Originally from Ottawa, Quinn has lived in Montreal, Edmonton, Iqaluit & Thunder Bay. She currently lives in Toronto where she is proud to both provide and use mental health and addiction services.
Q: How long were you in Ottawa, and what first brought you here? What took you away?
I was born in Ottawa, the youngest of six children. I left for McGill when I was 18 and didn’t come back except for holiday visits. Leaving was both emotional and exciting. Basically, I found out I was much less prepared for the world than I knew, so the learning curve was extreme…awkward and painful…but there was also an energy at the time of adventure and abandon.
Q: How did you first get involved in writing, and subsequently, the writing community here?
I did not connect or follow the writing community in Ottawa until about 10 years ago. There is so much talent. People making really creative choices with their work. Here I’m thinking of Manahil Bandukwala, Conyer Clayton and Natalie Hanna, just off the top of my head. I dabbled in short fiction in my twenties but in my thirties found poetry, which was a great feeling of arriving at a place that felt like home.
Q: How did being in such a community of writers shift your thinking about writing, if at all? Have there been subsequent shifts due to where you have lived since?
I didn’t gather with other writers until my late thirties. In my twenties I worked in theatre, in Edmonton, and had a very immediate sense of community there. Finding my poetry flow and people to critique it took a bit of time. I currently belong to a writing group that tries to meet once a month. Getting feedback from my peers is an essential part of my process.
Q: What did you see happening here that you don’t see anywhere else? What did Ottawa provide, or allow?
Ottawa will always be steeped with nostalgia for me. It’s where I grew up and every early memory is there. My parents made a real effort to bring me to the theatre when they could, something I respect them for and am grateful for the exposure…along with my late father’s voracious reading habits.
Q: Have any of your projects responded directly to your engagements here? How had the city and its community, if at all, changed the way you approached your work?
A few years ago, I had the opportunity to read in Ottawa, the first time I had ever read in the city I’m from. It was a wonderful feeling to see my family there. In practical terms, when COVID hit and I couldn’t go home I turned to friends to talk about collaborations. I worked remotely on a chapbook (An Orthodox Strain of Light) with Merrill Shatzman; Professor Emerita, Duke University and artist. Her art work and design were gorgeous. I also worked remotely during COVID with two Toronto artists: griffin epstein and bryan depuy. This project was about taking an eco-myth about climate grief and turning it into an audio-visual experience and can be experienced here for free:
https://whosewoods.org/biophilia/
I was blown away by what they brought to the project.
Q: What are you working on now?
I am working on a chapbook for Anstruther Press, due out in 2023.
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