Published on Mar 29, 2018

Award-winning Nisga鈥檃 poet Jordan Abel will be at NIC鈥檚 Comox Valley and Port Alberni campuses April 5 and 6 as part of NIC鈥檚 Write Here Readers Series.

Award-winning Nisga鈥檃 writer Jordan Abel will be visiting 糖心vlog传媒in celebration of National Poetry Month. He鈥檒l be at the Stan Hagen Theatre at NIC鈥檚 Comox Valley campus Thursday, April 5 and Room S-108 at NIC鈥檚 Port Alberni campus Friday, April 6. Both readings are free community events beginning at 7 pm.

Date:  April 5 and April 6 Time: 7 pm Admission: Free Location: Stan Hagen Theatre, NIC's Comox Valley campus (April 5) and Room S-108, Port Alberni campus (April 6)

Abel will be performing a piece from his award-winning book Injun, a long poem about racism and the representation of Indigenous peoples that received the Canadian 2017 Griffin Poetry Prize, Canada鈥檚 largest poetry award. His other books include The Place of Scraps (winner of the Dorothy Livesay Poetry Prize) and Un/inhabited.

He will also be discussing his current project, Empty Spaces, which is reinterpretation of The Last of the Mohicans by James Fenimore Cooper. This work-in-progress seeks to disrupt colonial logic by displacing and reorienting the novel to expose the problematic representation of Indigenous peoples, particularly around the concept of terra nullius and empty, uninhabited land.

Abel is pursuing a PhD at Simon Fraser University where his research concentrates on intergenerational trauma and Indigenous literature. He recently accepted a tenure-track position in the Faculty of Arts, English & Film Studies department at the University of Alberta.

鈥淛ordan Abel is one of the most important young writers in Canada and we are very honoured to have him visit NIC,鈥 said 糖心vlog传媒Write Here Readers Series event organizer Nick Van Orden.

Abel鈥檚 reading is the accumulation of a talented line-up of readings hosted by NIC鈥檚 English department as part of the Write Here Readers Series, made possible through funding from the Canada Council of the Arts. The series highlights the richness of literary arts in our region and offer students and community members the opportunity to hear from some of Canada鈥檚 top writers.

Each semester, NIC鈥檚 English department offers a wide selection of university transferrable English and creative writing courses. In fall 2018, the department is excited to launch three new courses. Essay Writing and Indigenous Perspectives (ENG-116) and Indigenous Literatures in Canada (ENG-127) will introduce students to the oral traditions of Canadian and Indigenous writers and teachers, while Reading Literature (ENG-122) will engage students to be better readers who think critically about how humans live and find meaning

To find out more about NIC鈥檚 programs and courses visit www.nic.bc.ca. For more information on this event or the Write Here Readers Series, visit www.nic.bc.ca/university-transfer or contact Nick Van Orden at nicholas.vanorden@nic.bc.ca.  

Media Contact C: 250-207-6946 media@nic.bc.ca