Page Fright: A Literary Podcast

Carlie Blume talks poetry and motherhood. Andrew's Skype is slow. It's a lovely time for all, despite the lag... ----- Carlie Blume is a Vancouver born writer of poetry and fiction. She is a 2017 graduate of The Writer’s Studio, the Vancouver Manuscript Intensive and Chelene Knight’s Advanced Poetry Workshop. Her work has appeared in The Maynard, Train: a poetry journal, Loose Lips Magazine, BAD DOG Review, Pulp Mag, and GUEST poetry journal. Currently she is the Advertising Coordinator for Chelene Knight’s Learn Writing Essentials and she lives outside of Vancouver with her husband and two children. She's on twitter at @carlie_blume. ----- Listen to more episodes at: www.theandrewfrench.com/pagefright

Chris Bailey talks about writing poetry that doesn't sound like AC/DC's discography. Andrew falls in love with Chris' accent. It's a splendid affair. ----- Chris Bailey is a commercial fisherman and from North Lake, Prince Edward Island. He got his MFA from the University of Guelph and is a past recipient of the Milton Acorn Award for poetry. His writing has appeared in Grain, Brick, The Buzz, The Town Crier, FreeFall and on CBC's Mainstreet PEI. Chris' debut poetry collection, What Your Hands Have Done, is available from Nightwood Editions. Twitter @thischrisbailey. ----- Listen to more episodes at: www.theandrewfrench.com/pagefright

Daniel Cowper has advice for the people who don't like poetry. Andrew brings in a journal we've seen before. Everybody is happy. ----- Daniel Cowper's poetry has appeared in Arc, Vallum, CV2, Prairie Fire, and various other literary publications in Canada, the US, and Ireland. In 2017 he was long-listed for the CBC Poetry Prize, and a chapbook of his poetry, The God of Doors, was published by Frog Hollow Press, was published as co-winner of Frog Hollow's chapbook contest. His first full length collection of poetry, Grotesque Tenderness, was published by McGill-Queen's University Press in summer 2019. He lives on Bowen Island, BC, with his wife, Emily Osborne, and their baby. ----- Listen to more episodes at: www.theandrewfrench.com/pagefright

David Ly talks about the best doughnuts. Andrew loves Grindr epigraphs. Everybody leaves in high spirits. ----- David Ly is the author of Stubble Burn (Anstruther Press, 2018) and Mythical Man (Anstruther Books, 2020). His poetry has also appeared in publications such as PRISM international, The Puritan, carte blanche, Pulp Literature, The Maynard, and The /tƐmz/ Review. He has been long- and short-listed for the Thomas Morton Memorial Prize in Poetry and the Magpie Award in Poetry, respectively. Twitter @dlylyly. ----- Listen to more episodes at: www.theandrewfrench.com/pagefright

Isabella Wang talks about poetic form. Andrew brings in a super fun book. Everybody is delighted. ----- Isabella Wang's debut poetry chapbook is On Forgetting a Language (Baseline Press 2019). At 19, she has been shortlisted twice for The New Quarterly's Edna Staebler Essay Contest, and she holds a Pushcart Prize nomination for poetry. Her poetry and prose have appeared in over twenty literary journals including CV2, Minola Review, and carte blanche, and is forthcoming in the What You Need to Know Anthology (The Hawkins Project, co-founded by Dave Eggers). She is an assistant editor at Room magazine,  RA for SpokenWeb, and pursuing a double major in English and World Literature at SFU. ----- Listen to more episodes at: www.theandrewfrench.com/pagefright

Cassidy McFadzean talks about poetry, astrology, and transitioning between forms. Andrew talks about a scary tarot reading. Everyone ends up smiling. ----- Cassidy McFadzean was born in Regina, graduated from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, and currently lives in Toronto. She is the author of Hacker Packer (McClelland & Stewart 2015), which won two Saskatchewan Book Awards and was a finalist for the Gerald Lampert Memorial Award. Her poems have appeared in BOAAT, Event, The Fiddlehead, PRISM international, and The Best Canadian Poetry 2016, and have been shortlisted for the CBC Poetry Prize and The Walrus Poetry Prize. Her second book is Drolleries (M&S 2019). ----- Listen to more episodes at: www.theandrewfrench.com/pagefright

Aislinn Hunter talks teaching, writing, and finding your passion. Andrew brings her a spicy book of poetry. All parties are pleased. ----- Aislinn Hunter (born in Belleville, Ontario) is a Canadian poetry and fiction author. She studied art history and writing at the University of Victoria where she received her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. Her Master of Fine Arts degree came from the University of British Columbia, her MSc in Writing and Cultural Politics came from the University of Edinburgh as did her PhD where she wrote on writers' houses/museums and resonant things with a focus on the Victorian era and thing theory via Heidegger. She currently teaches Creative Writing part-time at Kwantlen Polytechnic University. Hunter's research interests include material culture, museums, books-as-things, Victorian writers and ephemera. Her 2002 novel Stay was adapted for film by Wiebke Von Carolsfeld and released as a Telefilm / Irish Film Board co-production in 2013, premiering at the Toronto International Film Fes

Hasan Namir discusses love, equality, and his incredible writing. Andrew regrets not bringing his copy of Hasan's book. Everybody enjoys themselves. ----- Iraqi-Canadian author Hasan Namir graduated from Simon Fraser University with a BA in English and received the Ying Chen Creative Writing Student Award. He is the author of God in Pink (2015), which won the Lambda Literary Award for Best Gay Fiction and was chosen as one of the Top 100 Books of 2015 by The Globe and Mail. His work has also been featured on Huffington Post, Shaw TV, Airbnb, and in the film God in Pink: A Documentary. He was recently named a writer to watch by CBC books.  Hasan lives in Vancouver with his husband. War/Torn (2019, Book*Hug) is his latest poetry book  ----- Listen to more episodes at: www.theandrewfrench.com/pagefright 

Aidan Chafe discusses his book, mental illness, and why growing up is hard. Andrew agrees and is in awe of Aidan's writing. Everybody has a great time. ----- Aidan Chafe is a public school teacher and the author of Short Histories of Light (2018), and the chapbooks Right Hand Hymns and Sharpest Tooth. He lives in Burnaby, BC, and is on twitter @allegorically.  ----- Listen to more episodes at: www.theandrewfrench.com/pagefright 

Hannah MacReady talks about how the heck they decide what should be published. Andrew gets really excited about the names of Hannah's doggos. Everybody leaves smiling. ----- Hannah Macready is an American-Canadian writer who currently lives in Vancouver, BC. Hannah is a recent graduate of the University of Wales Creative Writing program, where she graduated with honours. In 2017 she received the Maurice Hodgson Award for Creative Distinction. Her work has been published in Bandit Fiction (UK) and in two of the Pearls anthologies published by Douglas College.  She's on twitter at @hannahmacready. ----- Listen to more episodes at: www.theandrewfrench.com/pagefright 

A.H. Reaume talks about her novel-in-progress. Andrew slurps tea that she so graciously provided. Everybody has fun.  ------ A .H. Reaume is a writer who swears too much, reads too much, and is currently in too many book clubs (four in total). She has won multiple awards for her feminist activism and is even mentioned in a textbook about Canadian women’s history. Reaume has an MA in Canadian Literature from the University of British Columbia and has been published in the Vancouver Sun, The Globe and Mail, USAToday.com, and Time.com. She lives in Vancouver. ----- Listen to more: www.theandrewfrench.com/pagefright

Shazia Hafiz Ramji wonders whether people write naked or not. Andrew stumbles through the show's first interview. Everybody is happy. ----- Shazia Hafiz Ramji’s first book, Port of Being (Invisible Publishing), received the Robert Kroetsch Award for Innovative Poetry and was chosen by CBC as one of the best Canadian poetry books of 2018.  Her fiction and criticism have appeared in The Humber Literary Review and Quill & Quire, respectively. She held a writing residency with Open Book in the spring of 2019. She lives on unceded Coast Salish land (Vancouver) where works as a publishing consultant and editor for various presses across Canada.