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English

Initiatives & publications

Publications

Our department is currently the home of various publications:

Apart from publications, we measure the strength of our research culture in the quality of our graduates; the collegiality of our faculty and students; regular events, such as the Forum for Your Ideas (FYI) and visiting speakers and frequent conferences. We aim to provide the most competitive graduate funding in Canada.

Indigenous Storyteller-in-Residence

Richard Van Camp is welcomed as the inaugural Indigenous Storyteller-in-Residence at a ceremony in December 2024.
Richard Van Camp is welcomed as the inaugural Indigenous Storyteller-in-Residence at a ceremony in December 2024.

The new Storyteller-in-Residence program at UVic presents an exciting opportunity to integrate Indigenous ways of knowing, particularly storytelling, into the learning environment. Storytelling has been a vital practice for sharing our oral history, traditional knowledge and culture across generations. This initiative is a significant step towards decolonizing education, offering Indigenous students and community members a unique chance to experience post-secondary education in a way that honours and respects our traditions."
—Qwul’sih’yah’maht Robina Thomas, Vice-President, Indigenous

In 2024, the program’s first year, award-winning Tłı̨chǫ Dene author Richard Van Camp taught 2 undergraduate courses on Recovering Family Medicine Through Story. Jointly offered through UVic’s Department of English and Division of Continuing Studies, the courses brought together over 200 for-credit and community learners for a multi-faceted exploration of the power of storytelling. Assignments were designed to reward the learning process, rather than product.

In 2027, award-winning, bestselling author Kim Spencer will be taking over as the Indigenous Storyteller in Residence, and teaching her own rendition of ENSH 255: Indigenous Literatures. 

The Indigenous Storyteller-in-Residence program aligns with UVic’s commitment to ʔetal nəwəl | ÁTOL,NEUEL | Respecting the rights of one another and being in right relationship with all things, which focuses on UVic’s relationships with one another, with the lands and waters and with all living beings, by welcoming students and community members to share space together and explore the healing power of stories.

About Richard Van Camp

A recipient of the Order of the Northwest Territories, Richard Van Camp is an alumnus of the University of Victoria’s creative writing program (BFA ’97), as well as the En’owkin International School of Writing and the University of British Columbia. He is an Eisner-award-winning and best-selling author of 28 books, including comics, short story collections, novels, nonfiction, and children’s books. He has offered mentorship as the Storyteller in Residence for Calgary Public Library and the Writer in Residence at the University of Alberta, Yellowhead Tribal College and MacEwan University, and as a mentor for the Audible Indigenous Writers’ Circle.

About Kim Spencer

Kim Spencer is an award-winning, bestselling author. Her debut novel, Weird Rules To Follow, won multiple awards, including a 2024 Pacific Northwest Book Award, a 2023 TD Canadian Children’s Literature Award, and a 2023 Jean Little First-Novel Award. Named both the USBBY Outstanding International Book and an IBBY Honour List. The book also received a Kirkus starred review and was a 2023 Governor General’s Literary Award finalist. Kim is from the Gitxaala Nation and lives in northwest BC.

Forum for Your Ideas (FYI)

FYI is a discussion series showcasing the interesting and innovative work happening—by students, sessionals, postdocs, and faculty—in the English department.

The goal of FYI is to provide a relaxed, collaborative and inclusive setting in which all department members can share ideas, discuss works in progress, offer workshops and talk about both research and pedagogy. FYI aims to foster opportunities for all to benefit from the expertise and rich talents of our departmental community.

Forum for Your Ideas (FYI) was founded by Rebecca Gagan and Kim McLean-Fiander in spring 2015.

Visit the UVic English Instagram for FYI announcements and to read about previous months' topics!

UVic Bounce

UVic Bounce is an initiative funded by a University of Victoria Strategic Framework Impact Fund grant and by the Faculty of Humanities. Through videos, podcasts and live events, UVic Bounce shares the stories of UVic faculty and alumni’s experiences as students, with the aim of creating a more compassionate, supportive, humane and loving campus culture in which students, staff and faculty are able to thrive.

Waving, Not Drowning (2023)

A UVic Bounce short documentary film

Directed by award-winning filmmaker Chorong Kim, Waving, Not Drowning movingly weaves together the diverse and powerful stories shared through UVic Bounce as it explores the history behind the initiative and its mission to transform campus culture, one story at a time.​

  • Director: Chorong Kim
  • Cinematographer: Chen Wang
  • Producer: Rebecca Gagan​