YELLOWKNIFE (May 22, 2012) – De Beers Canada and NorthWords NWT are proud to announce that works from 17 writers have been selected for inclusion in Coming Home: Stories from the Northwest Territories, an anthology scheduled to be released later this year. Some of these writers will read selections from their stories during the 7th Annual NorthWords NWT Writers Festival at the Flash: Your 3 Minutes of Fame Open Mike on May 31, 8 p.m. in the Atrium of the Greenstone Building in Yellowknife.
The anthology grew out NorthWords’ vision of building an NWT literary culture by supporting the work of NWT writers and De Beers Canada’s commitment to literacy development in the Northwest Territories. De Beers Canada is the Premier Sponsor of NorthWords and has supported the organization since it was founded in 2006.
“For the past 10 years we have inspired children to read through our Books in Homes program, and now we are helping inspire a generation of writers,” said Cathie Bolstad, Director of External & Corporate Affairs for De Beers Canada. “It is important that people living in the Northwest Territories, especially children, can read about and be inspired by the people and the places they know.”
Altogether, 94 works were submitted by NWT writers. The submissions were turned over to two judges: John Mutford, author of the well-known northern book blogThe Book Mine Set and Judy McLinton, NorthWords board member and a former editor and journalist. They decided on the final selection of the stories without knowing the identity of the authors. The successful stories were written by both published and emerging writers. For information on the writers see ANTHOLOGY.
“Congratulations to all the authors whose work has been chosen. We now have a vibrant collection of stories that showcase life in the NWT from many points of view,” said David Malcolm, President of NorthWords NWT. “It has long been NorthWords’ dream to publish an NWT Anthology. Thank you to De Beers Canada for making this dream come true.”
The book is being published by Great Plains Publications in Winnipeg under their Enfield and Wizenty imprint. It is scheduled to be printed over the summer and launched in Yellowknife this fall. It will be on sale in time for Christmas.
Between 2003 and 2011, De Beers Canada has distributed approximately 28,000 books to students attending schools in Aboriginal communities close to our NWT Projects, an investment of nearly $550,000. In fact, by the end of 2013 De Beers will have spent more than $750,000 on literacy initiatives in the NWT, helping youth get books to read and supporting NWT writers.
The NorthWords 2012 Writers Festival will take place in Yellowknife from May 31 – June 3.
