Hone Your Craft with the VIU Creative Writing Association
Do you enjoy writing fiction, non-fiction, poetry, scripts, or academic essays? Maybe you don’t like writing as much but you love correcting grammar and sentence structure. If any of the above apply to you, VIU’s Creative Writing Association (VCWA) would love to have you. Commonly known as “CREW Club,” VCWA is a weekly meeting run … Continued
The Trials and Tribulations of a Bookworm
I’ve been banned. From getting new books. By me. Why, you might ask? Because I suffer from the age-old problem of readers the world over: too many unread books. I put books on hold at the library. I pick them up. I see interesting options in the ‘New Titles’ and display areas; a few end … Continued
Where Does Creativity Hide?
How do we find our creativity? Inspiration can seem like a skittish adopted cat coming into our home for the first time. As badly as we want to go to it and let it know we’re a friend, it darts away under the couch or the bed every time we get near. No amount of … Continued
Erin Perkins
The start of the 2022 school year has me thinking of beginnings but also traditions. I’m the brand-new Arts Editor for The Navigator. How will I differ from all the past writers who made The Nav what it is today? To answer this question, I needed to speak to a Navigator alum. I met Erin … Continued
Portal 2022
VIU’s student-run and full-colour annual literary magazine is going to be celebrated in-person for the first time in three years thanks to the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions. The launch of the new issue will celebrate the accomplishments of the nearly 90 VIU student contributors since 2020. Portal 2022, on newsstands across the country in May, … Continued
Aimee Wall’s Debut
This interview first appeared in an episode of Portal Magazine’s Portfolio series on YouTube, and has been edited for written format. * * * I found myself on Giller Prize-nominated author Aimee Wall’s website after my professor said I needed more biographical details for my book review on Wall’s book We, Jane. My eyes landed on … Continued
Susan Juby’s New Book
VIU Creating Writing and Journalism professor Susan Juby said her new book, Mindful of Murder, is a “murder mystery, but it’s a funny one.” The novel, released March 8, is Juby’s twelfth and her “first real big” mystery. She has written mysteries for a Young Adult audience, but this is her first entry with an … Continued
Review: The Visitor
VIU’s Theatre department put on a fantastically creepy adaptation of Friedrich Durrenmatt’s The Visit from March 2–5—and they may have outdone themselves this time. Adapted and written by professor Leon Potter and retitled The Visitor, the university’s theatre students tackled the age-old question of “how far would you go for money?” The play centres around … Continued
Death on the Nile Review
*Spoilers for the 1937 novel and 2022 movie.* I’m usually calm at movie theatres. But during Death on the Nile (2022), I lost it—and not in a good way. Death on the Nile (1937) is my favourite Agatha Christie mystery. I’ve read it three times, presented on it in class, and watched all screen adaptations. … Continued
Joe Enns
The balancing point of what you want to do and what you need to do to sustain yourself can seem like a near-invisible wire. When I talked to Creative Writing and Journalism (CREW) student Joe Enns, it struck me that he seemed to have cracked the code to living as close to a balanced life … Continued
Global Storytelling
The latest entry in the Arts and Humanities Colloquium Series took place on Friday, February 11. Creative Writing and Journalism professors Craig Taylor and Dr. Sonnet L’Abbé presented on “Listening to The World / Storying A Place” in Malaspina Theatre. It was the second of three events in VIU’s Spring 2022 Colloquium Series, and took … Continued
The Role of the Preserved Poem
Acclaimed poet A.F. Moritz is the 2021–2022 Ralph Gustafson Distinguished Poet at VIU. Moritz has written over 20 books of poetry, most recently As Far As You Know (2020). He has won many awards including the Griffin Poetry Prize and the Guggenheim Fellowship, and was nominated three times for the Governor General’s Award. He is … Continued
Urban Issues Film Festival
The Urban Issues Film Festival is coming back this Friday to VIU for the first time since 2019 as part of Global Citizens Week. “It’s great to be back,” Don Alexander, retired Geography professor and co-founder of the film festival, said. “We’ve been missing the festival.” Alexander said the event is “very student-driven.” The Master … Continued
Connecting with the Local Art Scene
In a world of two-day Amazon shipping, it’s easy to become disconnected from one’s own community. There’s a growing emphasis on supporting local businesses, and an achievable first step could be to take time to discover and support local artists. However, it can be a struggle to determine how to connect or reconnect with Vancouver … Continued