News
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On Writing – Open Book interview with paulo da costa
Interview on Open Book: The idiom “small is beautiful” is often true in fiction – from short stories to microfiction, sometimes the briefest glimpses into an imagined world are the most arresting. The Midwife of Torment & Other Stories (Guernica Editions) by paulo da costa is a perfect proving ground for the potential of the short and sweet – or in da costa’s case, short and beautifully bizarre, experimental, and creative. Referred to as “sudden fiction”, these sub-1000 word stories have a fable-like feeling, pushing the boundaries between traditional and speculative fiction. The pieces are complemented by a series of original black and white drawings by Portuguese artist, João Ventura. We’re pleased to welcome…
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New essay in Queen’s Quarterly
The Midwife of Torment
All Lit Up – Flash Interview
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All Lit Up – Flash Interview
This Short Story Month, we’re interviewing short story writers every Wednesday, here on the All Lit Up blog. paulo da costa’s latest short story collection The Midwife of Torment & Other Stories (Guernica Editions) is exclusively made up of “sudden fiction” – that is, stories under 1,000 words apiece. With stories like “Roses, Lilacs, and Chrysanthemums” (excerpted below) that manage to be succinct yet utterly evocative of their settings and characters, paulo likens Midwife to a “literary tapas” and shares some of his own influences, below. Read Interview
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Short-listed for the James H. Gray Award for Short Nonfiction
The creative non-fiction “Learning to Shave, Learning to Leave” originally published by The Fiddlehead, has been short-listed for an Alberta Literary Award. Congratulations to all the finalists. James H. Gray Award for Short Nonfiction Paulo da Costa (Calgary) — “Learning to Shave, Learning to Leave” (The Fiddlehead) Jennifer Bowering Delisle (Edmonton) — “Abracadabra” (The Forge) Omar Mouallem (Edmonton) — “Billionaires, Bombers, and Bellydancers” (The Ringer) The Writers’ Guild of Alberta is excited to announce the finalists for the 2020 Alberta Literary Awards and Robert Kroetsch City of Edmonton Book Prize. Each year, the Alberta Literary Awards and the City of Edmonton recognize and celebrate the highest standards of literary excellence…
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All My Relations: Reflections on Home
On December 4, 2016 in Victoria, paulo da costa, Nowick Gray and Heidi Erhardt presented an evening of poetic essays, music and photographic reflections on home, our connection to place and to community in the natural world. Each steeped in communion with natural places (rural Portugal, Maui, BC interior rainforest), we shared stories of listening and tending to the earth, wildlife, and honoring elders in a living culture. Fabrizio Alberico offered music with his handcrafted guitar and banjo. Nowick Gray: nowickgray.com Heidi Erhardt: http://heidierhardt.strikingly.com/, http://heidierhardt-photography.strikingly.com/ paulo da costa: https://www.paulodacosta.ca/ Fabrizio Alberico: http://www.omyogi.ca/ http://www.albericoguitar.com/ Medicine Moves Studio: http://bit.ly/2h8dfPk
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Interview & Story in On Spec Magazine
Interview and a new short-story by paulo da costa in issue n.103 of on spec – the canadian magazine of speculative fiction.
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New essay in Queen’s Quarterly
http://www.queensu.ca/quarterly/fal1603dacosta.html The Oak Tree Fearless in your short, four-year-old legs, your footsteps clap against asphalt and your knees nearly buckle racing down the forty-degree lane. I too ran down this steep hill, freed from the school day and sterile walls, and later, I too climbed even higher, farther up the now vanished woods to the high school on the crest of the hill. That was the first high school to be built higher than any church in the hills, signalling a change in the town and in the future of our lives. I brought you from urban Canada to the village of my childhood to experience a taste of…
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A Reader’s Response to Beyond Bullfights and Ice Hockey
Beyond Bullfights and Ice Hockey: A Reader’s Response By Emanuel Melo I overheard a conversation between a father, his wife and daughter while at lunch at Le Petit Château in Quebec City the other day. “What are you planning to do this afternoon?” he asked. “We’re going to the Museum of Civilization.” “Great. That’ll give me time to watch the game and then we’ll meet up after.” I could say that I found it shocking that someone would take the time to come all the way to Quebec City to stay cooped up in a hotel room to watch a game while ignoring the charm of the city, but…
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The Guest who refuses to be polite – impressions by Emanuel Melo
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Writers of the Portuguese Diaspora – Anthology
Writers of the Portuguese Diaspora in the United States and Canada: An Anthology Editors Luis Gonçalves and Carlo Matos, Preface by George Monteiro This anthology brings together fiction, poetry, recipes, and memoirs by some of the best Portuguese-Canadian and Portuguese-American writers to narrate the Portuguese Diasporic experience in North America. These works focus on lived experiences, shared spaces and the ethnic identity through which this distinctive culture is lived in the United States of America and Canada, both of which have long been home to significant and vibrant Portuguese communities that arrived roughly in the same waves of migration. In this book, you will find a range of texts…
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New short-story in Stand Magazine
STAND magazine is a quarterly print magazine for men who give a damn about being better men, better husbands, better fathers, better partners, better brothers, better friends, better sons, better neighbors, better citizens. STAND magazine, issue two, highlights several individuals and companies attempting to do just that, including Christian Birky, the founder of Detroit-based fashion label Lazlo, and William McDonough and Michael Braungart, authors of Cradle to Cradle. The issue includes a short story by paulo da costa. Swedish writer Ulf Peter Hallberg remembers his father and we then look at the very serious issue of human trafficking with photojournalist Tim Matsui. Writer Steve Almond tells us why he turned against football…
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New poem in Contemporary Verse 2
Contemporary Verse 2 volume 38.3 “The Open Issue” marks the beginning of CV2‘s fifth decade and features the winners of the Young Buck Poetry Prize and 2-Day Poem Contest. The issue includes new poetry from Sarah Klassen, John Wall Barger, Linda Frank, paulo da costa and Ted Landrum as well as several book reviews. New poems by: Kayla Krut Stephen Matthew Brown Jesse Matas Penn Kemp Kelly Stewart John Wall Barger Paula Jane Remlinger Wanda Campbell Glen Sorestad Sarah Klassen paulo da costa Ted Landrum Shauntay Grant Patricia Young Linda Fran Ruth Daniell Michelle Brown Rebecca Salazar Carter Vance Claire Kelly Steven Slowka Leslie Casey Michael Fraser Medrie Purdham Cana…
