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Anne Lazurko

Anne Lazurko

Photo: Vanessa Lanktree Photography

Anne Lazurko is an award-winning author, a no-awards farmer, and sometime poet. Her novel, What is Written on the Tongue, was released April 2022 by ECW Press. Dollybird (Coteau), received the 2014 WILLA award for historical fiction and was shortlisted for the Saskatchewan Fiction Award. In 2018 she received the Saskatchewan Foundation for the Arts Literary Award. Her poetry was most recently published in Apart: a year of pandemic poetry and prose (SWG), and Gush: Menstrual Manifestos for our Time (Frontenac House). Anne has a Political Science degree, is a graduate of the Humber Creative Writing Program, and is active is an active mentor, teacher and editor in the prairie writing community. She writes from her farm near Weyburn, SK.

Email:
alazurko@sasktel.net
City:
Weyburn
Province:
Saskatchewan
Genre:
Fiction; Poetry
I write professionally in the following language(s):
English

Publications

What Is Written on the Tongue. April 2022, ECW Press
Dollybird. 2013; 2021, Coteau; Kindle/Kobo e-editions

Awards

Willa Award (historical fiction) for Dollybird, 2014
Saskatchewan Foundation for the Arts Literary Award for What Is Written on the Tongue, 2018
Links:
Anne Lazurko blog
http://www.annelazurko.com
,
Eligible for National Public Readings Program:
Yes

WITS

Are you available for public presentations and/or workshops:
Yes
Presentation Description

Perfecting the Pitch:

How do you condense the depth of characters, excitement of plot and the beautiful prose of your 300-page masterpiece into a one- or two-page synopsis? And that damn query letter…what grabs their attention and how do you write it! And how much is too much when the agent or publisher asks for a ‘sample’? And what the hell is an Artist Statement anyway?

Using tools gained over many submissions to agents, publishers and granting agencies, I will will lead participants through the maze of the perfect pitch. Many of my pitches have been successful. Some not. But I’ve learned new tricks with each and been told by publishers, agents and grant coordinators, big and small, that in the case of my pitch, it’s good, it works.

I’ll share some insight with emerging writers to take some of the mystery and fear out of the process of the sometimes-baffling world of publishing. 

Presentation Length:
half day
Genre:
Fiction /Non-fiction
Grades:
Adult: ages 16 to 100
Audience Size:
6-12
Presenation:
$400
Workshop Description:

The Story of Creations:

Discover where story ideas come from, how characters are developed, how setting creates an atmoshpere for those characters and how plot and structure tie the whole thing together. This workshop can be held over one day or in 2 sessions, and delivered either in person or online. Contact me for details. 

Workshop Length:
full day
Workshop Intended Audience:
Adult agest 16 to 100
Workshop Audience Size:
6-12
Workshop Fee:
$800
Are you available for school visits?:
Yes
School Presentation Description:

Writing Characters into History:

Whether fiction or memoir, creative non-fiction or essay, characters and their motivations are what drive a story forward. In this interactive workshop, learn how to craft compelling characters that bring historical time and place to life. We'll delve into the choices a writer makes about any given history, how the setting affects character and vice-versa, and the necessary research to bring the whole thing together. Offered either in-person or online. Full day or two sessions. Contact me for details.  

School Presentation Length:
Full day or 2 half day sessions
School Intended Audience:
Adult ages 16 to 100
School Audience Size:
6-12
School Presentation Fee:
$800
Interested in participating in the Union’s Ontario Writers-in-the-Schools program:
Yes
Interested in participating in the Northern Ontario WITS program:
Yes