荔枝视频

In 1773, Phyllis Wheatley, a young enslaved woman, became the first African-American to publish a book of poetry. Nearly 250 years later, Alison Clarke, an Edmonton-based author, reimagined her story in Phillis, a . Growing up, Adrian Lysenko and Ivanka Galadza heard stories about the Holodomor (Ukrainian terror-famine) from their grandmothers. The stories served as inspiration for Five Stalks of Grain, their . In 1965, Everett Klippert became the last man jailed in Canada for being gay. Natalie Meisner, a local professor and playwright, created , a play about Klippert鈥檚 story. These divergent stories have one thing in common: they all found a publishing home at the 荔枝视频 Press.

In 2015, the Press, an established academic publishing house, decided to start something new. , director, , board member, and , editorial co-ordinator, sensed an opportunity to expand the Press鈥檚 reach by adding a literary imprint 鈥� to make room for transformative and unusual stories that may not see the light of day because publishers aren鈥檛 willing to take a chance on them.

鈥淚鈥檓 really interested in books that cross genres,鈥� explains van Herk, a respected author and pillar of the U荔枝视频 creative writing program.

The world needs stories. Culture 鈥� the arts 鈥� is ultimately what is going to transcend our divisions.

The trio ventured into the creative publishing world, launching the series. They were fortunate to have the Press鈥檚 scholarly publishing process as precedent and significant collective expertise 鈥� van Herk agreed to be series editor, Scrivener has a keen sense for branding, and Hajnoczky is a published poet.

They chose the name with great care. 鈥溾�橞rave鈥� and 鈥榖rilliant鈥� is the touchstone we apply when we decide what to publish,鈥� explains Scrivener. 鈥淚t encapsulates work of exceptional quality from someone willing to go out on a limb to stretch the craft.鈥�

Brave & Brilliant released its in February 2017 and this month, a mere six years later, the series released its   Its mandate is to give more access to publishing, for under-represented voices and work that defies categorization. A look through the series catalogue confirms its authors are fearlessly creative in their storytelling:  

• Ian Kinney recounts his through medical records and prose poems.
• Lucas Crawford leans in to the tensions between the revitalized High Line Park and the .
• Leslie Greentree tackles the subject of death in .
• Dawn Bryan tells the story of an through his bereaved dog.
• Patrick Horner weaves a through poems involving field notes and scientific data.
• Tasnuva Hayden uses to explore the ways we must move forward in the face of the impossible.
• rob mcclennan challenges the possibilities of language through short,

鈥淭he series is eclectic in genre and subject,鈥� notes Hajnoczky, 鈥渂ut the books in the series share a spirit of being bold and lively, each with their own strong and unique voice.鈥�

Though there aren鈥檛 many university presses that have a creative imprint, it clearly fits within the post-secondary mandate to take on the work of widening access to a notoriously exclusive industry.

鈥淚 see a university as a town hall, as a public square where people share their stories and their experiences,鈥� notes van Herk. 鈥淚t is really important that we make room to give more attention to the voices of women and Indigenous writers and thinkers.鈥�

By 2030, Brave and Brilliant will have published 50 books. That鈥檚 50 authors whose work might have been relegated to the desk drawer.

Wayne Arthurson is one of those authors. 鈥淲hen I finished the I had no idea (if) anybody would take it 鈥� it felt too weird, too small. Brave & Brilliant said it was perfect for them,鈥� he recalls. 鈥淲orking with Aritha was fantastic 鈥� I knew she would just want to make the book better. The experience made me feel glad to be an author again, made me love publishing again. It鈥檚 my smallest book, but I鈥檝e probably had the biggest response to it.鈥�

Indeed, the book has been translated into French and is one of the first books published in Braille in Canada. Suzette Mayr, Giller Prize winner (and U荔枝视频 professor) named Red Chesterfield one of four books she recommends people read.

Through word of mouth and its growing reputation, submissions to Brave & Brilliant have increased significantly in recent years. 鈥淲e鈥檙e working almost two years ahead,鈥� notes van Herk. 鈥淲e鈥檙e getting fabulous books, there鈥檚 so much choice.鈥�

dennis cooley had published nearly 30 books of poetry with different publishers when he decided to submit a to Brave & Brilliant. He knew van Herk and had looked at some of the Press鈥檚 listings. 鈥淭here aren鈥檛 many presses hungry for poetry, yet Brave & Brilliant was actively seeking poetry and promoting it,鈥� recalls cooley. And, as an added bonus, 鈥淸Hajnoczky] is a dazzlingly good editor. She really improved the manuscript.鈥�

Wayne Arthurson agrees. 鈥淏rave & Brilliant feels like a friend who will fight for the book 鈥� a team helping an author trying something new, giving life to their vision in the best possible way. It鈥檚 what publishing should be.鈥�

For the 荔枝视频 Press, it鈥檚 all about opening the doors of creativity wider in order to publish bold work. In this regard they are the little publishing house that dared, and could.