SJK Welcomes Writer in Residence, Alison Pick

January 10, 2012

The Grade 11 students of St. John’s-Kilmarnock School have an invaluable resource in their study of Alison Pick’s award-winning novel, Far to Go: the author! Pick, who grew up in Kitchener and who attended the University of Guelph, is the latest in a series of acclaimed Canadian authors to serve as SJK’s Writer in Residence. Pick is the author of the Booker long-listed Far to Go, a previous novel, The Sweet Edge (2005, Raincoast Books) and two collections of poetry, Question & Answer (2002, Raincoast Books), and The Dream World (2008, M&S). Pick will help Adrian Hoad-Reddick’s Grade 11 English classes as they create a Reader’s Guide to Far to Go that will be published as a website, as a PDF document, and as a mobile app. Pick will also work with selected students on writing projects that will culminate in an Evening of Readings in late April. SJK’s English Department Head, David Newman, praises the Writer in Residence Program, calling it  “enormously enriching for our students. It creates an invaluable link between the world of creative writing in school and creative writing in the real world, adding a degree of authenticity to the process and showing students the possibilities that exist within their own work and within the field of writing in general.” Students in SJK’s Writer in Residence program also participate in local writing festivals in Elora and Eden Mills, attend readings, submit to local contests and publications, and participate in writing retreats off campus.

SJK has a long tradition of bringing published poets, playwrights and novelists to the school to engage young writers. Governor-General award-winning playwright, Vern Thiessen, screenwriter and actor Susan Coyne, novelist Welwyn Wilton-Katz, local authors Jean Mills and Michael Hale, poet Catherine Graham, and playwright Gary Kirkham are just a few of the former Writers in Residence. Two years ago, novelist and ‘Olympic poet’ Priscila Uppal served as the Writer in Residence and worked with the grade 11 English students to produce a Reader’s Guide to her novel To Whom It May Concern. “Having the author in our classrooms is very exciting,” says Hoad-Reddick. “The author shares her insights into the writing process and facilitates the writing of the Guide to the novel. It’s a mutually rewarding experience. It’s an authentic and collaborative task that reverses the all-too-common practice of students relying on Coles Notes for their study of a text. In this case, the students create the Reader’s Guide and share it with the world, with the blessing of the author.” Pick says she is “looking forward to working with the students on this unique, creative and collaborative venture. I also can't wait to head back to high school!”

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