Natalie Lim is back with her debut poetry collection, Elegy for Opportunity! Andrew talks about capturing connection in poems. It's a great reunion!

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Natalie Lim (she/her) is a Chinese-Canadian poet living on the unceded, traditional territories of the Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh Peoples (Vancouver, BC). She is the author of a full-length book of poetry, Elegy for Opportunity (Wolsak & Wynn, 2025) and a chapbook, arrhythmia (Rahila's Ghost Press, 2022). Winner of the 2018 CBC Poetry Prize and Room Magazine’s 2020 Emerging Writer Award, her work has been published in Arc Poetry Magazine, Best Canadian Poetry 2020 and elsewhere.

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Andrew French is a poet from North Vancouver, British Columbia. They have published three chapbooks, most recently Buoyhood (Alfred Gustav Press, 2025). Andrew holds a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. They write poems, book reviews, and have hosted this very podcast since 2019.

Tolu Oloruntoba returns to chat about his third poetry collection, Unravel. Andrew asks about getting "good" feedback. It's a "good" one!

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Tolu Oloruntoba was born in Ibadan, Nigeria, where he studied and practiced medicine. He is the author of three collections of poetry, The Junta of Happenstance, winner of the Canadian Griffin Poetry Prize and Governor General’s Literary Award, Each One a Furnace, a Dorothy Livesay Poetry Prize finalist, and most recently, Unravel.

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Andrew French is a poet from North Vancouver, British Columbia. They have published three chapbooks, most recently Buoyhood (forthcoming with Alfred Gustav Press, 2025). Andrew holds a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. They write poems, book reviews, and have hosted this very podcast since 2019.

Jim Johnstone joins the show to discuss his new poetry anthology celebrating 10 years of Anstruther Press, The Anstruther Reader. Andrew asks about chapbooks, full-lengths, and turning off "editor brain." It's an informative chat!

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REGISTER: PAGE FRIGHT LIVE! AT THE FRASER VALLEY WRITER'S FESTIVAL

-- Jim Johnstone is a Toronto-based poet, editor, and critic. He is the author of seven collections of poetry, most recently The King of Terrors (Coach House Books, 2023), as well as a collection of essays titled Bait & Switch (The Porcupine's Quill, 2024). Johnstone is a senior editor at Palimpsest Press, where he recently published The Anstruther Reader: Ten Years of Poems, Broadsides, and Manifestos.

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Andrew French is a poet from North Vancouver, British Columbia. They have published three chapbooks, most recently Buoyhood (forthcoming with Alfred Gustav Press, 2025). Andrew holds a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. They write poems, book reviews, and have hosted this very podcast since 2019.

Daniel Cowper has advice for the people who don't like poetry. Andrew brings in a journal we've seen before. Everybody is happy.

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Daniel Cowper's poetry has appeared in Arc, Vallum, CV2, Prairie Fire, and various other literary publications in Canada, the US, and Ireland. In 2017 he was long-listed for the CBC Poetry Prize, and a chapbook of his poetry, The God of Doors, was published by Frog Hollow Press, was published as co-winner of Frog Hollow's chapbook contest. His first full length collection of poetry, Grotesque Tenderness, was published by McGill-Queen's University Press in summer 2019. He lives on Bowen Island, BC, with his wife, Emily Osborne, and their baby.

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Listen to more episodes at: www.theandrewfrench.com/pagefright

David Ly talks about the best doughnuts. Andrew loves Grindr epigraphs. Everybody leaves in high spirits.

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David Ly is the author of Stubble Burn (Anstruther Press, 2018) and Mythical Man (Anstruther Books, 2020). His poetry has also appeared in publications such as PRISM international, The Puritan, carte blanche, Pulp Literature, The Maynard, and The /tƐmz/ Review. He has been long- and short-listed for the Thomas Morton Memorial Prize in Poetry and the Magpie Award in Poetry, respectively. Twitter @dlylyly.

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Listen to more episodes at: www.theandrewfrench.com/pagefright

Isabella Wang talks about poetic form. Andrew brings in a super fun book. Everybody is delighted.

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Isabella Wang's debut poetry chapbook is On Forgetting a Language (Baseline Press 2019). At 19, she has been shortlisted twice for The New Quarterly's Edna Staebler Essay Contest, and she holds a Pushcart Prize nomination for poetry. Her poetry and prose have appeared in over twenty literary journals including CV2, Minola Review, and carte blanche, and is forthcoming in the What You Need to Know Anthology (The Hawkins Project, co-founded by Dave Eggers). She is an assistant editor at Room magazine,  RA for SpokenWeb, and pursuing a double major in English and World Literature at SFU.

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Listen to more episodes at: www.theandrewfrench.com/pagefright

Cassidy McFadzean talks about poetry, astrology, and transitioning between forms. Andrew talks about a scary tarot reading. Everyone ends up smiling.

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Cassidy McFadzean was born in Regina, graduated from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, and currently lives in Toronto. She is the author of Hacker Packer (McClelland & Stewart 2015), which won two Saskatchewan Book Awards and was a finalist for the Gerald Lampert Memorial Award. Her poems have appeared in BOAAT, Event, The Fiddlehead, PRISM international, and The Best Canadian Poetry 2016, and have been shortlisted for the CBC Poetry Prize and The Walrus Poetry Prize. Her second book is Drolleries (M&S 2019).

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Listen to more episodes at: www.theandrewfrench.com/pagefright

Aislinn Hunter talks teaching, writing, and finding your passion. Andrew brings her a spicy book of poetry. All parties are pleased.

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Aislinn Hunter (born in Belleville, Ontario) is a Canadian poetry and fiction author. She studied art history and writing at the University of Victoria where she received her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. Her Master of Fine Arts degree came from the University of British Columbia, her MSc in Writing and Cultural Politics came from the University of Edinburgh as did her PhD where she wrote on writers' houses/museums and resonant things with a focus on the Victorian era and thing theory via Heidegger. She currently teaches Creative Writing part-time at Kwantlen Polytechnic University. Hunter's research interests include material culture, museums, books-as-things, Victorian writers and ephemera.

Her 2002 novel Stay was adapted for film by Wiebke Von Carolsfeld and released as a Telefilm / Irish Film Board co-production in 2013, premiering at the Toronto International Film Festival. It stars Aidan Quinn and Taylor Schilling. Her novel, The World Before Us, set in a UK museum, was published by Doubleday, Canada in 2014 and by Hamish Hamilton in the UK, Hogarth Press in the US, and Marchand de Feuilles in Quebec. It won the 2015 Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize and was a New York Times Editor's Choice Book, an NPR 'Best Book' and a Chatelaine Book Club pick. In the spring of 2017 her third book of poetry, Linger, Still, was published by Gaspereau Press. It won the Fred Cogswell Award for Excellence in Poetry and was long-listed for the Pat Lowther Poetry Prize.

Dr Hunter was selected to be a Canadian War Artist and in 2018 she worked with the Canadian Armed Forces and with NATO Forces at CFB Suffield. Her new novel 'The Certainties' is due out in 2020 with Knopf Canada.

She was married for 25 years but lost her husband to brain cancer in 2018. She currently lives in Vancouver, British Columbia.

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Listen to more episodes at: www.theandrewfrench.com/pagefright 

Hasan Namir discusses love, equality, and his incredible writing. Andrew regrets not bringing his copy of Hasan's book. Everybody enjoys themselves.

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Iraqi-Canadian author Hasan Namir graduated from Simon Fraser University with a BA in English and received the Ying Chen Creative Writing Student Award. He is the author of God in Pink (2015), which won the Lambda Literary Award for Best Gay Fiction and was chosen as one of the Top 100 Books of 2015 by The Globe and Mail. His work has also been featured on Huffington Post, Shaw TV, Airbnb, and in the film God in Pink: A Documentary. He was recently named a writer to watch by CBC books.  Hasan lives in Vancouver with his husband. War/Torn (2019, Book*Hug) is his latest poetry book 

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Listen to more episodes at: www.theandrewfrench.com/pagefright 

Aidan Chafe discusses his book, mental illness, and why growing up is hard. Andrew agrees and is in awe of Aidan's writing. Everybody has a great time.

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Aidan Chafe is a public school teacher and the author of Short Histories of Light (2018), and the chapbooks Right Hand Hymns and Sharpest Tooth. He lives in Burnaby, BC, and is on twitter @allegorically. 

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Listen to more episodes at: www.theandrewfrench.com/pagefright 

Hannah MacReady talks about how the heck they decide what should be published. Andrew gets really excited about the names of Hannah's doggos. Everybody leaves smiling.

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Hannah Macready is an American-Canadian writer who currently lives in Vancouver, BC. Hannah is a recent graduate of the University of Wales Creative Writing program, where she graduated with honours. In 2017 she received the Maurice Hodgson Award for Creative Distinction. Her work has been published in Bandit Fiction (UK) and in two of the Pearls anthologies published by Douglas College.  She's on twitter at @hannahmacready.

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Listen to more episodes at: www.theandrewfrench.com/pagefright 

A.H. Reaume talks about her novel-in-progress. Andrew slurps tea that she so graciously provided. Everybody has fun.

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A .H. Reaume is a writer who swears too much, reads too much, and is currently in too many book clubs (four in total). She has won multiple awards for her feminist activism and is even mentioned in a textbook about Canadian women’s history. Reaume has an MA in Canadian Literature from the University of British Columbia and has been published in the Vancouver Sun, The Globe and Mail, USAToday.com, and Time.com. She lives in Vancouver.

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Listen to more: www.theandrewfrench.com/pagefright

Shazia Hafiz Ramji wonders whether people write naked or not. Andrew stumbles through the show's first interview. Everybody is happy.

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Shazia Hafiz Ramji’s first book, Port of Being (Invisible Publishing), received the Robert Kroetsch Award for Innovative Poetry and was chosen by CBC as one of the best Canadian poetry books of 2018. 

Her fiction and criticism have appeared in The Humber Literary Review and Quill & Quire, respectively. She held a writing residency with Open Book in the spring of 2019.

She lives on unceded Coast Salish land (Vancouver) where works as a publishing consultant and editor for various presses across Canada.

Manahil Bandukwala pops into the Zoom studio to talk about her second poetry collection, Heliotropia. Andrew admits to never seeing Star Trek and plans to jump in midway through, just to understand a poem. It's an episode blooming with great poems!

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Manahil Bandukwala is a writer and visual artist based in Ottawa and Mississauga, Ontario. She is the author of Heliotropia (Brick Books, 2024) and MONUMENT (Brick Books, 2022), which was shortlisted for the 2023 Gerald Lampert Award, and was selected as a Writer’s Trust of Canada Rising Star in 2023. See her work at manahilbandukwala.com.

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Andrew French is a poet from North Vancouver, British Columbia. They have published three chapbooks, most recently Buoyhood (forthcoming with Alfred Gustav Press, 2025). Andrew holds a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. They write poems, book reviews, and have hosted this very podcast since 2019.

Natasha Ramoutar is back to talk about her new poetry collection, Baby Cerberus. Andrew emphasizes the fun they've had writing lately. It's truly a fun one!

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Natasha Ramoutar is a writer of Indo-Guyanese descent from Toronto. Her debut collection of poetry, Bittersweet, published in 2020 by Mawenzi House, was shortlisted for the Gerald Lampert Memorial Award. She was the co-editor of Feel Ways, an anthology of Scarborough literature. She is a senior editor with Augur Magazine and serves on the editorial board at Wolsak and Wynn. Her second collection of poetry Baby Cerberus will be released October, 2024.

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Andrew French (they/them) is an author from North Vancouver, British Columbia. They have published three chapbooks, most recently Buoyhood (forthcoming with Alfred Gustav Press, 2025). Andrew holds a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. They write poems, book reviews, and have hosted this very podcast since 2019.

Amanda Merpaw drops in to talk about her debut poetry collection, Most of All the Wanting. Andrew asks about poetry as a queer art form. It's a great time!

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Attend Page Fright: A Poetry Reading & Celebration

(Sept 20 6-8pm at Massy Arts Society in Vancouver)

-- Amanda Merpaw (she/her) is a writer, editor, and translator. She is the author of the chapbook Put the Ghosts Down Between Us (2021), and her writing has appeared in Arc Poetry Magazine, carte blanche, CV2, Grain, Prairie Fire, Plenitude, with Playwrights Canada Press, and elsewhere. Amanda has been a finalist for the Poem of the Year Contest and the Montreal Fiction Prize. She is currently a contributing editor at Arc Poetry Magazine and a member of the editorial board at Anstruther Press. Most of All the Wanting is her first full-length collection.

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Andrew French (they/them) is an author from North Vancouver, British Columbia. They have published two chapbooks, Poems for Different Yous (Rose Garden Press, 2021) and Do Not Discard Ashes (845 Press, 2020). Andrew holds a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. They write poems, book reviews, and have hosted this very podcast since 2019.

Hannah Siden zooms in to discuss writing tips and movement poetry! Andrew talks about moving from the journal to a computer and back again. It's a fun chat!

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Hannah Siden is a writer and filmmaker living on the unceded territories of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh Nations (Vancouver, BC). Her poetry has been published in PRISM International, Canthius, Room Magazine, The League of Canadian Poets, Metatron Press and elsewhere. She can be found online at https://www.hannahsiden.com. 

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Andrew French is an author from North Vancouver, British Columbia. They have published two chapbooks, Poems for Different Yous (Rose Garden Press, 2021) and Do Not Discard Ashes (845 Press, 2020). Andrew holds a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. They write poems, book reviews, and host this very podcast

Patrick Connors joins the podcast to talk about his second poetry collection, The Long Defeat. Andrew asks about keeping things light. It's a wide-ranging discussion!

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Patrick Connors' first chapbook, Scarborough Songs, was released by Lyricalmyrical Press in 2013, and charted on the Toronto Poetry Map. Other publication credits include: The Toronto Quarterly; Spadina Literary Review; Sharing Spaces; Tamaracks; and Tending the Fire. His first full collection, The Other Life, was released in 2021 by Mosaic Press. His new chapbook, Worth the Wait, was released in 2023 by Cactus Press. His second full collection, The Long Defeat, is newly released by Mosaic Press.

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Andrew French is an author from North Vancouver, British Columbia. They have published two chapbooks, Poems for Different Yous (Rose Garden Press, 2021) and Do Not Discard Ashes (845 Press, 2020). Andrew holds a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. They write poems, book reviews, and host this very podcast.

Matthew Walsh comes back on the podcast with a new book: Terrarium. Andrew re-learns how to start writing poems. It's a good one!
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Matthew Walsh grew up in Nova Scotia and now lives in Toronto. Their poems have appeared in Joyland, the Capra Review, the Antigonish Review, the Malahat Review, and Geist; in a chapbook entitled ICQ; and in their celebrated book-length collection These are not the potatoes of my youth, a finalist for the Trillium and Gerald Lampert Awards.

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Andrew French is an author from North Vancouver, British Columbia. They have published two chapbooks, Poems for Different Yous (Rose Garden Press, 2021) and Do Not Discard Ashes (845 Press, 2020). Andrew holds a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. They write poems, book reviews, and host this very podcast.

Kevin Spenst is back to talk about his latest poetry collection, A Bouquet Brought Back from Space. Andrew celebrates 5 years of Page Fright. Everyone's thinking about words!
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Kevin Spenst is the author of sixteen chapbooks and three full-length books of poetry plus his newest collection A Bouquet Brought Back from Space (Anvil Press, 2024). He is one of the organizers of the Dead Poets Reading Series, has a chapbook review column for subTerrain magazine, occasionally co-hosts Wax Poetic on Vancouver Co-op Radio, and teaches poetry through The Writer’s Studio at Simon Fraser University in Vancouver on unceded xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) and səl̓ilw̓ətaʔɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) territory where he cohabitates with the one and only Cheryl Rossi. 

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Andrew French is an author from North Vancouver, British Columbia. They have published two chapbooks, Poems for Different Yous (Rose Garden Press, 2021) and Do Not Discard Ashes (845 Press, 2020). Andrew holds a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. They write poems, book reviews, and host this very podcast.

Rob Taylor is back to talk about his new book, Weather.

Rob Taylor is the author of five collections of poetry, including Strangers and The News, which was a finalist for the Dorothy Livesay Poetry Prize. He is also the editor of What the Poets Are Doing: Canadian Poets in Conversation and Best Canadian Poetry 2019. He lives with his family in Port Moody, BC.

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Andrew French is an author from North Vancouver, British Columbia. They have published two chapbooks, Poems for Different Yous (Rose Garden Press, 2021) and Do Not Discard Ashes (845 Press, 2020). Andrew holds a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. They write poems, book reviews, and host this very podcast.

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Rhea Tregebov is the acclaimed author of eight collections of poetry. Her most recent, Talking to Strangers, was published by Signal Editions/Véhicule Press in April 2024. She has also published two award-winning novels, Rue des Rosiers (2019) and The Knife Sharpener’s Bell (2009). Tregebov served as Chair of the Writers’ Union of Canada from 2021 to 2023. Born in Saskatoon and raised in Winnipeg, she now lives and writes in Vancouver, where she is Associate Professor Emerita at the School of Creative Writing at UBC.

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Andrew French is an author from North Vancouver, British Columbia. They have published two chapbooks, Poems for Different Yous (Rose Garden Press, 2021) and Do Not Discard Ashes (845 Press, 2020). Andrew holds a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. They write poems, book reviews, and host this very podcast.

Marc Perez comes on the show to talk about chapbooks, form, and his debut full-length poetry collection, Dayo. Andrew asks about finding the right form for your poem. It's a great time!

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Chapbook launch info: Featuring Marc Perez , Andrew French, and Kevin Spenst! See you on Saturday, April 19, 5pm at the Teck Gallery SFU Harbour Centre, Vancouver.

--Marc Perez is the author of Dayo (Brick Books, 2024) and the chapbook, Domus (Anstruther Press, 2025). His work has appeared in The Fiddlehead, EVENT, CV2, PRISM international, and Vallum, among others. In his free time, he likes to wander with his camera and document fleeting moments around the city.

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Andrew French is a poet from North Vancouver, British Columbia. They have published three chapbooks, most recently Buoyhood (forthcoming with Alfred Gustav Press, 2025). Andrew holds a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. They write poems, book reviews, and have hosted this very podcast since 2019.

Matt Rader returns to talk about his second poetry collection, Fine. Andrew wonders about the beauty in the struggle. Everybody leaves a bit lighter!

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Details on Matt's Vancouver launch here.

Details on the Dead Poets Reading Series event here.

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Matt Rader is an award-winning author of six volumes of poetry, a collection of stories and a book of nonfiction. His previous book of poems, Ghosthawk (2021), was shortlisted for the Dorothy Livesay Poetry Prize. He teaches Creative Writing at the University of British Columbia Okanagan and lives in Kelowna, BC.

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Andrew French is an author from North Vancouver, British Columbia. They have published two chapbooks, Poems for Different Yous (Rose Garden Press, 2021) and Do Not Discard Ashes (845 Press, 2020). Andrew holds a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. They write poems, book reviews, and host this very podcast.

Kayla Czaga drops in to discuss her third full-length poetry collection, Midway. Andrew asks about elegies and editing together a manuscript. It's a fascinating chat!

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Kayla Czaga is the author of two previous poetry collections: For Your Safety Please Hold On (Nightwood Editions, 2014) and Dunk Tank (House of Anansi, 2019). Her work has been short-listed for the Governor General's Award for poetry and the BC and Yukon Book Prizes' Dorothy Livesay Poetry Prize. Frequently anthologized in the Best Canadian Poetry in English series, her writing has also appeared in The Walrus, Grain, Event, The Fiddlehead, and elsewhere. She lives with her wife on the traditional territory of the Lekwungen people.

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Andrew French is an author from North Vancouver, British Columbia. They have published two chapbooks, Poems for Different Yous (Rose Garden Press, 2021) and Do Not Discard Ashes (845 Press, 2020). Andrew holds a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. They write poems, book reviews, and host this very podcast.

THREE poets read and talk about their poems from Best Canadian Poetry 2024! Nicholas Bradley discusses an atmospheric river. Matt Rader explores heat domes. Joanna Streetly searches the depths. It's a powerful set of chats!

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Nicholas Bradley lives in Victoria, BC. He is the author of two books of poetry: Rain Shadow (University of Alberta Press, 2018) and Before Combustion (Gaspereau Press, 2023). He teaches in the Department of English at the University of Victoria.

Matt Rader lives in Kelowna, BC. He's the author of five collections of poems, most recently, Ghosthawk (Nightwood, 2021). He teaches Creative Writing at the University of British Columbia, Okanagan.

Joanna Streetly has lived on the west coast of Vancouver Island since 1990. She is the published author of four books and has been listed for the FBCW Literary Writes Poetry Contest, the Canada Writes Creative Non-fiction Prize, and The Spectator's Shiva Naipaul award. Her work appears in the literary magazines, anthologies, and Best Canadian Essays 2017. From 2018-2020, she was the inaugural Tofino Poet Laureate.

-- Andrew French is an author from North Vancouver, British Columbia. They have published two chapbooks, Poems for Different Yous (Rose Garden Press, 2021) and Do Not Discard Ashes (845 Press, 2020). Andrew holds a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. They write poems, book reviews, and host this very podcast.

andrea bennett pops by to chat about their latest poetry collection, the berry takes the shape of the bloom. Andrew asks about bodies and gets too excited talking about the ocean. It's a fun one!

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Listen to more episodes of Page Fright here. Follow the podcast on Instagram here.

----- andrea bennett is a National Magazine Award–winning writer and senior editor at The Tyee who lives in the Ayjoo mixw area of what is currently known as Powell River, B.C. Their previous book, Like a Boy but Not a Boy: Navigating Life, Mental Health, and Parenthood Outside the Gender Binary (Arsenal Pulp Press), was a CBC Books’ pick for the top Canadian nonfiction of the year. Their most recent book is the berry takes the shape of the bloom (Talonbooks).

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Andrew French is an author from North Vancouver, British Columbia. They have published two chapbooks, Poems for Different Yous (Rose Garden Press, 2021) and Do Not Discard Ashes (845 Press, 2020). Andrew holds a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. They write poems, book reviews, and host this very podcast.

Kit Roffey jumps into the Zoom to chat about their first chapbook, Civilian of Dirt. Andrew mistakenly assumes Kit organizes readings because of their reading skills. It's a good ol' time!

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Listen to more episodes of Page Fright here. Follow the podcast on Instagram here.

----- Kit Roffey is a queer writer. They hold a BA in English and Cultural Studies from Huron at Western University. Their work has appeared in Vallum, Event, Existere and Grain among others. Their first collection of poetry “Civilian of Dirt” is out now with 845 Press. They can be found on Instagram @poetry_kit and are always happy to talk writing, or debate over the best pen brands, boygenius songs, and coffee orders.

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Andrew French is an author from North Vancouver, British Columbia. They have published two chapbooks, Poems for Different Yous (Rose Garden Press, 2021) and Do Not Discard Ashes (845 Press, 2020). Andrew holds a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. They write poems, book reviews, and host this very podcast.

Chris Johnson stops in to talk about their new chapbook, 320 Lines of Poetry. Andrew asks what it's like running a successful poetry journal. It's a fun one!

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Listen to more episodes of Page Fright here. Follow the podcast on Instagram here.

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Chris Johnson (he/they) is a bi, settler poet from Scarborough, ON, currently living on unceded, unsurrendered territory of the Anishinaabe Algonquin Nation. He is the Managing Editor for Arc Poetry Magazine, a board member for the Ottawa Arts Council, and a member of the creative collective VII.

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Andrew French is an author from North Vancouver, British Columbia. They have published two chapbooks, Poems for Different Yous (Rose Garden Press, 2021) and Do Not Discard Ashes (845 Press, 2020). Andrew holds a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. They write poems, book reviews, and host this very podcast.

Chris Banks pops by to discuss his 7th poetry collection, Alternator. Andrew talks about being a writer who doesn't write. It's a lovely chat!

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Listen to more episodes of Page Fright here. Follow the podcast on Instagram here.

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Chris Banks is a Canadian poet and the author of seven collections of poetry, most recently Alternator with Nightwood Editions in 2021. His first full-length collection, Bonfires, was aw2arded the Jack Chalmers Award for Poetry by the Canadian Authors Association in 2004. Bonfires was also a finalist for the Gerald Lampert Memorial Award for best first book of poetry in Canada. His poetry has appeared in The New Quarterly, Arc Magazine, The Antigonish Review, Event, The Malahat Review, GRIFFEL, American Poetry Journal and PRISM International, among other publications. He lives and writes in Kitchener, Ontario.

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Andrew French is an author from North Vancouver, British Columbia. They have published two chapbooks, Poems for Different Yous (Rose Garden Press, 2021) and Do Not Discard Ashes (845 Press, 2020). Andrew holds a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. They write poems, book reviews, and host this very podcast.

Brandi Bird stops by the virtual studio to talk about their debut poetry collection, The All + Flesh. Andrew relates their obsession with Mary Oliver to Brandi's work. It's a great time!

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Listen to more episodes of Page Fright here. Follow the podcast on Twitter here.

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Brandi Bird is an Indigiqueer Saulteaux, Cree, and Métis writer and editor from Treaty 1 territory. They currently live and learn on the land of the Squamish, Tsleil-Waututh, and Musqueam peoples. Bird’s poems have been published in Catapult, The Puritan, Room Magazine, and others. They are a fourth year BFA student at the University of British Columbia, but their heart is always yearning for the prairies.

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Andrew French is an author from North Vancouver, British Columbia. They have published two chapbooks, Poems for Different Yous (Rose Garden Press, 2021) and Do Not Discard Ashes (845 Press, 2020). Andrew holds a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. They write poems, book reviews, and host this very podcast.

Tom Cull joins Andrew to reconnect and talk about his new poetry collection, Kill Your Starlings. Andrew asks about elegies and IKEA. It's a good one!

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Listen to more episodes of Page Fright here. Follow the podcast on Twitter here.

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Tom Cull was born and raised in Huron County in Treaty 29 territory. He currently resides in London, Ontario, on the traditional lands of the Anishinaabeg, Haudenosaunee, Lenape, Attawandaron and Huron-Wendat peoples. Tom works at the Upper Thames River Conservation Authority and teaches creative writing at Western University. He was the Poet Laureate for the City of London from 2016-2018. Tom is the author of two books of poems: Kill Your Starlings (Gaspereau Press, 2023) and Bad Animals (Insomniac Press, 2018). His chapbook, What the Badger Said, was published in 2013 (Baseline Press). His work has appeared in several journals, and anthologies including This Magazine, The Rusty Toque, Long Con Magazine, The Windsor Review, The New Quarterly, The Dalhousie Review, and Undocumented: Great Lakes Poet Laureates on Social Justice (Michigan State UP). His work has also been included in group exhibitions through Embassy Cultural House, and GardenShip and State. Cull is the director of Antler River Rally (ARR), a grass roots environmental group he co-founded in 2012 with his partner Miriam Love. ARR works to protect and restore the Deshkan Ziibi (Antler River).  

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Andrew French is an author from North Vancouver, British Columbia. They have published two chapbooks, Poems for Different Yous (Rose Garden Press, 2021) and Do Not Discard Ashes (845Press, 2020). Andrew holds a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. They write poems, book reviews, and host this very podcast.

Jen Currin and Andrew sit down to chat about Jen's new poetry collection, Trinity Street. Andrew talks the poetic and personal. It's a blast!

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Listen to more episodes of Page Fright here. Follow the podcast on Twitter here.

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Jen Currin lives on the unceded, ancestral, and traditional territories of the Halq̓eméylem-speaking peoples, including the Qayqayt, Kwikwetlem, Musqueam, and Kwantlen Nations (New Westminster, BC, a suburb of Vancouver). They teach in the Creative Writing and English Upgrading Departments at Kwantlen Polytechnic University.

Jen’s most recent poetry collection is Trinity Street (House of Anansi, 2023). They have published four other collections of poetry: The Sleep of Four Cities (Anvil Press, 2005); Hagiography (Coach House, 2008); The Inquisition Yours (Coach House, 2010), which won the 2011 Audre Lorde Award for Lesbian Poetry and was shortlisted for the 2011 Dorothy Livesay Poetry Prize (B.C. Book Prizes), the Lambda Literary Award in Poetry, and a ReLit Award; and School (Coach House, 2014), which was a finalist for a 2015 ReLit Award, the Dorothy Livesay Prize and the Pat Lowther Award. Their chapbook The Ends was published by Nomados in 2013. Jen’s first collection of stories, Hider/Seeker (Anvil Press, 2018), was awarded a Canadian Independent Book Award, was named a 2018 Globe and Mail Best Book, and was shortlisted for a ReLit Award.

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Andrew French is an author from North Vancouver, British Columbia. They have published two chapbooks, Poems for Different Yous (Rose Garden Press, 2021) and Do Not Discard Ashes (845Press, 2020). Andrew holds a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. They write poems, book reviews, and host this very podcast.

MA|DE (Mark Laliberte & Jade Wallace) pop by to talk about their debut collaborative full-length poetry collection, ZZOO. Andrew tries to wrap their head around writing with another person. It's a fun one!

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Subscribe to get Andrew's 3rd chapbook, Buoyhood, at this link and come to the launch alongside chapbooks from Marc Perez and Kevin Spenst! April 19, 5pm, Teck Gallery SFU Harbour Centre, Vancouver.--MA|DE (est. 2018) is a collaborative writing entity, a unity of two voices fused into a single, poetic third. It is the name given to the joint authorship of Mark Laliberte and Jade Wallace. MA|DE's published work comprises 4 chapbooks, including the bpNichol Award-shortlisted A Trip to the ZZOO from Collusion Books, and debut full-length poetry collection, ZZOO (released with 5 variant animal-themed covers), out now from Palimpsest Press. Their follow-up book, Detourism, is forthcoming in 2028. More: ma-de.ca

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Andrew French is a poet from North Vancouver, British Columbia. They have published three chapbooks, most recently Buoyhood (forthcoming with Alfred Gustav Press, 2025). Andrew holds a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. They write poems, book reviews, and have hosted this very podcast since 2019.

Jade Wallace joins Andrew to discuss their debut full-length poetry collection, Love Is A Place But You Cannot Live There. Andrews learns about psychogeography and ponders its relationship with gender. It's a great time if you like poetry, talking, or talking about poetry!

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Listen to more episodes of Page Fright here. Follow the podcast on Twitter here. Follow the podcast on Instagram here.

----- Jade Wallace (they/them) is the reviews editor for CAROUSEL, co-founder of the collaborative writing entity MA|DE, and the author of the debut poetry collection Love Is A Place But You Cannot Live There (Guernica Editions 2023) and the collaborative poetry collection ZZOO (Palimpsest Press, 2025). Keep in touch: jadewallace.ca

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Andrew French is an author from North Vancouver, British Columbia. They have published two chapbooks, Poems for Different Yous (Rose Garden Press, 2021) and Do Not Discard Ashes (845  Press, 2020). Andrew holds a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. They write poems, book reviews, and host this very podcast.

Vivian Li sits down to talk about her debut poetry chapbook, Someday I Promise, I'll Love You. Andrews asks Vivian about love poems and the role of sound in her work. It's a joy!

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Listen to more episodes of Page Fright here. Follow the podcast on Twitter here. Follow the podcast on Instagram here.

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Vivian (Xiao Wen) Li (she/her) is a queer first-generation Chinese-Canadian immigrant writer, musician, director, and interdisciplinary artist suffering from depression. Her passion in life is creation and co-creation between artists, collaborators, and communities, with themes related to mental health and liminal identity. Her creative works are forthcoming or published in The New Quarterly, The Massachusetts Review, The Fiddlehead, CV2, and Vallum, among others. Most recently, she was a Finalist for the Peter Hinchcliffe Award, Longlisted for the Commonwealth Short Story Prize, and Shortlisted for the Vancouver City Poems Contest. Her first chapbook, Someday I Promise, I’ll Love You (845 Press), was published last year, and her debut short musical dramedy film, In Silence, We Sing, premiered at the Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival 2022. Her past acting/ playwright credits include Little Women (UBC Players Club) and Guitar Strings (Festival Dionysia; Coffeehouse Theatre Society; Green College Players). She has directed for the Or Festival and the Brave New Play Rites Festival. She has also received research grants from SSHRC, MITACs, and Go Global, among others, and is currently a member of the League of Canadian Poets, Playwrights Guild of Canada, as well as The Writers' Union of Canada. A MFA candidate at the UBC School of Creative Writing, she currently edits for PRISM international and Augur, and can be reached on Twitter/ Instagram @vivianlicreates.

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Andrew French is an author from North Vancouver, British Columbia. They have published two chapbooks, Poems for Different Yous (Rose Garden Press, 2021) and Do Not Discard Ashes (845  Press, 2020). Andrew holds a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. They write poems, book reviews, and host this very podcast.

Charlie Petch joins the pod to talk about their debut poetry collection, Why I Was Late. Andrew talks about being non-binary and how it's impacted their writing. It's a fun exploration!

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Listen to more episodes of Page Fright here. Follow the podcast on Twitter here. Follow the podcast on Instagram here.

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Charlie Petch (they/them, he/him) is a disabled/queer/transmasculine multidisciplinary artist who resides in Tkaronto/Toronto. A poet, playwright, librettist, musician, lighting designer, and host, Petch was the 2017 Poet of Honour for the speakNORTH national festival, winner of the Golden Beret lifetime achievement in spoken word with The League of Canadian Poets (2020), and founder of Hot Damn it's a Queer Slam. Petch is a touring performer, as well as a mentor and workshop facilitator. Their debut poetry collection, Why I Was Late (Brick Books), won the 2022 ReLit Award, and was named "Best of 2021" by The Walrus. Their film with Opera QTO, Medusa's Children, premièred 2022.  They have been featured on the CBC's Q, the Toronto International Festival of Authors, and were long-listed for the CBC Poetry Prize in 2021.

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Andrew French is an author from North Vancouver, British Columbia. They have published two chapbooks, Poems for Different Yous (Rose Garden Press, 2021) and Do Not Discard Ashes (845  Press, 2020). Andrew holds a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. They write poems, book reviews, and host this very podcast.

Yvonne Blomer pops by to talk about her latest poetry collection, The Last Show on Earth. Andrew goes to the expert for water and nature poem advice. It's a joy!

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Listen to more episodes of Page Fright here. Follow the podcast on Twitter here. Follow the podcast on Instagram here.

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Yvonne Blomer lives on the traditional territories of the WSÁNEC´ (Saanich) peoples of the Coast Salish Nation. Her most recent book is The Last Show on Earth, Caitlin Press, 2022.  In the fall of 2022 Palimpsest Press released Book of Places” 10th Anniversary Edition with new poems and layout. Yvonne’s poetry books also include As if a Raven (Palimpsest Press, 2015), and the anthologies Refugium: Poems for the Pacific and Sweet Water: Poems for the Watersheds (Caitlin Press, 2017 and 2021). Sugar Ride: Cycling from Hanoi to Kuala Lumpur is her memoir exploring body, time, and travel. Yvonne is the past Poet Laureate of Victoria, B.C. and Arc Magazine’s poet-in-residence for 2022-23. This spring the anthology Yvonne co-edited, Hologram: Poems for P.K. Page will be released with Caitlin Press.

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Andrew French is an author from North Vancouver, British Columbia. They have published two chapbooks, Poems for Different Yous (Rose Garden Press, 2021) and Do Not Discard Ashes (845  Press, 2020). Andrew holds a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. They write poems, book reviews, and host this very podcast.

Cecily Nicholson chats about her new poetry collection, Harrowings. Andrew asks Cecily about her research process and how to use a page. It's a fun time!

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Listen to more episodes of Page Fright here. Follow the podcast on Twitter here. Follow the podcast on Instagram here.

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Cecily Nicholson is the author of four books, and past recipient of the Dorothy Livesay Poetry Prize, and the Governor General’s Literary Award for poetry. She has held the Ellen and Warren Tallman Writer in Residence at Simon Fraser University, and Writer in Residence at the University of Windsor. She teaches at Emily Carr University of Art + Design and collaborates with community impacted by carcerality and food insecurity.

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Andrew French is an author from North Vancouver, British Columbia. They have published two chapbooks, Poems for Different Yous (Rose Garden Press, 2021) and Do Not Discard Ashes (845  Press, 2020). Andrew holds a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. They write poems, book reviews, and host this very podcast.

Sanna Wani joins Andrew to talk about her new poetry collection, My Grief, the Sun. Andrew talks to Sanna about grief and searching in poems. It's a blast!

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Listen to more episodes of Page Fright here. Follow the podcast on Twitter here. Follow the podcast on Instagram here.

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Sanna Wani loves daisies and lives in Toronto. She is the author of My Grief, the Sun (House of Anansi, 2022) and the newsletter booklight. She is working on a romance novel.

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Andrew French is an author from North Vancouver, British Columbia. They have published two chapbooks, Poems for Different Yous (Rose Garden Press, 2021) and Do Not Discard Ashes (845  Press, 2020). Andrew holds a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. They write poems, book reviews, and host this very podcast.

David Ly joins Andrew to talk about his new poetry collection, Dream of Me As Water. Andrew tells David he should work at an aquarium. It's a great time!

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Listen to more episodes of Page Fright here. Follow the podcast on Twitter here. Follow the podcast on Instagram here.

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David Ly is a writer and editor whose debut poetry collection, Mythical Man (Palimpsest Press, 2020), was shortlisted for the 2021 Relit Poetry Award. His work has appeared in PRISM International, The Puritan, carte blanche, The /temz/ Review, Arc Poetry Magazine, Augur Magazine and elsewhere. David is the poetry editor at THIS Magazine, part of the Anstruther Press editorial collective, and a poetry manuscript consultant with The Writers’ Studio at SFU. Dream of Me as Water is his second poetry collection.

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Andrew French is an author from North Vancouver, British Columbia. They have published two chapbooks, Poems for Different Yous (Rose Garden Press, 2021) and Do Not Discard Ashes (845  Press, 2020). Andrew holds a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. They write poems, book reviews, and host this very podcast.

Andrew gives a short audio review of and reading from Shaun Robinson's If You Discover a Fire (Brick Books, 2020).

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Listen to more episodes of Page Fright here. Follow the podcast on Twitter here. Follow the podcast on Instagram here.

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Andrew French is an author from North Vancouver, British Columbia. They have published two chapbooks, Poems for Different Yous (Rose Garden Press, 2021) and Do Not Discard Ashes (845  Press, 2020). Andrew has a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. They write poems, book reviews, and host this very podcast.

Manahil Bandukwala joins Andrew to chat about her debut full-length poetry collection, MONUMENT. Andrew questions whether a speaker is always necessary. It's a fun one!

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Listen to more episodes of Page Fright here. Follow the podcast on Twitter here. Follow the podcast on Instagram here.

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Manahil Bandukwala is a writer and visual artist originally from Pakistan and now settled in Canada. She works as Coordinating Editor for Arc Poetry Magazine, and is Digital Content Editor for Canthius. She is a member of Ottawa-based collaborative writing group VII. Her debut poetry collection is MONUMENT (Brick Books). See her work at manahilbandukwala.com.

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Andrew French is an author from North Vancouver, British Columbia. He has published two chapbooks, Poems for Different Yous (Rose Garden Press, 2021) and Do Not Discard Ashes (845  Press, 2020). Andrew has a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. He writes poems, book reviews, and hosts this very podcast.

Andrew begins a series of short audio reviews of poetry collections with a quick review of and reading from Jason Purcell's Swollening.

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Listen to more episodes of Page Fright here. Follow the podcast on Twitter here. Follow the podcast on Instagram here.

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Andrew French is an author from North Vancouver, British Columbia. They have published two chapbooks, Poems for Different Yous (Rose Garden Press, 2021) and Do Not Discard Ashes (845  Press, 2020). Andrew has a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. They write poems, book reviews, and host this very podcast.

Annick MacAskill is back to talk compiling her latest collection, Votive (Gaspereau Press). Andrew asks about book length and queer poems. It's a good one!

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Annick MacAskill is the author of four full-length books of poetry, including Shadow Blight (Gaspereau Press, 2022), which won the Governor General's Award. Her most recent collection is Votive (Gaspereau Press, 2024). She is also the publisher of Opaat Press, a micropress focused on publishing pamphlets of individual poems. MacAskill lives in Kjipuktuk (Halifax, Nova Scotia), on the traditional and unceded territory of the Mi'kmaq.

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Andrew French is a poet from North Vancouver, British Columbia. They have published three chapbooks, most recently Buoyhood (forthcoming with Alfred Gustav Press, 2025). Andrew holds a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. They write poems, book reviews, and have hosted this very podcast since 2019.

Annick MacAskill stops by the virtual studio to talk about her new book, Shadow Blight. Andrew asks Annick about applying myth to the personal. It's a great chat!

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Listen to more episodes of Page Fright here. Follow the podcast on Twitter here. Follow the podcast on Instagram here.

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Annick MacAskill is the author of the poetry collections No Meeting Without Body (Gaspereau Press, 2018), a finalist for the Gerald Lampert Memorial Award and the J.M. Abraham Award, and Murmurations (Gaspereau Press, 2020). Her third book, Shadow Blight, was published by Gaspereau Press this spring. Her poems have appeared in journals and anthologies across Canada and abroad, and she is currently serving as Arc Poetry Magazine's Poet-in-Residence. She lives in K'jipuktuk (Halifax) on the traditional and unceded territory of the Mi'kmaq. annickmacaskill.com.

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Andrew French is an author from North Vancouver, British Columbia. He has published two chapbooks, Poems for Different Yous (Rose Garden Press, 2021) and Do Not Discard Ashes (845  Press, 2020). Andrew has a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. He writes poems, book reviews, and hosts this very podcast.

rob mclennan joins Andrew for a discussion of his new book of prose poems, the book of smaller. Andrew and rob chat about reviews and community. It's a good time!

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Listen to more episodes of Page Fright here. Follow the podcast on Twitter here. Follow the podcast on Instagram here.

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Born in Ottawa, Canada’s glorious capital city, rob mclennan currently lives in Ottawa, where he is home full-time with the two wee girls he shares with Christine McNair. The author of more than thirty trade books of poetry, fiction and non-fiction, he won the John Newlove Poetry Award in 2010, the Council for the Arts in Ottawa Mid-Career Award in 2014, and was longlisted for the CBC Poetry Prize in 2012 and 2017. In March, 2016, he was inducted into the VERSe Ottawa Hall of Honour. His most recent titles include the poetry collection the book of smaller (University of Calgary Press, 2022), and a suite of pandemic essays, essays in the face of uncertainties (Mansfield Press, 2022). An editor and publisher, he runs above/ground press, periodicities: a journal of poetry and poetics (periodicityjournal.blogspot.com) and Touch the Donkey (touchthedonkey.blogspot.com). He is editor of my (small press) writing day, and an editor/managing editor of many gendered mothers. In spring 2020, he won ‘best pandemic beard’ from Coach House Books via Twitter, of which he is extremely proud (and mentions constantly). He spent the 2007-8 academic year in Edmonton as writer-in-residence at the University of Alberta, and regularly posts reviews, essays, interviews and other notices at robmclennan.blogspot.com.

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Andrew French is an author from North Vancouver, British Columbia. He has published two chapbooks, Poems for Different Yous (Rose Garden Press, 2021) and Do Not Discard Ashes (845  Press, 2020). Andrew has a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. He writes poems, book reviews, and hosts this very podcast.

Carlie Blume comes by the virtual studio to talk about her debut poetry collection, Gigglepuss. Andrew and Carlie talk trauma and poetry. It's an enriching chat!

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Listen to more episodes of Page Fright here. Follow the podcast on Twitter here. Follow the podcast on Instagram here.

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Carlie Blume was born on the unceded and ancestral lands of the Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh (Vancouver). She is a 2017 graduate of Simon Fraser University’s The Writer’s Studio and the author of Gigglepuss (Guernica, 2022). She currently lives on Salt Spring Island, B.C with her husband and two children.

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Andrew French is an author from North Vancouver, British Columbia. He has published two chapbooks, Poems for Different Yous (Rose Garden Press, 2021) and Do Not Discard Ashes (845  Press, 2020).  Andrew has a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. He writes poems, book reviews, and hosts this very podcast.

Chris Banks drops by to chat about his new book of poetry, Deepfake Serenade. Andrew asks about avoiding stereotypical depictions of sobriety in a poem. It's a super fun one!

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Listen to more episodes of Page Fright here. Follow the podcast on Twitter here. Follow the podcast on Instagram here.

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Chris Banks is a Canadian poet and author of six collections of poems, most recently Deepfake Serenade out with Nightwood Editions (Fall 2021). His first full-length collection, Bonfires, was awarded the Jack Chalmers Award for poetry by the Canadian Authors’ Association in 2004. Bonfires was also a finalist for the Gerald Lampert Award for best first book of poetry in Canada.  His poetry has appeared in The New Quarterly, Arc Magazine, The Antigonish Review, Event, The Malahat Review, GRIFFEL, American Poetry Journal, Prism International, among other publications. He lives and writes in Kitchener, Ontario.

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Andrew French is an author from North Vancouver, British Columbia. He has published two chapbooks, Poems for Different Yous (Rose Garden Press, 2021) and Do Not Discard Ashes (845  Press, 2020).  Andrew has a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. He writes poems, book reviews, and hosts this very podcast.

Natalie Lim pops into the virtual studio to chat about her debut poetry chapbook, arrhythmia. Andrew mistakes a book of non-rhyming poems for a book of rhyming ones. It's a solid time!

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Listen to more episodes of Page Fright here. Follow the podcast on Twitter here. Follow the podcast on Instagram here.

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Natalie Lim is a Chinese-Canadian poet living on the unceded, traditional territories of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh peoples (Vancouver, BC). She is the winner of the 2018 CBC Poetry Prize and Room Magazine's 2020 Emerging Writer Award, with work published in ARC Poetry Magazine, Best Canadian Poetry 2020, and elsewhere. Her debut poetry chapbook, arrhythmia, was published by Rahila's Ghost Press in 2022. You can find Natalie on twitter at @nataliemlim.

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Andrew French is an author from North Vancouver, British Columbia. He has published two chapbooks, Poems for Different Yous (Rose Garden Press, 2021) and Do Not Discard Ashes (845  Press, 2020).  Andrew has a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. He writes poems, book reviews, and hosts this very podcast.