my first, hard-earned travel grant to attend my first AWP Conference last year in… Continue Reading Extracting Hope from Poison: On Quitting the Writer’s Life
The Courier’s Dinner By Seema Shafei T came home from work smelling like fries and grease. He wiped the thick layer of sweat that collected on the back of his neck with the front part of his electric pink company shirt. The cotton was already splotched with the colours of different food and dirt he… Continue Reading The Courier’s Dinner
Overcoming Perfectionism Using the Pomodoro TechniqueBy Shazia Hafiz Ramji I am a perfectionist— I have a problem. I take pride in being a perfectionist— I have an even bigger problem. Last winter, I realized that part of the reason why I had stopped working on one of the storylines of my novel was because of… Continue Reading Overcoming Perfectionism Using the Pomodoro Technique
Toronto-based writer and filmmaker Nedda Sarshar speaks with InvisiBlog’s guest editor Amanda Ghazale Aziz on figuring out what format works best for each story, learning how to write scripts, and working on documentaries. Amanda Ghazale Aziz: The fact that most writers write beyond one genre and form is obvious, but it’s something I’ve been interested… Continue Reading “It’s The Sort of Story That I Want to be Creating”: An Interview with Nedda Sarshar
Poet, fisherman, and author of What Your Hands Have Done (Nightwood Editions, 2018) Chris Bailey speaks with Invisiblog guest editor Amanda Ghazale Aziz about obligations, family, and writing in second person. Amanda Ghazale Aziz: How was the move back to Prince Edward Island? Chris Bailey: It’s always strange coming back. I remember hearing it takes… Continue Reading “I Never Used to Write About Anything Close to Home”: An Interview with Chris Bailey
On Seeking External ValidationBy Terese Mason Pierre In 2003, my parents moved us from our relatively comfortable lives in Mississauga to Grenada for my father’s job with the Caribbean bank. It was a world that was supposed to be familiar (my parents are Grenadian), but wasn’t. It was here that I started writing, at the… Continue Reading On Seeking External Validation
Providence-based writer and researcher Abdullah Shihipar talks ever-changing relationships to writing, community organizing, and working in multiple genres with InvisiBlog’s guest editor Amanda Ghazale Aziz.Amanda Ghazale Aziz: You were a writer before you were an organizer— you’ve mentioned to me before that writing took a backseat during the years you were the president of the… Continue Reading “It is Not Enough to Merely Bear Witness to the Conditions of the World”: An Interview with Abdullah Shihipar
As I write this, I have two plump squashes in my garden still clinging onto their stems. I plan to harvest them tomorrow and enjoy a good stew out of them this week. I’m terribly excited for this plan of mine. Until then, I’ll let these two beauties be outside among their now-dead blossoms, cherry… Continue Reading What Doesn’t Show Up Still Counts
I first met Amanda at AWP in Portland, when we both sat on a panel organized by outgoing Invisiblog guest editor slash all-around all-star Shazia Hafiz Ramji. Amanda is super smart and I know she’ll bring a keen sense of style to the posts she curates here over the next few months. Welcome aboard, Amanda!… Continue Reading Meet Amanda Ghazale Aziz, our latest Invisiblog guest editor!