Photo credit
Richard Wills

Biography

Carol-Ann Hoyte writes poetry for young people. Two of her favourite ways of enjoying poetry are reading novels written in free verse on her own and to students and sharing and writing riddle poems with kids. Carol-Ann has featured the work of poets from around the world in two self-published collections: the award-winning And the Crowd Goes Wild!: A Global Gathering of Sports Poems and Dear Tomato: An International Crop of Food and Agriculture Poems. Scottish poets Carol Ann Duffy and Jackie Kay, both whom she has had the opportunity to meet, are among her greatest poetic inspirations. One day, Carol-Ann hopes to realize her dream of publishing an international poetry magazine for children. Beyond poetry, Carol-Ann has a professional and personal interest in children's literature. She worked as a librarian at Selwyn House School from 2007 to 2022. After a 20-year relationship with the Canadian Children's Book Centre, Carol-Ann joined its team as program and events coordinator in June 2022.

 

Micro-interview

Did you read poetry when you were in high school? Is there a particular poem that you loved when you were a teenager?

Since I did not read poetry when I was in high school, there isn't a particular poem that I loved when I was a teenager.

When did you first start writing poetry? And then when did you start thinking of yourself as a poet?

It was 2008 when I first started writing poetry and it was as of then that I started thinking of myself as a poet.

What do you think a poet’s “job” is?

A poet's job is to inspire others to try their hand at poetry, to discover the extraordinary in the ordinary, to see commonplace elements with fresh eyes, to offer accessible entry points into poetry, to view how poetry is present, relevant, and significant in everyday life, and to illustrate how we all can connect to poetry on some level.

If you had to choose one poem to memorize from our anthology, which one would it be?

"Praise the Rain" by Joy Harjo, who was named the U.S. Poet Laureate in June 2019.

Publications

Poem title(s)
"Water Can Be a..."
Title
One Minute Till Bedtime
Publisher
Little, Brown
Editors
Kenn Nesbitt
Date
Fall 2016
Publication type
Anthology
Poem title(s)
"Mishumaa Saba (Seven Candles)"
Title
​The Poetry Friday Anthology for Celebrations
Publisher
Pomelo Books
Editors
Sylvia Vardell and Janet Wong
Date
April 2015
Publication type
Anthology
Poem title(s)
"It Takes a Friend"
Title
School Magazine Australia's Blast Off
Publisher
Department of Education of New South Wales
Editors
Alan Edwards
Date
February 2012
Publication type
Periodical/Magazine
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