Fiction firsts, 20 years later

Fiction firsts, 20 years later

Nunatuk 20th

nunatak: Inuktitut word for an exposed element of a ridge or mountain, not covered with ice or snow, rising above an ice field or glacier. NeWest Nunatak authors are publishing their stories for the first time, becoming a part of a vast landscape of Canadian literary talent.

20 years ago
The Nunatak First Fiction series was established in 1989 by NeWest editors Aritha van Herk and Rudy Wiebe. By supporting outstanding works by emerging talents, these talented editors acted as critical mentors to a new generation of Canadian writers, a role that NeWest continues to fill today. Joining the Nunatak editorial ranks over the years are Lynne van Luven, Anne Nothof, and, in full circle, Thomas Wharton and Suzette Mayr, both of whose debut novels, Icefields and Moon Honey, were published by NeWest in 1995. Our Nunatak authors have garnered many awards and nominations, including several Commonwealth Writers’ Prizes, and have seen their first books published in many countries.

In 2009, NeWest Press celebrated the longest-running first fiction series in Canada. Now counting 29 titles (23 in print), Nunatak has evolved into a premier showcase for new talent.

You read it here first.

Featured Nunatak Titles

Seal Intestine Raincoat offers a cautionary tale for our times, with its bleak portrayal of socio-economic collapse resulting from an unsustainable way of life. It also unearths the powerful human instincts that convert helpless fear into the desire to adapt.

William Neil Scott's Wonderfull was nominated for this year's London Reads competition. Click here to vote on whick book you think London should read.

Story of Garfax

Ghosts of Garfax

Publishing Wonderfull

Reading by William Neil Scott

Michael Davie's first novel, Fishing for Bacon, follows Bacon Sobelowski, an 18-year-old boy with an absentee father, a neglectful mother, and the worst timing one can possibly have. And all he wants is to find his "someone". Click on the icons below to sample this amazing story.

Click here to watch the Fishing for Bacon book trailer, in which author Michael Davie talks to his main character, Bacon.

Who is Bacon?

Bacon's name

Bacon's father

Writing Bacon

CBC Radio One Daybreak Interview

Alice Zorn delves deep into her characters' sometimes questionable motivations in her debut short story collection, Ruins & Relics . She also reads from her most memorable story, Ruins & Relics.