Paul Joseph Vermeersch (born 17 November 1973) is a Canadian poet from Ontario.

Life and career

Vermeersch was born in

Mississauga Mississauga is a Canadian city in the province of Ontario. Situated on the north-western shore of Lake Ontario in the Regional Municipality of Peel, it borders Toronto (Etobicoke) to the east, Brampton to the north, Milton to the northwest, ...

, Ontario on 17 November 1973. After high school, he earned his

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

from the

University of Western Ontario The University of Western Ontario (UWO; branded as Western University) is a Public university, public research university in London, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on of land, surrounded by residential neighbourhoods and the Thame ...

, later graduating from the

University of Guelph The University of Guelph (abbreviated U of G) is a comprehensive Public university, public research university in Guelph, Ontario, Canada. It was established in 1964 after the amalgamation of Ontario Agricultural College (1874), the MacDonald I ...

with a

Master of Fine Arts A Master of Fine Arts (MFA or M.F.A.) is a terminal degree in fine arts, including visual arts, creative writing, graphic design, photography, filmmaking, dance, theatre, other performing arts and in some cases, theatre management or arts admi ...

in creative writing. Following his graduation, Vermeersch spent a year studying poetry in Poland as well as teaching English before moving to

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

where he founded the IV Lounge Reading Series. Authors who were involved with the IV Lounge Reading Series contributed to ''The I.V. Lounge Reader'', a book assembled and edited by Versmeerch and released in 2001. Contributions to the book include poems from authors such as David McGimpsy, Michael Holmes, and Patrick Rawley. From 2001 until 2012, Vermeersch worked as the poetry editor for Insomniac Press; he subsequently took a position as senior editor at Wolsak & Wynn Publishers. Vermeersch's first poetry collection, ''Burn'' (2000), was assembled from his work in the late 1990s and was a finalist for the 2001

Gerald Lampert Award The Gerald Lampert Memorial Award is an annual literary award presented by the League of Canadian Poets to the best volume of poetry published by a first-time poet. It is presented in honour of poetry promoter Gerald Lampert. Each winner receive ...

. This was followed by ''The Fat Kid'' (2002), ''Between the Walls'' (2005), and ''The Al Purdy A-frame Anthology'' (2009), a book of poems, photographs, and drawings concerning the A-frame house of the Canadian poet

Al Purdy Alfred Wellington Purdy (December 30, 1918 – April 21, 2000) was a 20th-century Canadian free verse poet. Purdy's writing career spanned fifty-six years. His works include thirty-nine books of poetry; a novel; two volumes of memoirs and four ...

, a place with significant historical relevance to Canadian literature. The book was intended to draw attention to fundraising projects to save the house. Vermeersch's 2010 book ''The Reinvention of the Human Hand'' was a finalist for the 2010

Trillium Book Award The Trillium Book Award ( or ''Prix Trillium'') is an annual literary award presented to writers in Ontario, Canada. It is administered by Ontario Creates, a Crown agency (Ontario), Crown agency of the Government of Ontario, which is overseen by ...

. Vermeersch's 2018 poetry collection ''Self-Defence for the Brave and Happy'' took on the theme of

futurism Futurism ( ) was an Art movement, artistic and social movement that originated in Italy, and to a lesser extent in other countries, in the early 20th century. It emphasized dynamism, speed, technology, youth, violence, and objects such as the ...

, and was well-received by critics. This was followed up by ''Shared Universe'' in 2020, featuring a collection of Vermeersch's best work since the 1990s, as well as new material which had not yet been published. In 2025, Vermeersch was among the three judges for the 2025 CBC Poetry Prize, along with Carol Rose GoldenEagle and Britta Badour. As of 2025, Vermeersch teaches at

Sheridan College Sheridan College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning, formerly Sheridan College of Applied Arts and Technology, is a public polytechnic institute partnered with private Canadian College of Technology and Trades operating campuses ...

and works as the senior editor of Buckrider Books, an imprint of Wolsak & Wynn Publishers. Vermeersch has been the senior editor of Buckrider since the imprint launched in 2014, and had been acquiring titles to be published by the imprint for two years beforehand.

Publications

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Recognition

* Governor General's Gold Medal (2012)

References

Notes

Citations

Sources

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External links

*
Paul Vermeersch
at ''Poetry in Voice''

at ''Canadian Poetry Online'',

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university whose main campus is located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vermeersch, Paul Living people Canadian male poets Canadian people of Flemish descent Academic staff of Sheridan College 20th-century Canadian male writers 20th-century Canadian poets Poets from Ontario 1973 births University of Western Ontario alumni