Jan/ Feb/ Mar 2013 Newsletter of the North Shore Writers’ Association Linking North Shore Writers since 1993

What’s Coming Up!Monday, January 21

J J Lee7:00 pm

Monday, February 18Genni Gunn

7:00 pm

Monday, March18Daphne Bramham

7:00 pm

All meetings are held at theCapilano Public Libraryin the Potlatch Room.

Edgemont Village7:00 pm

A $5.00 donation is required at the door for non-members.

See page seven for further information on these speakers.

Explore our website at:www.nswriters.org

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The President’s MessageThank you for accepting me as your president. 2012 ended like the pages of a classic novel: The end of the world that does not happen, but caused many to set up homes in holes that they dug in the earth to hide out until the world comes back to normal - if it does. The rapture expected, like Robert A. Heinlein’s - Job, A Comedy Of Justice, turned out not to have happened at least to those of us aware that it hasn’t. (Maybe the rapture happened for some, but we won’t know about it until we begin to hear about missing people in June.) I am looking forward to an explosively creative 2013. Creative inspiration drawn from daily events, tragic and comedic. I am looking forward to it all. Drop by Dare To Be Heard, our Literary Cafe and share your dew drops of inspiration. Organized by Elaine Berg, Dare gives us the opportunity to hear out loud, our written words. Set your words free at Dare To Be Heard.

Our website’s domain name has changed to www.nswriters.org from www.nswriters.bc.ca. Please use the new domain name in your cor-respondence and visit it for updates and information. I would like to increase our exposure to the world as writers. Any new information you have about your doings please send to me at members@nswriters.org and I will upload it into the website. To become a member, and to purchase your copy our latest Anthology, contact Gerhard Winkler at treasurer@nswriters.org.

The line-up for our upcoming speaker list is quite fabulous, thanks to all who worked so tirelessly to get our speakers. Our first speaker in January, is JJ Lee, whose book, Measure of a Man: A Father, A Son And A Suit was short-listed for the Governor-General’s award for Literary Non-Fiction and long-listed for the Charles Taylor Prize for Literary Non-Fiction for 2011. Join us in welcoming our guests. Free to members and $5.00 to guests.

I invite you to read obscure books, books that never made it onto the best seller lists, books with strange titles and peculiar stories. You never know, you might be supporting an emerging writer from The North Shore Writers’ Association.

Sonia Nadina Haynes.

Write On!

This is a sorry story.

De dog caught in de fog on de bog:

de rogue, full o’ grog, under de log:

De-rog-a-tory.

A lamb comes in—rams in really,

sit-ten with ill-fit-ten mit-tens,

They, together, at their wit’s end:

de dog and de lamb; jammin’;

Nit-wit sta-mi-na.

Joan (do not condone) Box-it-all-up

“It’s elementary, my dear friends,” said The Great Detective. “Anyone can come to the same conclusions if they but think instead of just look. See his shoes. Old leather, scuffed, but the heels and soles barely worn, which shows a lack of exercise, so no stamina, hence he couldn’t get away. The piece of paper, clutched in his curled fingers, with just two words on it. ‘You Nitwit’. Such derogatory namecalling can come only from an intimate family mem-ber. Of course his wife killed him!

Cathy Scrimshaw

(Love this one - Editor)

derogatory de·rog·a·to·ry

Adjective: Showing a critical or disrespectful attitude.

Instead of the usual cliché of ‘stitch and bitch,’ an eclectic gaggle of knitters decided to call ourselves ‘nitwits,’ or in our vernacular: knit-wits. We knit prolifically and we’re witty beyond words, so it seemed to be a perfect group moniker. How-ever, who knew that only those of us with the toughest hides would have the stamina to withstand the derogatory comments that came along with our new tag line? Fool, ninny, numskull, simpleton, booby, blockhead; that’s what some thought of us. But we didn’t give a whit. We pick up our needles and wine and we knit!

(So there! Editor)

Karen Dodd

NITWIT

For our next 100-word Challenge,we challenge you to use these three

words:

Finalize, spleuchan and desideratum.

Send your 100-word masterpieces to the

editor before March 15th, 2013 and they will be included in the

spring Newsletter.

The one-hundred word

Challenge!Write one hundred words or less and

incorporate these three words:

nitwit, stamina and derogatory.

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Perhaps it’s just another element of our culture of instant gratification. But don’t you find it very difficult to compliment someone for his stami-na without it appearing derogatory? I mean, unless we choose our words perfectly, we take the risk of imply-ing that we really think the person is … well, a nitwit for finishing that mountain. Or for avoiding all the contrivances of the Christmas season by never participating in it. You know, some people successfully avoid Christmas year after year. No gifts, no greetings, and no goodwill. Now, that must take stamina!

David Crawley

The nitwit is my role model. He must be revered not ridiculed, ad-mired not distained. With a broad smile and indefatigable optimism the nitwit supplies simple solu-tions to complex problems. Against a stream of negative feedback he demonstrates stamina. The mean-est comments never penetrate his core or deflate his enthusiasm. He is consistently kind and incapable of constructing the downfall of others. Vengeance never enters his mind. He sees himself spreading only reason and goodness in the world. The title of nitwit is well earned and must never be seen as derogatory.

Doug MacLeod

stamina

“There she goes, again.”“Who?”“You know the little twit over there, who does she think she is anyway?”“Look, there are a lot of people over there, which one do you mean?”“You know, the one in the fancy de-signer exercise outfit.”“I still don’t know who you mean, and I’m getting tired of this conver-sation!”“Don’t be a nitwit! You know who I mean - the little brunette! Jumpin’ around putt’n us to shame! Where does she get all that stamina any-ways?”“You mean the woman in the pink and grey outfit?”“Yeah.”“She is my sister-in-law. And I don’t appreciate your derogatory com-ments. She has four children and is just recovering from cancer! I for one, am proud of her.”“Ah, Oh.”

Sonia Nadina Haynes

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They called him all manner of disparaging, derogatory names. He was The Nitwit. They said he would never amount to anything. In some ways the universal. They were right about Albert. Initially he did not achieve his goal of an academic position. He was said to have failed at mathematics, which cemented their estimations of him. But they forgot to account for his stamina, and willingness to endure while he settled into the seemingly unde-manding work of the patent office. His achievements earned him the right to be known only by his other name, Einstein.

Karen Bower

Prizes will be presented during the

2013 North Shore Writer’s Festival.

April 19-20th 2013

at the District of North Vancouver

Lynn Valley Main Library located at 1277 Lynn Valley

Road, North Vancouver.

Visit the website at: www.northshorewritersfestival.com

All prize winning entries will be published in the

2013 NSWA Anthology.

Blind judging will be in effect.

Fee per entry:NSWA Members: $15

Non-members: $20

Make cheques/money orders payable to:

The North Shore Writer’s Association

Mailing Address:

NSWA 2013 Writing Contest P.O. Box 422 1641 Lonsdale Avenue North Vancouver B.C. V7M 2J5

Submission Requirements

- No email submissions. - Separate cover page with your name, address, telephone num-ber, email address & titles of your entries. - Do not show your name any-where on your manuscript. - Entry must be double spaced for prose, single spaced for poetry. - Use Roman font, with 12 point type on letter-size, white paper. - Submit unpublished material only. - Keep a copy for yourself. - Manuscripts will not be returned.

Announcement of Winners

Winners will be notified by email on a date, not yet decided.

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The NSWA gratefully acknowledges the

financial support of the City of North Vancouver and

the District of North Vancouver, and through the North Vancou-

ver office of Cultural Affairs.

New Words that have entered our pysche whether we like it or not:

Frankinstorm... Carmageddon...Sexting...And my favourite: Obamacare.

This one at least has the hint of promise and hope.

Each third Monday of the month, the NSWA meets at the Capilano Public Library in Edgemont Village, in North Vancouver, for an evening of intellectual stimulation, an ex-change of writerly information and informative guests who share with us their writing experiences.

Members: Free!Non-members: $5.

Here is our three-month lineup of who’s coming:

JJ LeeMonday, January 21, 2013

7:00 pm

Come join us to hear JJ speak of his journey through memory and the publication process.

Fashion columnist for the Vancou-ver Sun and CBC Radio, JJ Lee is the author of “Measure of a Man: A Father, A Son and A Suit”, which was short-listed for the Governor-General’s award for Literary Non-Fiction and long-listed for the Charles Taylor Prize for Literary Non-Fiction for 2011.

This memoir has been called, “an exquisite book,” by Maclean’s magazine and “a striking and accomplished blend of humour, information and pathos . . .” by the National Post.

Genni GunnMonday, February 18th, 2013

7:00 pm

Genni Gunn’s nine books include three novels – Solitaria (longlisted for the Giller Prize), Tracing Iris and Thrice Upon a Time (finalist for the Commonwealth Prize); two story collections – Hungers and On the Road; two poetry collections – Faceless and Mating in Captiv-ity; and two poetry collections by Dacia Maraini in translation De-vour Me Too, and Travelling in the Gait of a Fox. Her opera Alternate Visions (music by John Oliver) was produced in Montreal in 2007. The Riverbank, a film based on her novel, Tracing Iris, recently opened the Sudbury International Film Festival. Her works have been translated into several languages, and have been finalists for the Commonwealth Prize, the Gerald Lampert Poetry Award, the John Glassco Translation award, and the Premio Internationale Diego Valeri for Translation. She lives in Vancouver.

Daphne BramhamMonday, March 18th, 2013

7:00 pm

Daphne Bramham has been a columnist at The Vancouver Sun since 2000. She won the National Newspaper Award for column writing in June 2005. Judges said she “cuts away misconceptions and misinformation on a wide-range of issues... Her clear thinking shines like a laser in searching out logical inconsistencies.”

She was named Commentator of the Year Award by the Jack Webster Foundation in October 2005 and was honoured by the non-profit group Beyond Borders in 2004 for a continuing series of columns on the polygamous community of Bountiful, B.C. from the non-profit group Beyond Borders.

In 2001, she was named Journalist of the Year for her series on farmed animals at the Animal Rights 2001 in Washington, D.C., the largest annual gathering of animal rights advocates. That series also received a commendation from the Ark Trust.

Read Bramham’s blog:Think Tank.

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Ursula Forrestal 1933 - 2012

We bid a fond farewell to one of our own.

With sad hearts we say goodbye.

“Later... I sought out the rose-mary bush that grows with wild profusion within this natural haven. I broke off a branch; rosemary is forfor remembrance.”

This is a quote from Ursula’s story “Food for Thought in a Garden.”published in the 2008, NSWA an-thology. It’s appropriate that I should come across this piece when I was perusing her many works.Her writing’s said it all. What a kind person she was. What a generous friend she was, her keen sense of hu-mour, her loving devotion and pride in her family.

When we spent time together in a critique group her comments were always seasoned with salt making them easy to digest.

I remember how excited and happy she was the night we launched her book “Between Friends,” at the Molly Nye House. It brings tears to my eyes when I read the inscrip-tion she signed for me, “For Elaine, in friendship and with very best wishes.” Ursula was my friend for many years. I miss her and whenever I see rosemary I will remember her.

Elaine Eaton Berg

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Ursula had been on the executive for several years before I came along, so I always respected her viewpoint and advice. In addition to being helpful and cooperative, Ursula always wore a smile when we met, whether it was at Dare to be Heard, the monthly meetings at the library or Silk Purse, or at community social events. A talented spinner of tales herself, she was quick to help other writers, and in every single instance that I asked her to do something for me the answer was always a quick and enthusiastic, “yes, of course!” Her own stories and poems, many of them prize winners, were beautifully written, evocative and crafted with obvious love for her subjects. I’m sure she worked hard on her pieces, but with the smoothly flowing words she made it look effortless.

It was an honour to have known Ursula and a greater honour to have had the chance to serve on the ex-ecutive with her. I’ll miss her.

Cathy Scrimshaw, Past President

In Her Own Words

“My passion for writing stems from the lengthy letters I wrote home, while I was a young girl at boarding school in England. The habit contin-ued when years later I immigrated to Canada.”

Ursula wrote of growing up at “Up-meads” her family home in England. Her “home on the hill”. Her “Rock of Gibraltar”. She lovingly described its grassy slopes, lavender bushes, willow trees and flower strewn rug-ged rockery where as children she, her brother and sister, “played make believe”. There were rambling roses down the winding driveway, a wish-ing well on the grounds and stone lions guarded the steps to the sunken garden. As children they “rode”

those lions. Around the garden “clumps of lavender, which grew like Topsy, could be seen springing be-tween the cracks of paving stones on the terrace of our country home”.

Ursula wrote, “When I think about my early years I realize that the seed of giving was planted and flowered in a childhood full of happiness and contentment.”

The large beautiful hallway of “Upmeads” had heavy oak beams, an imposing wooden staircase and an oak handrail that the children would slide down. A carved wooden settle, Earl of Shrewsbury chair and antique horse brasses made a perfect theatre for their Christmas Pageant. At Christmas they sang carols door to door for five nights, taking turns to carry an antique brass lantern her father had bought at an estate sale years before. Then they returned home for their pageant in the large hall.

Ursula attended a boarding school for girls and wrote “lengthy” letters home. When home for the holi-days, during the war, the children often had to be herded into a cup-board under the stairs whenever the siren sounded and had to lie in that cramped space, “like sardines, waiting for the rise and fall of the all clear signal.”

Their father “pounded the pave-ments in his air raid police uniform” warning people and helping them. As children they loved to try on his helmet.

In May 1945, in the girl’s Common Room at school, Miss Bush told them to listen carefully to the radio...the war was over. The girls thought that now there would be no more rations and that they would have lots of eggs and butter and chocolate...hurrah!

Years later Ursula emigrated to Can-ada on board an “Empress” ocean liner. Her mother on a visit once brought a cutting from the lavender bushes at home in Upmeads. It grew into a bush beneath her sitting room window in Canada. Later her own daughter took a cutting that became a bush in her garden. Lavender made Ursula think of long ago pleas-ures, helped her “peek into a bag of memories”.

Of her writing she wrote: “I enjoy mixing fact with fiction and enjoy writing short stories in the crea-tive non fiction genre. The stories themselves are an eclectic mix of my own experiences along with those of friends.”

Ursula, an award winning writer, contributed to nine North Shore anthologies as well as many other publications in the wider commu-nity. She was passionate, enthusias-tic, funny, willing to try new ideas and approaches, always wanting to improve her writing and above all so interested in helping others.Ursula wrote that she derived inspi-ration from family and friends and that her self published book “Be-tween Friends” is testament to that.

Ursula was our friend and archivist. She has left us all with a treasure trove of memories and an archive of our own NSWA history.

She wrote: “when memory dies vision can rekindle all those long ago times for within a faded photo’s depth there lays a treasure- trove of memories...a lifetime of remem-brance to treasure and enjoy.”

Joyce Goodwin

Quotations and reminiscences are fragments from Lynn Valley Literary

Society and North Shore Writer’s Association Anthologies.

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Our Executive always reminds me of a cocktail party. So I thought I would give you some cocktail-party quotes:

If you were to ask me if I’d ever had the bad luck to miss my daily cocktail, I’d have to say that I doubt it; where certain things are concerned, I plan ahead.

Luis Bunuel

Cocktail music is accepted as audible wallpaper.

Alistair Cooke

But I have had to give up certain things in my life. One is shopping. Two is lunch with the girls. Three is cocktail parties, and four is studying my lines.

Joan Collins

Writing a novel is not method acting and I find it easy to step out of it at cocktail hour.

Bret Easton Ellis

I don’t look like someone who leans on a mantelpiece with a cocktail in my hand, you know.

Charles Bronson

Our profession is very much like go-ing to a cocktail party, you check out the guest list.

Robert Stack

And in the ‘50’s everybody went to a psychiatrist because if you didn’t, you’d have nothing to talk about at cocktail parties.

Rod Steiger

The Executive

President Sonia Nadina HaynesPast President Cathy ScrimshawVice President Moira LeonaWebmaster Sonia Nadina Haynes Moira LeonaNewsletter Editor Moira LeonaTreasurer Gerhard Winkler Archivist OpenSecretary Joan Boxall Speaker Co-ordinator OpenContest Coordinator Marie SadroMollie Nye House OpenOpen Mic Coodinator Elaine Berg Public Relations OpenMembers at Large Joyce Goodwin Karen Bower Dorothy E. Gould Andrea Winterbottom Carl Hunter

And when in doubt, or if you have space, you can always quote

MarkTwain:

Only one thing is impossible for God: To find any sense in any copyright law on the planet.

Age is an issue of mind over matter. If you don’t mind, it doesn’t matter.

Get your facts first, then you can distort them as you please.

Forgiveness is the fragrance that the violet sheds on the heel that has crushed it.

Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see.

How to enter:1. Fill out our paper entry form and mail us your manuscript.2. Submit online: please note that a small charge applies to online entries to offset the fee charged by Submittable; also note that Submit-table charges in USD for:Canadian entries, US entriesInternational entries, Additional entries.

Poetry ContestDeadline: January 25, 2013Prize: $1000 grand prize, $300 runner-up, $200 2nd runner-up

Judge: Rhea TregebovEntry fee: $35 entries (up to three poems may be submitted with each entry. Each entry includes a one-year subscription or extension.Additional entry: $5 each poem

How to enter:1. Fill out our paper entry form and mail us your manuscript.2. Submit online: please note that a small charge applies to online entries to offset the fee charged by Submittable; also note that Submit-table charges in USD for:Canadian entries, US entriesInternational entries, Additional entries. ANNUAL EARLE BIRNEY PRIZE FOR POETRY

An annual prize of $500 is awarded by the outgoing Poetry Editor to an outstanding poetry contributor published in PRISM international. Enter by regular submission only: no fee required.

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Contests

PRISM has a total of three contests: the Literary Non-Fiction, Short Fiction, and Poetry contests, open to all, and the Earle Birney Prize for Poetry, presented to one outstanding poet published in the magazine.

All contests: Each entry includes a one-year subscription or subscription extension for PRISM international, beginning with the contest issue (Spring 2013 for Non-Fiction and Summer 2013 for Fiction/Poetry).

All 1st prize winners will be pub-lished in PRISM and runners-up will be published at the discretion of the editors. All other entries will be considered for publication as regular submissions (for the possi-bility of publication in other issues of PRISM).

Please see below for details on each contest. Before you submit your entry, make sure you check out the beautifully-worded fine print (found on the paper entry form and on the online submission system)

If you have any questions, please contact:

prismwritingcontest@gmail.com.

Short Fiction ContestDeadline: January 25, 2013Prize: $2000 grand prize, $300 runner-up, $200 2nd runner-up

Judge: Annabel LyonEntry fee: $35 Additional entry: $5 each pieceMax. word count: 6000

Writers’ Association Presents…

Dare to be Heard Literary Cafe!

Hosted by Elaine Berg, Dare is our Open Mike where writers of all ilks

can read their work in an atmosphere of comfort and support from other local

writers and interested listeners.

Everyone is welcome!

7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.First Wednesday of the month -

September to November, February to June.

Enjoy a refreshment, sit or stand and read your poetry,

short fiction or non-fiction, on the first Wednesday of the month (See above for dates).

Open and Free to members and non-members.

“The days of public stoning are long over. Daring to be heard, ulti-

mately is something great you do for yourself.

It’s giving your poor, withered soul some fresh air and sunshine.

It becomes your chance to fly.”

from How Much Joy Can You Stand,

by Suzanne Falter-Barns

Your 2013 Writerly Forecasts

Aries Writers born under Aries are adventurous, strong and able to bounce back easily. Send out hundreds of queries, because you can handle rejection! Your hopeful nature will keep you upbeat until your submission is accepted.

TaurusSometimes regarded as sulky, those born under the sign of the bull just like to keep to themselves and work away until their projects are perfect. Keep working, don’t complain, and success will arrive.

Gemini Talented, curious and like the wind, always on the move, why not try travel writing? Indulge that urge to dart back and forth, and then put down roots at your desk and write about all those interesting places you’ve visited!

Cancer

Influenced by the moon, Canceri-ans are a mass of contradictions. You crave security and reassurance but can go through many phases over time. Try to settle down to your desk! Cancerians arenurturing, so how about writing a counselling column?

Leo

The fiery lion is charismatic and positive, friendly and adventurous. Another travel writer? Stylish good humoured Leos are well suited to self-promotion, so get out there and shine on those talk shows! Just remember to take your book.

VirgoVirgos are compassionate and caring, and make love a priority. Content to stay in the background for the good of others, why not try writing feel-good romances this year? You’ll make lots of readers happy and the pay’s not bad either!

LibraHappy go lucky, Librans often have a hidden life going on deep inside them that others can’t fathom. Use this inner role playing to fire up your imagination and see where it takes you this year.

ScorpioReputed to be the wisest and most powerful of the zodiac signs, Scor-pios often know all the answers, so put this great talent to use writing educational tracts and throw light on those subjects that befuddle the rest of us.

SagittariusEternally optimistic, Sagittarians always aim their sights high and are certain of success. So get out

that literary gem tucked away in a drawer, and get back to work on it! It’s certain to be a hit.

CapricornCautious and conservative, these people are hard workers and willing to spend the time and effort to climb to the top. Not put off by challenges or deadlines, people born under the sign of the goat keep their eyes on the prize. Your book launch is inevitable!

Aquarius

Aquarians are trendsetters, innova-tive and mysterious leaders of our march into the future. You think differently than others - could a career in sci-fi novels be in your future?

PiscesTalented, alluring and often confused; strongly represented in groups of millionaire business people and also prison populations, writers born under this sign have an inner fantasy life that gives them a head start on creating profitable fiction. So take that skill and run with it!

Thanks to Cathy Scrimshaw who looked into her crystal ball,

drank a few cups of coffee, took a sip of scotch and said,

“Okay, what’s happening this year?”

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Last year the North Shore Writer’s Festival was so successful that April 2013’s event has been expanded to include Friday evening as well as all day Saturday.

Once again the NSWA will start Saturday off with a panel of writers who will spill the goods on what to expect once that precious project, the first finished book, is either self-pub-lished and for sale on the Internet, or picked up by a traditional publishing house for the journey from the edi-tor’s desk to the bookstore shelves. Guiding us along

this journey, speaking from direct personal experience,will be Maggie Bolitho, Mar-tin Crosbie, Lynn Crymble, Sonia Haynes and Sylvia Taylor. Between them, these five successfully-published writers have experience in the spheres of traditional publishing, self-publishing, editing and the important, and often overlooked, fine art of sales and self-promotion in to-day’s hyper-competitive literary marketplace. Karen Bower is again stepping up to the podium to moderate the discussion.

This event is a must for anyone with a manuscript either in the works or ready to go, or for anyone who just wants to learn more about the world of publish-ing, so put it on your calen-dar, and come join the fun.

Lynn Valley Main Library,

1277 Lynn Valley Road, North VancouverFor more info see

www.northshorewriters

festival.com

oooThe

The 14th Annual North Shore Writers Festivalat the Lynn Valley Public Library,

Friday, April 19th and Saturday, April 20th.Don’t miss this exciting event.

Mark your calendars!

The Last Page Cathy Scrimshaw

We take a lot for granted as we go through life. That’s because it’s easier to just accept whatever is happening around us, good, bad, or indifferent, than it is to have a close look at it and think about what effect it’s having on us and the people around us. So now, I want to take a good, close look at something that we’re already beginning to take for granted, even though we shouldn’t.

It’s the Local Authors Series at the North Vancouver City Library, the brainchild of Adult Fiction Librarian Heidi Schiller.

Heidi started her working life as a journalist for a small community newspaper in Bellingham, Washington, writing a business column. After travelling with a friend for six months, she realized journalism was no longer for her, and began to think about her Plan B, becoming a librarian like both parents were, which meant going back to school. I asked her how she ended up north of the 49th. The answer should not come as a surprise to anyone who’s ever asked anyone else why they moved to Vancouver. While pondering her next life move, Heidi came here for a visit on a bright, sunny July day, and, of course, fell in love with our west coast paradise. It was an easy decision to come study here, she says. A degree in librarianship at UBC was followed in quick succession by her current job at the North Vancouver City Library.

Heidi describes it as her dream position: great job, a supportive team of colleagues, an innovative boss, a

wonderful library - all of which is excellent for this writer to hear!

We should be thankful she didn’t come to visit on a windy, sleeting, depression-inducing November weekend, when native Vancouverites huddle in coffee shops sipping lattes, complaining about the weather and fantasizing about tropical escapes and nobody dreams about moving to the wet coast. Because now that she’s here, Heidi has been instrumental in bringing readers out of those coffee shops and back into the libraries to celebrate writers, and, in the case of the Local Authors Series, specifically to help celebrate and support local writers, which is, of course, the entire reason for existence of the North Shore Writer’s Association.

Heidi believes in collaboration. More people mean more ideas and more sharing of the workload. Everyone wins. And in our technological age, she says, libraries are redefining themselves. They’ve always been important, as a collection of intellec-tual knowledge, culture and a source of learning for all, especially those who could not afford books or higher education. They’ve also been im-portant as a refuge, a place of quiet and contemplation. But they are no longer simply a silent monument to the written word. Libraries are becoming dynamic entities in their own right. The modern library, Heidi says, is still a repository of informa-tion and a refuge for readers, but in addition, it is a venue where the community can come to connect, engage, interact and share. And the Local Authors Series is but one of the ways Heidi and her colleagues

are reaching out and inviting us all to be an active part of this renewed, exciting institution. It was an easy decision to invite the NSWA to be involved, she says; partnering with non-profit volunteer associations like ours is one of the best ways to bring the community into the library for the benefit of all. So far, the Local Authors Series has seen an interest-ing and varied group of authors come to speak, a real testament to the richness of the literary scene here on the North Shore and in the GVRD.

And the future? Heidi sees no end of possibilities, and certainly no short-age of talented, accomplished local writers. She and the other librarians will continue to experiment and refine, to ask for feedback from the community and tweak as necessary, and all of us, readers and writers alike, will continue to benefit. How lucky for us that the sun shone that July day!

Heidi Schiller,our lovely librarian at the

North Vancouver City Library, reading from one of her

favourite books.12