April 26, 2010

GLEN SORESTAD

Glen Sorestad is a longtime Saskatoon poet, author of 18 poetry books, a Life Member of the League of Canadian Poets and Saskatchewan’s first Poet Laureate(2000-2004).

His poems have appeared in over 50 anthologies and textbooks, as well as countless literary magazines and journals; his poems have been translated into a half-dozen languages and have been read on national radio in Norway and Slovenia, as well as Canada. He has given public readings of his poetry in every province of Canada, in 17 states, as well as in France, Norway, Finland and Slovenia. His latest collection is What We Miss.

LORI CAYER

Born in Saskatchewan in 1961, Lori Cayer has made Manitoba her home since 1969. Her second volume of poetry Attenuations of Force is released by Frontenac House, 2010. Her first poetry collection, Stealing Mercury (The Muses’ Company), won the Eileen McTavish Sykes Award for Best First Book in Manitoba in 2004 and was nominated for the John Hirsch Award for Most Promising Manitoba Writer and the McNally Robinson Book of the Year Award the same year. Lori won the John Hirsch Award for Most Promising Manitoba Writer in 2005. She is co-founder of the Aqua Books Lansdowne Prize for Poetry/Prix Lansdowne de poésie, now part of the Manitoba Writing and Publishing Awards. Lori works by day as an editorial assistant for a scientific research journal.

SIMON MOCCASIN

Simon is from the northwestern Saskatchewan reserve once called Little Jackfish Lake but is now the Saulteaux First Nation.

Simon’s writing reflects on many genres from the macabre to the lighter side of life. He honed his skills in poetry after joining the Survivors Writers Group of Regina in 2001.

Simon is not only a writer but also a performance poet and amateur comedian. He performed last year for the Regina segment of Yuk Yuks and Lafftrax Comedy reviews that showcased local talent. He also performed with a group called the Bionic Bannock Boys and showcasing group comedy sketches at the Crow Hop Café in Regina. Simon has appeared on shows such as Moccasin Flats, “Untamed Weather”, a documentary to be shown on the History Channel, and stand-in parts on CBC’s Corner Gas.

As an adopted Cree, Simon has written about his experiences on being raised in the “western way”. His writing reflects the bi-cultural aspects of experiencing both worlds. He touches on such issues as self-government and the “folly that occurs in leadership positions throughout the western world”. Simon has written articles for “Say”, “Commonwealth”, “Faces” and “Briarpatch” magazines dealing with social issues and bi-cultural education. He has recently turned to researching and writing on the early beginnings of “beat poetry”. Simon has a B.Ed. Degree from the University of Regina.