2015 National Finals Host & Judges

Stephanie Bolster

Stephanie Bolster

Born in Vancouver, Stephanie Bolster teaches in and coordinates the creative writing program at Concordia University in Montreal. Her first book, White Stone: The Alice Poems, won the Governor General’s Award and the Gerald Lampert Memorial Award. Her fourth and most recent book of poetry, A Page from the Wonders of Life on Earth, was shortlisted for the Pat Lowther Memorial Award, while an except from her current manuscript was a finalist for the CBC Poetry Prize in 2012.

 

Jeramy Dodds

Jeramy Dodds

Jeramy Dodds is the winner of the 2006 Bronwen Wallace Award and the 2007 CBC Literary Award for poetry. His first collection of poems, Crabwise to the Hounds (Coach House Books, 2008), was shortlisted for the Griffin Poetry Prize and won the Trillium Book Award for poetry. He is a poetry editor at Coach House Books. His most recent work is an English translation of the Old Icelandic Poetic Edda

 

Rita Mestokosho

Rita Mestokosho

Rita Mestokosho was born in 1966 in Ekuanitshit Innu territory where she continues to live today. Her first book of poetry, Eshi Uapataman Nukum (How I perceive life, Grandmother) was published in 1995. It was republished in Sweden four years later. In 2010, Mestokosho’s poetic correspondence with poet Jean Désy was published by Mémoire d’encrier in a book called Uashtessiu  - Lumière d'automne. Rita Mestokosho is a major voice of First Nations poetry. Her latest book, Née de la pluie et de la terre, was published in September 2014 by Éditions Bruno Doucey.

 

Nepveu

Pierre Nepveu

Pierre Nepveu taught literature at Université de Montréal for thirty years. Poet, novelist, and essay writer, Professor Nepveu has published well over a dozen books, including several collections of poetry and essays, three of which earned Governor General’s Literary Awards. He is also the author, with Laurent Mailhot, of La poésie québécoise des origines à nos jours, a much-loved Quebec poetry anthology, which was reprinted in 2007. Pierre Nepveu was involved in collecting the scattered works of poet Gaston Miron and is also the author of Miron’s biography, Gaston Miron. La vie d’un homme, published in 2011. Pierre Nepveu has received both the Athanase-David prize in Quebec and the Order of Canada for his life’s work. 

 

Jeanne Painchaud

Jeanne Painchaud

Poet, artist, creator of literary projects, and leader of writing workshops, Jeanne Painchaud (MA in literature, Université de Québec à Montréal) has spent the last 20 years fascinated by haikus and by teaching poetry to young people. Jeanne Painchaud has published one children’s book, six collections of poetry and prose, the most recent of which was published in Paris, and been a member of a score of artists’ collectives. She has led several projects using unusual ways to raise awareness about literature, including permanent and transitory exhibits, and poetry on sidewalks, among others. In 2013, Painchaud won first prize in the international stream of the haiku competition run by Mainichi Shimbun, Tokyo’s famous daily newspaper. Jeanne Painchaud has been a guest at literary events in the United States, France, Japan, and Senegal. She lives in Montreal.

 

Sina Queyras

Sina Queyras

Born in Manitoba, Sina Queyras grew up on the road in western Canada. She’s written one novel, a book of essays, six books of poetry and edited an anthology of Canadian poetry. She has won the Pat Lowther Award, the Lambda Literary Award, and the A.M. Klein Prize for Poetry. In 2005, Queyras founded Lemon Hound, an influential literary journal. She lives in Montreal and works at Concordia University.  

 

Host

Johanne Blais

Johanne Blais

Johanne Blais is a word maven. She is a trained translator as well as a professor of writing and grammar, a public speaker, and a columnist. Perfectly bilingual and a passionate admirer of the languages of both Shakespeare and Molière, Johanne Blais has spent more than 16 years sharing her passion each week with thousands of Canadians as CBC Radio C’est la vie’s “Word Lady,” through her language segment “Word of the Week.” Johanne Blais’s sparkle and humour combine with her gift for explaining words in their individual daily context. She teaches with great warmth and a smile in her voice. Her love for French has also led her to write engaging columns on the breadth and variety of French as it is spoken in Canada. Johanne Blais is one of Canada’s best-loved voices, listened to with pleasure across the country. 

 

 

English
Start here: