Charis Cotter is a Canadian author and storyteller known for her works of fiction for middle-grade readers.
Early life and education
Cotter grew up in downtown Toronto, Canada, behind a cemetery.
She studied English in university and went to drama school in London, England.
Career
Editing years and non-fiction work
In 2004, Cotter’s first book was published: ''Toronto Between the Wars: Life in the City 1919–1939'', by Firefly Books.
In 2007,
Annick Press
Annick Press is a Canadian book publishing company that was founded in Toronto, Ontario in 1975 by Anne Millyard and Rick Wilks. Rick Wilks became the sole owner in 2000. A second editorial office was opened in Vancouver by Colleen MacMillan in 1 ...
published Cotter’s first non-fiction book for children: ''Kids Who Rule: The Remarkable Lives of Five Child Monarchs''. It was followed by ''Wonder Kids: The Remarkable Lives of Nine Child Prodigies'', and ''Born to Write: The Remarkable Lives of Six Famous Authors''. Annick Press also published Cotter’s first ghost-themed book, ''A World Full of Ghosts'', in 2009.
Works of fiction and awards
Cotter’s breakout work of fiction was her novel ''The Swallow: A Ghost Story'', published in 2014 by
Tundra Books
Tundra Books is the oldest children's book publisher in Canada.
Tundra Books was founded in 1967 by May Cutler, a Montreal-based writer and editor. Cutler established the publishing company in the basement of her home, becoming the first woman ...
. It tells the story of two lonely girls who become friends over their mutual fascination with ghosts, and explores themes of childhood neglect, mental illness, and death. ''The Swallow'' won the 2015 Violet Downey Book Award and was a Silver Birch Honour Book as part of the
Forest of Reading
The Forest of Reading is Canada's largest recreational reading program, featuring ten award programs and run by the Ontario Library Association (OLA). Programs are primarily geared towards French and English readers in kindergarten to grade twelve ...
program in 2016. It was one of ten finalists for the
in 2015, receiving an honourable mention.
In 2017, Tundra Books published Cotter’s second novel, ''The Painting'', which explores similar themes of ghosts, loss, and fractured family relationships. It won the Hackmatack Children’s Choice Award in 2019 and the
Ann Connor Brimer Award
The Ann Connor Brimer Award for Atlantic Canadian Children's Literature is a $5,000 annual award given to an Atlantic Canadian writer deemed to have made an outstanding contribution to literature for young people. Starting in 2016, the prize alter ...
for Children’s Literature at the
Atlantic Book Awards & Festival
The Atlantic Book Awards & Festival is an annual event celebrating Atlantic Canadian writing and book illustration. Free events take place across the four Atlantic provinces (Newfoundland & Labrador, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, and Nova Sc ...
in 2018.
Her next book, ''The Ghost Road'', was published by Tundra Books in 2018. Set in Newfoundland, it tells the story of two girls who must break a family curse, and centres around issues of domestic violence and intergenerational trauma. It won the Bruneau Family Children’s/YA Literature Award at the
Newfoundland and Labrador Book Awards in 2020.
Her fourth novel, ''The Dollhouse: A Ghost Story,'' was released in 2021. ''The Dollhouse'' was also released as an audiobook.
In addition to her novels, Cotter has written several picture books for children inspired by ghost stories from Newfoundland. Her first of these was ''The Ferryland Visitor: A Mysterious Tale'', published in 2016 by Running the Goat Books & Broadsides, with artwork by acclaimed Newfoundland artist
Gerald Squires
Gerald Leopold "Gerry" Squires, (November 17, 1937 – October 3, 2015) was a Canadian artist. Best known for painting dramatic landscapes in acrylic and oil, Squires also produced major work in sculpture, lithography and stained glass. He was a ...
.
''Footsteps in Bay de Verde: A Mysterious Tale'', illustrated by Jenny Dwyer, was published by Running the Goat Books & Broadsides in 2020, and won the Bruneau Family Children’s/YA Literature Award at the Newfoundland and Labrador Book Awards in 2022.
In 2020, ''Screech! Ghost Stories from Old Newfoundland'', a collection of stories with art by Genevieve Simms, was published by Nimbus Publishing. It won the Hackmatack Children’s Choice Award in 2022.
Several of Cotter's books have been translated into Korean, German, and Russian.
Storytelling, workshops, and other pursuits
Cotter has developed several workshops and storytelling presentations for children, which she tours around schools across Canada.
She has done an annual ghost story tour of Newfoundland schools since 2009.
Cotter founded her own publishing company, Baccalieu Books, under which she has published several collections of local ghost stories from children in Newfoundland schools.
She has been a guest on Danny Robins’ supernatural show for the BBC, ''
Uncanny (radio series)''.
According to Cotter's website, her readers have unofficially dubbed her "Canada's Queen of Ghost Stories."
Personal life
Charis Cotter lives and works in Western Bay,
Newfoundland
Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region of Labrador, having a total size of . As of 2025 the population ...
.
Bibliography
* ''Toronto Between the Wars: Life in the City 1919–1939'' (Firefly Books, 2004)
* ''Kids Who Rule: The Remarkable Lives of Five Child Monarchs'' (Annick Press, 2007)
* ''Wonder Kids: The Remarkable Lives of Nine Child Prodigies'' (Annick Press, 2008)
* ''Born to Write: The Remarkable Lives of Six Famous Authors'' (Annick Press, 2009)
* ''A World Full of Ghosts'' (Annick Press, 2009)
* ''The Ghosts of Baccalieu'' (Baccalieu Books, 2013)
* ''The Swallow: A Ghost Story'' (Tundra Books, 2014)
* ''The Ferryland Visitor: A Mysterious Tale'' (Running the Goat Books & Broadsides, 2016)
* ''The Painting'' (Tundra Books, 2017)
* ''The Ghosts of Southwest Arm'' (Baccalieu Books, 2017)
* ''The Ghost Road'' (Tundra Books, 2018)
* ''Footsteps in Bay de Verde: A Mysterious Tale'' (Running the Goat Books & Broadsides, 2020)
* ''Screech! Ghost Stories from Old Newfoundland'' (Nimbus Publishing, 2020)
* ''The Dollhouse: A Ghost Story'' (Tundra Books, 2021)
References
External links
Charis Cotter's official websiteCotter interview on ''The Dollhouse''Cotter reads from ''Screech: Ghost Stories from Old Newfoundland''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cotter, Charis
Year of birth missing (living people)
Living people
Canadian women children's writers
Writers from Toronto
21st-century Canadian women writers