Canisia
Lubrin
Canisia Lubrin is a writer, editor, and teacher. Her books include the acclaimed and awards-nominated Voodoo Hypothesis and The Dyzgraphxst, nominated for ten prizes, finalist for the Trillium and Governor General’s awards for English poetry, and winner of the OCM Bocas Prize for Caribbean Literature, the Griffin Poetry Prize, and the Derek Walcott Prize. Lubrin was also awarded the 2021 Joseph Stauffer Prize in literature by the Canada Council for the Arts. Poetry editor at McClelland & Stewart, she is the Creative Writing MFA Coordinator in the School of English and Theatre Studies at the University of Guelph. In 2021, she was awarded a Windham-Campbell prize for poetry. Lubrin’s debut work of fiction is Code Noir: Metamorphoses.
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“Encountering Canisia Lubrin’s work is like suddenly being thrown into terrain that is both sombre and uplifting, unearthly and grounded at the same time. Her landscapes — physical, linguistic, and psychological — displace you in ways that are disturbing yet delightful. An accomplished and recognized poet — Lubrin is already a star in that sense — it will be extremely rewarding for us as she turns her devastating gifts to prose. She will push us and break us in ways that will continue to let the light in. As she writes in Voodoo Hypothesis: ‘They are never rigid, those who watch from the treetops.’ Whatever genre Canisia Lubrin chooses, she will shine.” —2020 Writers' Trust Rising Stars selector Anosh Irani