News Stories
Portal “rewires and connects” at the launch of its 2024 issue
April 16, 2024
The magazine launches on April 26 at the Nanaimo Curling Club from 7 to 9:30 pm. Vancouver Island University’s (VIU’s) student-run, full-colour literary magazine, Portal, celebrates the release of its 33rd annual issue. This year the magazine is launching at a new venue – the upstairs lounge of the Nanaimo Curling Club, 106 Wall St. Doors open at 6:30 pm and tickets are $20, which includes a... Read more
Celebrated poet Karen Solie to give VIU Gustafson lecture
January 30, 2024
Update: The Karen Solie Gustafson poet lecture and readings have been rescheduled to March 13 and 14. Please note the new dates and times below: The student reading is on March 13 from 10 to 11:30 am in the Malaspina Theatre lobby (Building 310) The community reading is on March 13 at White Sails, 125 Comox Road, from 7 to 8:30 pm, with student Sam Bollinger opening for Solie. The Gustafson... Read more
Alum of the Month: Spenser Smith
September 6, 2023
Struggling with substance use in his hometown of Regina, Saskatchewan, Spenser Smith decided to come to a residential treatment centre in Nanaimo. Following his treatment, he made the decision to stay in the city after falling in love “with the rainforest, the wildlife and the small caring community.” He also decided to enroll in VIU’s Creative Writing program to chase his dreams of becoming a... Read more
5 Questions with Stephen Hume
January 20, 2023
Stephen Hume, a Vancouver Island University (VIU) Creative Writing and Journalism Professor, received the Bruce Hutchinson Lifetime Achievement Award from the Jack Webster Foundation. The award, which Hume received this July, recognizes the exemplary careers of BC journalists. It is presented to senior reporters and editors who have received distinction in their communities for work of long-... Read more
Groundbreaking poet M. NourbeSe Philip to deliver VIU Gustafson lecture
October 17, 2022
Philip’s lecture is on October 27 from 7 to 8:30 pm on the Nanaimo campus. Renowned poet, writer and anti-racism activist M. NourbeSe Philip is Vancouver Island University’s (VIU’s) Ralph Gustafson Distinguished Poet for 2022-23. Philip’s lecture is October 27 from 7 to 8:30 pm on the Nanaimo campus in Building 355, Room 203. It is free to attend and will be followed by a catered reception, cash... Read more
5 Questions with Joy Gugeler
August 11, 2022
Joy Gugeler teaches Creative Writing, Journalism and Media Studies courses at Vancouver Island University (VIU). This summer, Gugeler was nominated for the Karen Virag Award from the Editors’ Association of Canada. She also arranged a First Book Canada pop-up book event at the VIU Nanaimo campus to distribute free books to public schools, libraries and other non-profits. Gugeler is the Publisher... Read more
Portal Hosts First In-Person Launch Since 2020
April 19, 2022
The launch is on April 29 at The Grand Hotel from 6-8:30 pm. Vancouver Island University’s (VIU’s) student-run annual literary magazine is going to be celebrated in-person for the first time in three years thanks to the lifting of Covid restrictions and a desire for face-to-face festivities to mark the accomplishments of nearly 90 contributors since 2020. Portal 2022, a full-colour magazine, is... Read more
5 Questions with Susan Juby
April 4, 2022
Susan Juby, a Nanaimo-based author and Vancouver Island University Creative Writing Professor, had two new novels hit the bookshelves this March. Mindful of Murder, released March 8, features Helen Thorpe, a smart, preternaturally calm and deeply insightful butler who uses her sleuthing skills to unravel the mystery of the death of her former employer Edna. Helen is the executor of Edna’s will.... Read more
Griffin Prize-Winning Poet A.F. Moritz to Give VIU Gustafson Lecture and Reading
February 17, 2022
The annual lecture will take place on March 3, 2022, on the Nanaimo campus. A.F. Moritz, one of Canada’s most esteemed and decorated poets, is Vancouver Island University’s (VIU’s) Ralph Gustafson Distinguished Poet for 2021-22. The annual lecture will take place on March 3 in the Ralph Gustafson Lecture Theatre in Building 355 at VIU’s Nanaimo campus. His talk, entitled “Poetry: Future Present... Read more
5 Questions with Craig Taylor
December 16, 2021
Craig Taylor, the best-selling author of Londoners, a collection of short stories about residents that paints a portrait of today’s London, has yet another accomplishment under his belt – he recently received the 2021 Brooklyn Public Library Literary Prize for Non-fiction. Taylor, a Vancouver Island University (VIU) Creative Writing and Journalism Professor, received the prize for his latest book... Read more