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New season of writers coming

Submitted by Pat Carrie Smith and Astrid Egger for the Haida Gwaii Arts CouncilIt's autumn again, the weather is turning, and it's time to think about your fall and winter reading! Your Haida Gwaii Arts Council has an impressive lineup of authors coming in 2012-2013 to meet islanders and read from their works.First is Donna Morrissey, born and raised in Newfoundland, whose characters live there in isolated outposts with a strong sense of community against the beauty of a land where weather and the irregular flow of goods are a daily challenge. Ms. Morrissey will share her experiences with Haida Gwaii on Oct. 20 at the Legion in Queen Charlotte and on Oct. 21 at the Nature Centre in Masset.Next is Alanna Mitchell, a science and environmental writer in whose work the ocean is a prominent feature, and whose gift in writing is to translate complex subjects into elegant literary nonfiction. Ms. Mitchell will present her work at the Haida Heritage Centre in Classroom One on Nov. 2 and at the Ground Café in Masset on Nov. 3.In February, Brian Fawcett, whose very readable prose informs the reader of his thoughts on political ignorance and economic evil, will share with islanders these views on issues of cultural identity, ecology and political realities. Mr. Fawcett will read in Tlell and in Queen Charlotte.In spring we will present another northerner, Eden Robinson, a Haisla and Heiltsuk novelist, whose work alludes to colonial history, while centering on contemporary urban First Nations lives, and features an unflinching interest in the darker aspects of personality. Ms. Robinson will read on April 18 in Skidegate and on the 19 in Old Massett.We have invited Andrew Nikiforuk, who writes in an engaging literary style and researches his works of nonfiction meticulously to debate the impact of fossil fuel use and its extraction on our changing environmental future. His dates are not yet set.In June Esi Edugyan, whose characters inhabit a world that is circumscribed by powerful social norms and external forces to the point where their mobility is severely restricted, will show readers on Haida Gwaii parallels to legislative frameworks both past and present that seek to define who is considered part of a group or a nation. Ms. Edugyan will read in Queen Charlotte and in Old Massett.Also invited is Steven Price, poet and novelist, whose works can make us ponder what it means to live in an earthquake zone. He will read on June 22 in Queen Charlotte and in Old Massett on June 23.Your Haida Gwaii Arts Council gratefully acknowledges funding from the Canada Council for the Arts, whose support makes it possible to bring celebrated authors to Haida Gwaii. We count on you to come out and meet these authors. Their readings are informal and free, and we ask only that you make whatever donation you can to help offset our costs.