Call for Submissions: University-wide Creative Writing Competition open to all 91亚色U students. Apply now!聽

The annual President鈥檚 Creative Writing Awards, the Lorna Marsden Prize for Creative Writing in French and the Daniel Whittaker-Van Dusen Prize for Emerging Poets are accepting unpublished and original writing submissions.

The President鈥檚 Awards and the Lorna Marsden Prize are open to all full or part-time 91亚色 undergraduate students only. The Daniel Whittaker-Van Dusen Prize is open to both undergraduate and graduate students.

The President鈥檚 Creative Writing Awards accept submissions in the following three categories: poetry, short fiction, and creative nonfiction.

Submissions should comprise a single poem or a short story. Creative nonfiction submissions can include personal essays, memoir, autocriticism, travel writing, and literary journalism, as well as any other form of narrative prose nonfiction that is neither reportage nor academic work.

Submissions for the Lorna Marsden Prize for Creative Writing in French are accepted in any of the above creative genres, as long as the work is written in French.

Any undergraduate submissions to the President鈥檚 Awards in Poetry will automatically also be considered for the Daniel Whittaker-Van Dusen Prize.

There is no minimum or maximum length requirement in each category, but submissions must fall within the above genres. The awards are not open to novels or opera librettos, for example. Contestants may enter a writing piece in each category but may not submit more than one entry in each category.

The winning submission in each category for the President鈥檚 Awards and the Lorna Marsden Prize will receive $1,000. The Daniel Whittaker-Van Dusen Prize winner will receive $1,500.

The competition results will be announced in the spring, and prizes will be awarded at the annual Creative Writing Awards reception. Names will be published in yFile and on the English Department and Creative Writing Program website.

Please note that any use of generative AI must be declared and specified or the submission will be automatically disqualified. Grammar checks are acceptable.

The deadline for online submissions is Jan. 8, 2027. For additional information, submission requirements, contest rules and how to apply, please click here.

For further questions, contact Michelle Anacleto, Creative Writing Program Assistant, by email at lapscrwr@yorku.ca.

Tiana Reid, assistant professor in the Department of English, has published a new collection of poetry, Nightnursing (Goose Lane Editions, 2026).  

Challenging conventional narratives of care, healing and recovery, Nightnursing is an exploration of sobriety and what it means to pursue wellness in a world where the desire to get "better" can be both a source of trauma and a path toward healing. Through inventive language and nuanced reflections, the collection examines memory, critical practice, state-sanctioned care and the complexities of recovery, while grappling with the ways the mind continually revisits and reshapes the past. 

This debut collection has been widely praised by the literary community. Jury members for the 2026 Dayne Ogilvie Prize for LGBTQ2S+ Emerging Writers said, 鈥淭iana Reid鈥檚 Nightnursing is as visceral as it is luminous. This collection moves with grit and frankness and striking language, laying bare a journey through 鈥渉ealing鈥� and sobriety. More than charting recovery, Reid troubles the very idea of it, resisting the demand that survival resolve into wellness, coherence or cure. This work is experimental in language and form; playful and gutting in turns. The poet slants language in surprising and delightful ways, even as the poems stun you.鈥�  

Tiana Reid鈥檚 writing has been published in Aperture, Bookforum, Dissent, Frieze, The Nation, The New 91亚色 Review of Books, Poets.org and The Yale Review, among other publications. She received her PhD in English and Comparative Literature from Columbia University. She also co-edits the magazine Pinko. 

A聽book launch聽will be held聽at 7:00 p.m.聽on Wednesday Oct. 7 at Another Story Bookshop (315 Roncesvalles Ave, Toronto).聽Tiana聽Reid will be in conversation with聽writer聽Farhia Tato聽to discuss her聽work.聽Everyone聽is welcome to attend. Please聽register for the event on聽.鈥�

Tiana Reid, an assistant professor in the Department of English, has been shortlisted alongside two other authors for the Writers' Trust of Canada's $12,000 Dayne Ogilvie Prize for 2SLGBTQ+ emerging writers.鈥疪eid was nominated for her newly published poetry collection, Nightnursing (Goose Lane Editions, 2026). The annual award goes to the author of a debut book of any genre who identifies as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, two-spirit or another part of the 2SLGBTQ+ community.鈥� 

Tiana聽Reid's writing has appeared聽in鈥�Aperture,鈥�Bookforum,鈥�Dissent,鈥�Frieze,鈥�The Nation,鈥�The New 91亚色 Review of Books,鈥�Poets.org鈥� and鈥�The Yale Review, among other publications. She earned a PhD in English and comparative literature from Columbia University and is co-editor of鈥� Pinko鈥痬补驳补锄颈苍别.鈥�

The winner of the prize will be announced on Nov. 10 at the Writer's Trust Awards.  

Read聽the full article in聽.

The Royal Society of Canada (RSC) has elected three members of the 91亚色 community as fellows, one of the country鈥檚 highest honours recognizing scholarly, artistic and scientific achievement. Among the newly elected fellows is Deanne Williams, a professor in the Department of English from the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies (LA&PS). 

Williams is recognized internationally for her contributions to early theatre studies and literary history. Her research has opened new avenues of inquiry into the roles of girls and young women in medieval and Renaissance culture, challenging long-held assumptions about who participated in and shaped theatrical life during the period.鈥� By bringing overlooked voices and experiences into scholarly discussions, Williams has influenced contemporary understandings of Shakespearean drama and helped establish new directions for research at the intersection of theatre studies, literary studies and childhood studies, as well as the emerging field of girls鈥� studies.鈥� 

Read the full article in YFile. 

The Women鈥檚 Executive Network鈥檚 (WXN) held its annual event, Canada鈥檚 Most Powerful Women: Top 100 Awards. The awards, launched in 2003, celebrate women whose accomplishments have left a lasting mark on their professions and communities across the country.  

Among the honourees were three alumni from the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies (LA&PS):聽Irene Zaguskin, an economics graduate;聽Johanna Faigelman, who completed a master's degree in social anthropology; and聽Lena Azzou, a graduate of the Department of English. Learn more about their accomplishments below:聽

A technology executive and board director,鈥疘rene Zaguskin鈥�(BA 鈥�09) serves as PwC Americas鈥� co-chief information officer as well as PwC Canada鈥檚 chief information and transformation officer, chief data and analytics officer, and partner. The鈥疞A&PS alum has led digital transformation, technology innovation and business reinvention across the professional services, retail, telecommunications and energy sectors. 

Trained as an anthropologist,鈥疛ohanna Faigelman鈥�(MA 鈥�00) founded聽HumanBranding聽in 2006 and has since expanded the behavioural insights consultancy to Toronto and New Jersey. The LA&PS alum developed聽a methodology聽that helps pharmaceutical, biotechnology and consumer companies better understand the cultural and emotional factors influencing behaviour. Faigelman was named a finalist for the EY Entrepreneur聽of聽the聽Year 2026 Ontario program and was part of the EY Entrepreneurial Winning Women North America class of 2025.聽

At Metrolinx,鈥疞ena Azzou鈥�(BA 鈥�05) oversees enterprise strategy and transformation, operational excellence, enterprise project management and enterprise risk management. The LA&PS graduate is a certified change management and strategy implementation practitioner who has held senior leadership positions including chief of staff and Chair of the Metrolinx Women鈥檚 Network. She has also served as vice-Chair of the Women鈥檚 Centre of 91亚色 Region and contributes to her community as a mentor, volunteer and advocate for women and families. 

Congratulations to the LA&PS alumni recognized at this year鈥檚 event.  

Read the full article in聽YFile.听听

Tiana Reid, assistant professor in the Department of English, has been recognized by CBC, which included her forthcoming collection聽Nightnursing聽on its list of the 25 most聽anticipated聽poetry books of the fall.聽

Nightnursing is an experimental poetry collection that explores themes of sobriety, trauma, treatment and identity. The list features both emerging and established voices in Canadian poetry. 

Reid's writing has appeared in Aperture, Bookforum, Dissent, Frieze, The Nation, The New 91亚色 Review of Books, Poets.org and The Yale Review, among other publications. She earned a PhD in English and comparative literature from Columbia University and is co-editor of Pinko magazine. 

.听听

Professor Agn猫s Whitfield from the Department of English was recently featured in a report published by La Maison Suger, highlighting her scholarly work and contributions.

Whitfield earned her PhD from Universit茅 Laval and is a member of 91亚色鈥檚 Graduate Programs in English and French. She teaches primarily in Canadian literature, and her research focuses on the work of Canadian Francophone and Anglophone women writers and translators, the role of literary translation in fostering cultural exchange, language and gender in intercultural communication and pedagogy.

Read the report on .

The Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) has announced the recipients of the November 2025 SSHRC Connection Grants. Ten 91亚色 research projects received funding.

Congratulations to the researchers from the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies (LA&PS) whose innovative projects were selected. These projects span a wide range of disciplines and demonstrate the depth and diversity of research expertise within our Faculty.

The one-year Connection Grant funding will support key knowledge-mobilization activities including events, workshops and outreach initiatives that help strengthen the impact and reach of this important work.

Projects involving LA&PS researchers are listed below.

Converging and Conflicting Buddhist Legal Frames: Secular Governances and Buddhist Transgressions, led by Alicia Turner (associate professor, Department of Humanities, LA&PS) with co-applicant Benjamin Berger (professor, Osgoode Hall Law School), received $24,619.

The Relational Turn: Looking Back, Thinking Ahead, led by Ruth Buchanan聽(professor, Osgoode Hall Law School) and co-led by聽Annie Bunting聽(professor, Department of Social Science, LA&PS) and the University of Toronto, received $20,096

Waste-work: race, caste, and labour in the new global politics of disposability, led by Shubhra Gururani (associate professor, Department of Anthropology, LA&PS), received $23,503.

Monstrous Intimacies at 15, led by Tiana Reid (assistant professor, Department of English, LA&PS), received $24,055.

Col猫re et Espoir autour de la Palestine : Perspectives d'artistes et de chercheur.es en sciences sociales, co-led by Nadia Hasan (assistant professor, School of Gender, Sexuality & Women鈥檚 Studies, LA&PS) with partners from Universit茅 Laval and Universit茅 du Qu茅bec 脿 Montr茅al, received $24,997.

Respite, Care, and Ethics for Cultural Workers: A Traveling Symposium, led by OCAD University and co-led by聽Casey Mecija聽(associate professor, Department of Communication & Media Studies), received $49,996.

De l'茅conomie politique postcapitaliste 脿 l'utopie 鈥� Rencontre entre recherche en sciences sociales et pratiques artistiques, led by Saint Paul University and co-led by聽Audrey Laurin-Lamothe聽(associate professor, Department of Social Science, LA&PS) and partners from Lund University, Universit茅 Laval, and Universit茅 du Qu茅bec en Outaouais, received $23,646.

Lusophone Studies Association Meeting, 鈥淰oices and Visions: Lusophone Communities in the Global Landscape,鈥� led by the University of British Columbia and co-led by Robert Kenedy (associate professor, Department of Sociology, LA&PS), received $24,375.

罢贸: Tewatia'tar貌:rok Taetewatia'tak茅hnha', led by the University of Toronto and co-led by Jeremy Green (assistant professor, Department of Humanities, LA&PS), received $50,000.

Read the full story in YFile.