Gillian Wallace was born in Montreal and lived in the area until she was nine, when her family moved to the city where Jumbo the Elephant died: St. Thomas, Ontario. Having earned her BA in music (performance) at the University of Western Ontario, she went on to do graduate work (MA Toronto, PhD Ottawa) in the psychology of religion. She taught part-time at the University of Ottawa for five years while writing her thesis on original sin.

Once done, she turned her attention to literature, graduating from the Humber School for Writers in fiction in 2004. She started writing poetry seriously in 2007 but continues to work on novels, polishing her first one to be publisher ready (learner ones lie buried in a drawer) and editing the first draft of another one.

Gillian now makes her home in Ottawa where she lives in a glass house with her geographer husband and is a member of the OtherTongues poetry group.

Awards:

2012                2^nd Prize, Poetry, This Magazine, Great Canadian Literary Hunt
2012                Honourable Mention, Poetry, Room Magazine 2012 Contest
2010                Hot Ottawa Voice in Poetry, Tree Reading Series
2009                Diana Brebner Prize for Poetry, Arc Poetry Magazine,
.                       ‘Crow, of the family Corvidae’
2009                Finalist, Origami Crane Open-Mic Prize, Tree Reading Series

Poems Published In:

2012                in Descant 159: A Winter’s Guide to Melancholia, 3 poems
2012                in This Magazine, online, 1 poem
2012                in Room Magazine, online, 1 poem
2012                in After the Bookstore Closes for the Night Chapbook, 3 poems
2011                in a wall’s sharp white Chapbook, 1 poem
2010                Parliamentary Poem of the Month, December
2010                in Arc Poetry Annual 2011, 1 commissioned poem
2010                in Room Magazine 33.1, 2 poems
2010                in Arc Poetry Magazine, Winter, 1 poem
2010                in Barely Their Chapbook, 2 poems
2009                in ottawater, 5th Issue, 1 poem
2008                in The Antigonish Review, 154, 1 poem
2007                in Ottawa Arts Review, Fall, 1 poem

Praise:

‘Crow, of the family Corvidae’ – firstly… there is not a misstep anywhere, not a bump or confusion or weak word; the language throughout is accomplished and lyrical. Secondly, the poem is integrated: it is whole, complete, entirely satisfying. Finally, although it reads like a gentle nature lyric, it encompasses tensions between death and life, loneliness and community, youth and age, natural and human violence… Susan McMaster

Readings:

2010:
Sept 18      Arc Poetry Annual 2011 Poetry Art Chain, Manx Pub, Ottawa
Sept 18      Barely Their Poetry Obelisk Launch, outside Blink Gallery, Ottawa
Aug 10       Hot Ottawa Voices, Tree Reading Series, Arts Court, Ottawa
Feb 16       Diana Brebner Prize, Arc Launch, Collected Works Bookstore, Ottawa
Jan 29       Ottawater 5 Launch, Arts Court, Ottawa

Interview

2010         Guerilla Magazine