Brian Brett (born 28 April 1950) is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems ( oral or wri ...

journalist A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalis ...

, editor and

novelist A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living writing novels and other fiction, while others asp ...

.Brian Brett
in

The Canadian Encyclopedia ''The Canadian Encyclopedia'' (TCE; french: L'Encyclopédie canadienne) is the national encyclopedia of Canada, published online by the Toronto-based historical organization Historica Canada, with the support of Canadian Heritage. Available f ...

. He has been writing and publishing since the late 1960s, and he has worked as an editor for several publishing firms, including the Governor-General's Award-winning Blackfish Press. He has also written a three-part memoir of his life in British Columbia.

Early life

Brett was born in

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

. He grew up with a rare endocrine disorder,

Kallmann syndrome Kallmann syndrome (KS) is a genetic disorder that prevents a person from starting or fully completing puberty. Kallmann syndrome is a form of a group of conditions termed hypogonadotropic hypogonadism. To distinguish it from other forms of hypog ...

, which prevented his body from entering

puberty Puberty is the process of physical changes through which a child's body matures into an adult body capable of sexual reproduction. It is initiated by hormonal signals from the brain to the gonads: the ovaries in a girl, the testes in a bo ...

; he later wrote a memoir about the effect this has had on his life. Brett attended

Simon Fraser University Simon Fraser University (SFU) is a public research university in British Columbia, Canada, with three campuses, all in Greater Vancouver: Burnaby (main campus), Surrey, and Vancouver. The main Burnaby campus on Burnaby Mountain, located ...

between 1969 and 1974, studying literature.

Career

Brett began writing in the 1960s. In the early 1970s, he worked as a freelance journalist and critic for ''

The Globe and Mail ''The Globe and Mail'' is a Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of approximately 2 million in 2015, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on weekdays and Saturdays, although it ...

'', the ''

Toronto Star The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. The newspaper is the country's largest daily newspaper by circulation. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and pa ...

'', the ''

Vancouver Sun The ''Vancouver Sun'', also known as the ''Sun'', is a daily broadsheet newspaper based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The newspaper is currently published by the Pacific Newspaper Group, a division of Postmedia Network. Published s ...

'', ''The New Reader'', '' Books in Canada'', and the ''

Victoria Times-Colonist The ''Times Colonist'' is an English-language daily newspaper in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. It was formed by the Sept. 2, 1980 merger of the ''Victoria Daily Times'', established in 1884, and the ''British Colonist'' (later the ''Daily C ...

''. He was a poetry critic and columnist for Vancouver's ''

The Province ''The Province'' is a daily newspaper published in tabloid format in British Columbia by Pacific Newspaper Group, a division of Postmedia Network, alongside the '' Vancouver Sun'' broadsheet newspaper. Together, they are British Columbia's on ...

''. He also wrote articles for many other newspapers in Canada, and his essays appeared in many magazines. For ten years he wrote a monthly newspaper column called CultureWatch for the ''

Yukon News ''Yukon News'' is one of two newspapers published in Whitehorse, Yukon in Canada. It was founded in 1960, as a weekly until the late 1970s. It currently prints two times a week. Its Monday edition is online-only. The ''Yukon News'' has been the r ...

''. Brett inaugurated the B.C. Poetry-in-the-Schools program, which for several years introduced students to world poetry. He has presented many writing workshops across Canada. He has been a member of P.E.N. International and the

Federation of BC Writers The Federation of BC Writers is the largest writers organization in British Columbia, Canada. Its stated goals are to foster the art and profession of writing in British Columbia; to generate a sense of community among British Columbia writers; to p ...

, and the

Writers' Union of Canada The Writers' Union of Canada (TWUC), founded in 1973, describes itself as supporting "the country's authors by advocating for their rights, freedoms, and economic well-being." Its members are professional writers who must have published at least o ...

. He embarked on a national reading tour organized by the League of Canadian Poets, of which he was also a member. Brett has given reading of his work on

CBC Radio CBC Radio is the English-language radio operations of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. The CBC operates a number of radio networks serving different audiences and programming niches, all of which (regardless of language) are outlined below ...

as well at universities, Harbourfront, Vancouver International Writers Festival, Saltwater Festival, Sechelt Writers' Festival, Wordfest: Banff Calgary International Writers Festival, the

Winnipeg International Writers Festival The Winnipeg International Writers Festival is a Winnipeg, Manitoba based organization that puts together an annual literary festival known as THIN AIR. The festival program runs for a week each fall, and there are also several off-season events reg ...

, National Book Festival, and the Canada Council. In May 2005, Brett became chair of the Writers' Union of Canada. In 2004 Brett published a book, ''Uproar's Your Only Music'', about his struggles with

."Book review: Author Brian Brett shows beak form"
. Candace Fertile, ''Vancouver Sun'', 10.30.2015 In November 2009, Brett won Canada's Writers' Trust Non-Fiction Prize for ''Trauma Farm: A Rebel History of Rural Life''. The book describes a typical day in the life of his farm, with insight into the natural history of farming. In 2016, the Writers' Trust of Canada awarded Brett the Matt Cohen Lifetime Award to honour his body of work."Rogers Writers' Trust: Celebrating the 2016 winners"
''

Maclean's ''Maclean's'', founded in 1905, is a Canadian news magazine reporting on Canadian issues such as politics, pop culture, and current events. Its founder, publisher John Bayne Maclean, established the magazine to provide a uniquely Canadian persp ...

'', November 3, 2016.

Personal

Brett lives on his farm on

Salt Spring Island Salt Spring Island or Saltspring Island is one of the Gulf Islands in the Strait of Georgia between mainland British Columbia, Canada, and Vancouver Island. The island was initially inhabited by various Salishan peoples before being settled by ...

."Brian Brett pens memoir about his pet African grey parrot Tuco"
''North by Northwest · CBC News''. Dec 20, 2015 He takes

testosterone Testosterone is the primary sex hormone and anabolic steroid in males. In humans, testosterone plays a key role in the development of male reproductive tissues such as testes and prostate, as well as promoting secondary sexual characteristi ...

to mitigate the effects of Kallmann syndrome, which include pain and osteoperosis.

Bibliography

*''Fossil Ground at Phantom Creek'' - 1976 *''Smoke Without Exit'' - 1984 *''Evolution in Every Direction'' - 1987 *''The Fungus Garden'' - 1988 *''Tanganyika'' - 1991 *''Poems: New and Selected'' - 1993 *''Allegories of Love and Disaster'' - 1993 *''The Colour of Bones in a Stream'' - 1998 *''Coyote'' - 2003 *''Uproar's Your Only Music'' - 2004 *''Trauma Farm: A Rebel History of Rural Life'' - 2009 *''The Wind River Variations'' - 2012 *''Tuco: The Parrot, the Others, and a Scattershot World'' - 2015

Discography

*''Night Directions for the Lost- The Talking Songs of Brian Brett'' Tongue & Groove Records - 2003 *''Talking Songs'' by Scattered Bodies - 2014

Anthologies

*''Poems from Planet Earth'', (Poetry), Leaf Press, Winter 2013 *''In The Flesh, Twenty Writers Explore the Body'', (Essays) Brindle & Glass, ed. by Lynne Van Luven & Kathy Page, 2011 *''Measure of the Year'', (introduction), by Roderick Haig-Brown, Touchwood Editions, 2011 *''The Heart Does Break: Canadian Writers on Grief and Mourning'', (Essays) Random House. Ed. By George Bowering and Jean Baird. Random House. 2009 *''Open Wide Wilderness: Canadian Nature Poems'', Wilfrid Laurier Press, ed. by Nancy Holmes. 2009 *''A Verse Map of Vancouver'' ed. By George McWhirter, Anvil Press, 2009. *''Wild Rivers of the Yukon's Peel Watershed: A Traveller's Guide'' (Poetry & Prose), Juri Peepre and Sarah Locke, 2008. *''Writing The West Coast'', Ronsdale Press, 2008. *''Three Rivers: The Yukon's Great Boreal Wilderness'' Harbour Publishing, 2005. *''Rendezvous With The Wild'' Houghton Mifflin, 2004. *''The Eye In The Thicket'' (Natural History Essays) Thistledown Books 2002. *''Mocambo Nights'', ed. by Patrick Lane, Ekstasis Editions, 2001. *''Lost Classics'' ed. by Ondaatje, Spalding, Redhill (Essays) Anchor Classics, 2001. *''In The Clear'' (Fiction & Poetry) Thistledown Books, 1998. *''What is Already Known'' (Fiction & Poetry) Thistledown Books, 1995. *''How I Learned To Speak Dog'' (Poetry & Prose) Douglas & McIntyre. *''Witness To Wilderness'' (Poetry & Prose), Arsenal Pulp Press, 1994. *''Because You Loved Being A Stranger'', (Poems) ed. by Susan Musgrave, Harbour Publishing, 1994. *''Myths & Voices'' (Short Stories), White Pine Press, U.S.A.,1993. *''The Last Map Is The Heart'' (Short Stories), Thistledown Books, 1989. *''15 Years In Exile'', Exile, 1992. *''Vancouver Poetry'' (Poetry), Polestar Press, 1986. *''For Rexroth'' (Poetry), The Ark, 1980. *''Western Windows'' (Poetry & Prose), Commcept Publishing Ltd., 1977. *''A Government Job At Last'' (Poetry), MacLeod Books, 1977.

References

External links

*
Brian Brett fonds
at University of Victoria, Special Collections * Archives of Blackfish Pres
(Blackfish Press, R11707)
are held at Library and Archives Canada. Brian Brett is one of the founders of the magazine with Allan Safarik {{DEFAULTSORT:Brett, Brian 1950 births Living people Canadian male novelists Canadian memoirists Simon Fraser University alumni Writers from Vancouver 20th-century Canadian novelists 21st-century Canadian novelists 20th-century Canadian poets 20th-century Canadian male writers Canadian male poets 21st-century Canadian poets Articles containing video clips 21st-century Canadian male writers Canadian male non-fiction writers