Concordia claims two of three poetry prize contenders
Of the three Canadian hopefuls short-listed for the Griffin Poetry Prize, one studied at Concordia, and another spent a year here as a scholar in residence.
Suzanne Buffam completed her MA in Creative Writing at Concordia in 2003. Some of the poems that appear in her Griffin-nominated book, The Irrationalist (House of Anansi 2010), first appeared in a chapbook published in 2003 by Delirium Press, a collective micro-press that was run by then Concordia MA students Heather Jessup and Kate Hall (whose first poetry collection, The Certainty Dream, was nominated for the Griffin prize last year).
John Steffler, who has been nominated for Lookout (McClelland & Stewart 2010), served as scholar in residence in the English Department in 2000 and then returned as a visiting professor, teaching poetry workshops and supervising creative writing theses here from 2006 to 2008.
In response to this set of nominations, and the recent Giller Prize win of creative writing alumna Johanna Skibsrud, English Department chair Jason Camlot remarked, “the numerous awards and prize nominations our graduates have received recently underscore how our MA program in Creative Writing produces thoughtful, well-read writers who are attentive to their craft and devoted to writing as a vocation. While we are not surprised at these accomplishments, we are very proud of them.”
The Griffin Trust for Excellence in Poetry was founded by Scott Griffin in 2000. Every year one international and one Canadian winner each receive $65,000, as determined by a trio of writers who read 450 books of poetry. All seven international and Canadian finalists will read from their work in Toronto on May 31. The winner will be announced the next night.
Related links:
• Concordia Department of English
• Griffin Trust for Excellence in Poetry