Chris Fisher has published three short story collections. The most recent is Third and Long, was published by Coteau Books in 2004. Voices in the Wilderness was published by Hagios Press in 1999 and Sun Angel, which won the inaugural Saskatchewan Book Awards’ Publishers Prize, was published by Coteau Books in 1992. His short stories were also featured in Oberon’s Coming Attractions series. Chris has been involved with the Banff Centre’s Wired Writing Studio for the past eleven years, and their Emerging Aboriginal Writers program for the past 2 years. He has been involved with the Creating in the Qu’Appelle student writing workshop at Dallas Valley for the past five years. He spent the 2011 winter semester as Lumsden High School’s writer in residence.
Facilitator - Moose Jaw Teen Writing Experience
Sheena Koops teaches and writes in the beautiful and historic Qu’Appelle Valley. Voice of the Valley, her first novel, was published in 2006 with Orca Book Publishers. The sequel is nearing completion with support from a Canada Council Grant. Sheena is neck deep in two teen novels, a collection of poetry, songwriting, gigging, and freelancing. Check out Sheena’s year-long adventure to walk to and from school, “as long as the busses are running.” While walking, she is meditating on treaty teachings, blogging and posting pictures along the way. www.treatywalks.blogspot.com Sheena has worked in urban, First Nation and rural Saskatchewan within the private, band, public and community schools. In 1989 Sheena married fellow educator, Michael, and their favourite accomplishments are three girls: Victoria, Moira, and Arwen.
Guest Writer - Regina-Teen Writing Experience
Lynda Monahan is the author of two collections of poetry, A Slow Dance in the Flames and What My Body Knows, both published by Coteau Books. Her work has been published in a number of Canadian literary magazines and broadcast nationally on CBC radio. She has recently completed a third manuscript Red Boots in the Snow. Lynda has taught creative writing at SIAST Woodlands campus for the past several years and facilitates a variety of writing workshops for schools and organizations across the province. She compiled and edited Second Chances: The Stories of Acquired Brain Injury Survivors for the Saskatchewan Acquired Brain Injury Association. She was the managing editor of Spring Volume IV, a mentor in the Artsmart Youth Mentorship program and was the facilitator for the Sage Hill Teen Writing Experience in Saskatoon this past summer. Most recently, she was writer-in-residence at Balfour Collegiate in Regina.
Guest Writer - Prince Albert Teen Writing Experience
Adam Pottle is a Saskatoon writer who writes in a variety of forms. His first book, a volume of poetry called Beautiful Mutants, was published in April 2011. His first novel, a Nazi Germany-era narrative called Smoke, will be published in fall 2012, and he is currently editing a play that he hopes will one day be produced. When he's not writing, Pottle is either working on his PhD in English or playing hockey with anyone who'll get out of bed.
Guest Writer - Saskatoon Teen Writing Experience
Kelly-Anne Riess is the author of the bestselling Saskatchewan Book of Everything and the forthcoming children’s picture book I Love Saskatchewan. Her poetry collection To End a Conversation was featured on CBC and The Writer’s Almanac with Garrison Keillor. Her poetry has also appeared in a number of Canadian journals, including Descant, Grain and the Windsor Review. Her short story, “Roommates,” was anthologized in Writing Without Direction, and as a filmmaker she has worked on documentaries that have aired worldwide on networks such as A&E Biography and History Television. And her short films have screened at festivals across Canada. A freelance journalist, her work has appeared in such publications as the Globe and Mail and Canadian Geographic. Recently, she won the Outstanding Young Alumni Award from the University of Saskatchewan and was the CTV National Fellow at the Banff World Media Festival. Riess is also a two-time alumnus of the Sage Hill Teen Writing Experience.
Guest Writer - Regina-Teen Writing Experience
Leona Theis writes novels, short stories and creative nonfiction. She tries to craft stories that are funny, serious and absorbing all in the same package. Her story collection Sightlines (Coteau, 2000) won two Saskatchewan Book Awards. Prior to the publication of her novel The Art of Salvage (Coteau, 2006), novella-length excerpts were shortlisted for awards by the Malahat Review and the Writers’ Federation of New Brunswick. Her work has won a number of awards and appeared in literary magazines across Canada. RGB Productions made a short film based on her story “The Stuff that Makes You Lift Cars”. Leona’s work has been shortlisted four times for the CBC Literary Award, which she won in 2007 for creative nonfiction. Recently her anti-memoir Unsupervised Swimming won second place in the John V. Hicks long manuscript competition. She is the creator of the meta-blog Always Under Revision, in which a character escapes from a novel-in-progress to say a few words of her own. The blog is a peep-show into the writing process. Leona has worked in the literary community on boards and committees and as a mentor, manuscript reader for grain magazine and Coteau Books, jury member, writer in residence and workshop leader.
Guest Writer - Saskatoon Teen Writing Experience