Hello Members and Friends.

Thank you to those of you who took the time to answer our recent generative AI survey. I am busily compiling a report for an upcoming board meeting, and I appreciate your thoughtful comments and observations. Both the Writers’ Federation of Nova Scotia and the PEI Writers’ Guild seek to address this issue, and I’ve appreciated the opportunity to communicate and collaborate. More on this in the coming weeks.

Also, the NB Writing Competition closed on March 31, and now all of your polished manuscripts are being pored over by our judges. The winners will be contacted personally in mid-May, and an accompanying news release will announce the winners to the public shortly thereafter. The winners will have the opportunity to read their pieces and receive their awards on May 30 at the literary soiree during WordSpring. Once again, this event will be hosted by the fabulous and accomplished duo, Martha Vowles and Susan White.

Have you registered for WordSpring?

There are a few rooms left in our Writers’ Federation of New Brunswick room block at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Fredericton, if you think you’d like to stay for the weekend. Deadline to reserve is April 28.

This year, we have a wonderful slate of speakers, as well as our usual open mic on Friday afternoon (come on, don’t be shy – let’s hear your stuff!!), as well as the NB Writing Competition literary soiree and the NB Book Awards.

Special this year – A Pitch the Publisher event will take place Saturday afternoon after lunch, organized by Amanda Evans of Partridge Island Publishing and the Write Cup Bookstore & Café in Saint John. You can sign up for this event, even if you’re not attending any other WordSpring events (but we hope you do!). If you’d like to pitch your latest product to the panel of publishers, contact Amanda Evans at this email: amanda@partridgeislandpublishing.ca

The best part of WordSpring this year is that all the events are in one place, the Crowne Plaza. If you can’t come for the whole weekend, you can sign up to attend just Saturday. This includes our morning address by Mark Leslie Lefebvre, who’s driving down from Ontario to talk about all the various pathways to publishing in the current marketplace. Then enjoy lunch with the crew, participate in Pitch the Publisher, and choose between two other workshops in the afternoon. Then join us for the NB Book Awards in the evening.

But, if you don’t have that much time, or if you only are interested in one or two workshops, you can pay for them à la carte. We really hope you can participate in WordSpring this year – we’d love to see you and hear about your current writing projects.

That’s it for this month. I hope the rising sun and the return of robins is lifting your spirits these days.

WordWorthy:

“When revising, remember to remove anything that takes you away from your central theme. Remove hunks of narrative that would take the reader out of your story. Could be just a sentence, a paragraph, or more. And watch out for clichés! Instead, use a fresh metaphor from your own imagination.“ - Sandra Phinney, from Braiding our Truths, session 2, March 22, 2025.

Until next time, (Can't wait to see you at WordSpring!)

Rhonda

WELCOME NEW MEMBERS

Mark Blagrave is a novelist (and returning member) based in St. Andrews, NB. His latest novel, Felt, is shortlisted for this year’s Mrs. Dunster’s Fiction Award. Welcome, Mark!

Tallis Clarke is a new member from Passekeag, NB, and writes in several genres, including creative non-fiction, editing, fiction, memoir, poetry, songwriting, travel writing. Welcome, Tallis!

Lila Donovan is an artist, writer and qigong teacher from Allison, NB, who loves telling stories with words and images. She is a retired journalist and writer-broadcaster. Her stories focused on politics, feminist issues, climate change and the arts. These days, Lila writes in the genres of journalism, photography, poetry, short stories. Welcome, Lila!

Cheryl Ford is a retired elementary school teacher, an author and artist with an active mixed media art practice. Cheryl’s creative non-fiction novels STILL and STILL in Paintings and Words on order from Amazon. She writes in the genres of creative non-fiction, fiction, historical fiction, illustration, non-fiction, poetry, spiritual, young adult, middle grade, short stories. Welcome, Cheryl!

Heather McBriarty (https://heathermcbriartyauthor.ca) is a returning member who is an author, lecturer and Medical Radiation Technologist. Her love of writing came early in life, but it was the discovery of old family correspondence that led to her first non-fiction book Somewhere in Flanders: Letters from the Front, and a passion for the First World War. Heather is also a contributing reviewer for The Miramichi Reader and has written for [Edit] digital magazine. Heather writes in the genres of blogging, children’s, historical fiction, and non-fiction. Welcome, Heather!

Joan Skinner –We don’t have any details about Joan as yet, but we hope to get to know her at an upcoming event. Welcome, Joan!

Karen Smock- is a writer from St. André, whose first novel Shredded was published under the pen name Karen Avivi. She writes in the young adult genre. Welcome, Karen!

MEMBER NEWS

Pierre Arsenault is pleased to announce his ninth book, which will launch May 20, 2025, his first full dramatic novel. Something Happened in Carlton is a sequel to a novella which was in his short story collection, Sleepless Nights.

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Merlin Star Press, one of New Brunswick's newest publishers, is pleased to announce the launch of their third novel, PUPPET: a novel of suspense by Robert Stutt. Date: Thursday May 8, 2025 6pm to 8pm, at The Cap, 362 Queen St. Fredericton. Check Merlin Star Press social media and https://www.robertstutt.ca for more details.

EVENTS

The League of Canadian Poets invites you to celebrate National Poetry Month this April 2025 with the theme of FAMILY.

Celebrate National Poetry Month 2025 using the theme FAMILY in its many forms: found and chosen family, birth family, and family that defies categorization.

This April, turn to poetry to celebrate, cherish, mourn, critique, and explore the myriad bonds that family forms in our lives. Parents, pets, friendships, soulmates, siblings, plants, and beyond: the League invites you to examine the shape of family in your life now, to witness the intergenerational impact of ancestors, and to consider the role of family in generations to come.

For more information about National Poetry Month, please visit https://poets.ca/npm-mnp.

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In conjunction with National Poetry Month, Hot Bottled Poetry Collective is hosting a Poetry Open Mic on Wednesday, April 16, 2025 at the Write Cup Bookstore Café (in Market Square), in Saint John. The event will start at 6pm and there will be a sign-up sheet available at the event. Suggested theme: Family
Share your poems and celebrate Poetry Month with us. This event is a group effort of the Hot Bottled Poetry Collective and the League Of Canadian Poets. The Facebook event can be found here: https://www.facebook.com/events/446726868529718

The Write Cup Bookstore Café page can be found here: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61569899617725
The Hot Bottled Poetry Collective Facebook page is https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61556594069618
The League of Canadian Poets Facebook page is https://www.facebook.com/canadianpoets

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WFNB members and plenty of other regional writers will be selling their books at the Greater Moncton Book Fair on April 26 from 10 am to 4 pm at the Riverview Lions Club. If you love to read, this is a great opportunity to buy from a local or regional author.

https://gmrdbookfair.blogspot.com/

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An Evening of Poetry in Sackville’s Municipal Council Chambers Tuesday, April 29th, 6:00 pm, 31 Main Street, Sackville, NB

All are invited to an evening of poetry in the Municipal Council Chambers, including readings from local poets, the launch of the second annual Poets of Tantramar chapbook, and the announcement of the winners of Tantramar’s Poetry Contest.

COMPETITIONS

NotaBle Acts seeks entries for 24th annual Province-Wide Playwriting Competition

The NotaBle Acts Theatre Company is seeking submissions for its twenty-fourth annual provincewide playwriting competition. Contest winners will have their work featured as part of the 2025 NotaBle Acts Summer Theatre Festival, to be held in Fredericton, July 23-August 2.

New Brunswick playwrights have the opportunity to submit work in three main categories, one for 7-10 minute short plays, one for 30-60 minute one-act plays, and another for 10-20 minute site-specific plays. Two additional categories of the contest are specifically for young playwrights in New Brunswick Middle and High schools.

Winning playwrights will also receive a cash prize and script mentoring from a professional playwright.

The contest rules and guidelines, as well as instructions on how to submit scripts, are available at www.nbacts.com. Questions about the contest can be directed to lfalken@unb.ca or (506) 458-7406. The contest deadline is May 1st, 2025.

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PEN Canada is pleased to announce that submissions are now open for the 2025 RBC PEN Canada New Voices Award. 

The annual award aims to encourage new writing and provide a space where unpublished writers can submit short stories, creative nonfiction, journalism, and poetry. A jury of distinguished Canadian writers will judge the shortlisted submissions. The winning entry will receive a $3,000 CAD cash prize and mentorship with a Canadian author.  The deadline to submit is Monday May 12, 2025 at 11:59 pm EST.   Submission guidelines can be found on our website here: https://pencanada.ca/news/submissions-open-for-the-2025-rbc-pen-canada-new-voices-award/. 

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The Eighth Annual Pottersfield Prize for Creative Nonfiction

LAST CALL! For the eighth annual prize, Pottersfield Press is again looking for submissions from writers who can provide a manuscript of 30,000 to 150,000 words in any of the following categories: history, memoir, autobiography, biography, literary journalism, political or social commentary, travel writing or virtually any existing or new category that uses the nonfiction medium to tell a story or put forward an idea.

The First Prize winner will receive a contract for the publication of the winning book along with a $1000 advance on 10% royalty for all sales. The Second Prize winner will also see the publication of the book and a $800 advance on 10% royalties.

Deadline is April 30, 2025, but early submissions are encouraged.

Manuscripts can be submitted electronically as a double-spaced basic Word document to:

pottersfieldcreative@gmail.com

including a title page with name, address and email contact.

Entry fee is $25 (includes HST) and can be paid by Interac Transfer (also to pottersfieldcreative@gmail.com), PayPal or by cheque made out to Pottersfield Press mailed to 248 Leslie Road,  East Lawrencetown, NS  B2Z 1T4 Canada after the manuscript has been submitted by email. www.pottersfieldpress.com

Winners will be announced on June 30, 2025. The winners of the Seventh Annual Pottersfield Prize for Creative Nonfiction are co-authors James MacDuff and Mirriam Mweemba in first place for The Illogical Adventure and Matthew R. Anderson in second place for Someone Else’s Saint.

Both books will be published by Pottersfield Press in 2025.

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A friendly reminder that applications for the 2025 Audible Indigenous Writers' Circle close on April 21st!

We've put together a  promotional toolkit to make it as easy as possible to create your social media, email and newsletter content (see attached or access via this link). We’ve also attached a PDF copy of a printable flyer.

Thank you so much for considering supporting the Audible Indigenous Writers Circle. 

READ MORE IN PART 2!