Mark Abley
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Mark Abley (born 13 May 1955) is a Canadian poet,
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 journalism ...
,
editor Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, photographic, visual, audible, or cinematic material used by a person or an entity to convey a message or information. The editing process can involve correction, condensation, orga ...
and non-fiction writer. Both his poetry and several non-fiction books express his interest in endangered languages. He has also published numerous magazine articles. He published a memoir about his relationship with his father, ''The Organist'', in 2019. A
Rhodes Scholar The Rhodes Scholarship is an international postgraduate award for students to study at the University of Oxford, in the United Kingdom. Established in 1902, it is the oldest graduate scholarship in the world. It is considered among the world' ...
, Abley settled in
Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
to write full-time after returning from studies in England. He moved to
Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...
in 1983, where he has since based his career.


Early life

Born in
Warwickshire Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, and the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare at Stratford-upon-Avon an ...
, England, Mark Abley moved to Canada with his family as a small boy, and grew up in
Lethbridge Lethbridge ( ) is a city in the province of Alberta, Canada. With a population of 101,482 in its 2019 Alberta municipal censuses, 2019 municipal census, Lethbridge became the fourth Alberta city to surpass 100,000 people. The nearby Canadian ...
,
Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...
and
Saskatoon Saskatoon () is the largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It straddles a bend in the South Saskatchewan River in the central region of the province. It is located along the Trans-Canada Hig ...
,
Saskatchewan Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada, western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on t ...
. His father Harry was an
organist An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ (music), organ. An organist may play organ repertoire, solo organ works, play with an musical ensemble, ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumentalist, instrumental ...
who played in churches and cinemas; he also taught the pipe organ. His father's struggle with
depression (mood) Depression is a mental state of low mood and aversion to activity, which affects more than 280 million people of all ages (about 3.5% of the global population). Classified medically as a mental and behavioral disorder, the experience of ...
is a major theme of Abley's memoir of his father, ''The Organist'' (2019). Abley attended the
University of Saskatchewan A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...
, from which he won a
Rhodes Scholarship The Rhodes Scholarship is an international postgraduate award for students to study at the University of Oxford, in the United Kingdom. Established in 1902, it is the oldest graduate scholarship in the world. It is considered among the world' ...
in 1975. He won prizes for his poetry while a student at
St John's College, Oxford St John's College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. Founded as a men's college in 1555, it has been coeducational since 1979.Communication from Michael Riordan, college archivist Its founder, Sir Thomas White, intended to pro ...
, and began to write full-time after returning to Canada and moving to
Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
in 1978. He has been a contributing editor of both ''
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 perspe ...
'' and '' Saturday Night'' magazines, and a frequent contributor to ''
The Times Literary Supplement ''The Times Literary Supplement'' (''TLS'') is a weekly literary review published in London by News UK, a subsidiary of News Corp. History The ''TLS'' first appeared in 1902 as a supplement to ''The Times'' but became a separate publication i ...
''.


Career

Since 1983 Abley has lived in the
Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...
area. For sixteen years he worked as a feature writer and book-review editor at the ''
Montreal Gazette The ''Montreal Gazette'', formerly titled ''The Gazette'', is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Three other daily English-language newspapers shuttered at various times during the second half of th ...
''. In 1996 he won Canada's
National Newspaper Award The National Newspaper Awards (french: link=no, Concours canadien de journalisme) are prizes awarded annually for the best work in Canadian newspapers. Synopsis The awards were first given in 1949 by the Toronto Press Club, which ran the awards un ...
for critical writing; he was previously shortlisted for the award in 1992 in the category of international reporting for a series of articles about the
Horn of Africa The Horn of Africa (HoA), also known as the Somali Peninsula, is a large peninsula and geopolitical region in East Africa.Robert Stock, ''Africa South of the Sahara, Second Edition: A Geographical Interpretation'', (The Guilford Press; 2004), ...
. He returned to freelance writing in 2003, though he continued to write the "Watchwords" columns on language issues for the ''Gazette.'' In 2009 he joined McGill-Queen's University Press as a part-time acquisition editor. He served as the first writer-in-residence for the city of
Pointe-Claire Pointe-Claire (, ) is a Quebec local municipality within the Urban agglomeration of Montreal on the Island of Montreal in Canada. It is entirely developed, and land use includes residential, light manufacturing, and retail. As of the 2021 ce ...
in 2010-11. He has written four books of poetry, two children's books, and several non-fiction books. ''Spoken Here: Travels Among Threatened Languages'' (2003) describes people and cultures whose languages are at risk of vanishing in an era of
globalization Globalization, or globalisation (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), is the process of interaction and integration among people, companies, and governments worldwide. The term ''globalization'' first appeared in the early 20t ...
. It was short-listed for the Grand Prix du Livre de Montreal and the Pearson Writers' Trust Non-Fiction Prize. It was translated into French, Spanish, Japanese and Latvian. In 2009, Abley was awarded the LiberPress Prize for international authors in
Girona Girona (officially and in Catalan language, Catalan , Spanish: ''Gerona'' ) is a city in northern Catalonia, Spain, at the confluence of the Ter River, Ter, Onyar, Galligants, and Güell rivers. The city had an official population of 103,369 in ...
, Spain. Abley has lectured at
Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
,
Cambridge University , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...
,
Ohio State University The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best publ ...
,
McGill University McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter granted by King George IV,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill Universit ...
, Queen's University, the
University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...
and elsewhere. He delivered the annual Priestly Lecture at the
University of Lethbridge , mottoeng = ''Let there be light'' , type = Public , established = , academic_affiliations = Universities Canada , endowment = $73 million (2019) , chancellor = Charles Weasel ...
and gave the opening address to a conference of the Association of American University Presses. In 2005 he was awarded a
Guggenheim Fellowship Guggenheim Fellowships are grants that have been awarded annually since by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation to those "who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the ar ...
for research into language change. His book ''The Prodigal Tongue: Dispatches from the Future of English'' (2008) was reviewed in ''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...
'' (London), and by
William Safire William Lewis Safire (; Safir; December 17, 1929 – September 27, 2009Safire, William (1986). ''Take My Word for It: More on Language.'' Times Books. . p. 185.) was an American author, columnist, journalist, and presidential speechwriter. He w ...
in ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
.'' In August 2009 Abley published a children's book about words and their origins, ''Camp Fossil Eyes.'' He has also written the text of a picture book for young children, ''Ghost Cat.'' Abley has edited several books, including ''When Earth Leaps Up'' and ''A Woman Clothed in Words'' by
Anne Szumigalski Anne Szumigalski, SOM (b. 3 January 1922 in London, England, d. 22 April 1999) was a Canadian poet. Life She was born Anne Howard Davis in London, England, and grew up mostly in a Hampshire village. She served with the Red Cross as a medical ...
; he was Szumigalski's literary executor. Over the years he has led workshops for the Quebec Writers' Federation, the Maritime Writers' Workshop, and the
Banff Centre for the Arts Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, formerly known as The Banff Centre (and previously The Banff Centre for Continuing Education), located in Banff, Alberta, was established in 1933 as the Banff School of Drama. It was granted full autonomy as ...
. His magazine journalism has appeared in ''
The Walrus ''The Walrus'' is an independent, non-profit Canadian media organization. It is multi-platform and produces an 8-issue-per-year magazine and online editorial content that includes current affairs, fiction, poetry, and podcasts, a national s ...
,'' ''
Canadian Geographic ''Canadian Geographic'' is a magazine published by the Royal Canadian Geographical Society, (RCGS) based in Ottawa, Ontario. History and profile After the Society was founded in 1929, the magazine was established the next year in May 1930 unde ...
,'' ''
Canada's History ''Canada's History'' () is the official magazine of Canada's National History Society. It is published six times a year and aims to foster greater popular interest in Canadian history. Founded as ''The Beaver'' in 1920 by the Hudson's Bay Comp ...
'' and many other publications. He was shortlisted for the President's Medal at the
National Magazine Awards The National Magazine Awards, also known as the Ellie Awards, honor print and digital publications that consistently demonstrate superior execution of editorial objectives, innovative techniques, noteworthy enterprise and imaginative design. Or ...
. In 2013, Abley published ''Conversations with a Dead Man: The Legacy of Duncan Campbell Scott.'' Scott was a poet who also ran the
Department of Indian Affairs Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...
for many years. In 2015
Coteau Books Coteau Books was a small, non-profit literary press based in Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada. It was established in 1975 by Bob Currie, Gary Hyland, Barbara Sapergia and Geoffrey Ursell when they realized that there was little opportunity for Sask ...
published ''The Tongues of Earth,'' a volume of Abley's new and selected poems, which was shortlisted for the 2016 Fred Cogswell Award for literary excellence.


Selected bibliography

*1986: ''Beyond Forget: Rediscovering the Prairies'' (literary travel) *1988: ''Blue Sand, Blue Moon'' (poetry) *1994: ''Glasburyon'' (poetry) *2001: ''Ghost Cat'' (children's book) *2003: ''Spoken Here: Travels Among Threatened Languages'' (literary travel, cultural analysis) *2005: ''The Silver Palace Restaurant'' (poetry) *2008: ''The Prodigal Tongue: Dispatches from the Future of English'' (analysis of language change and its implications) *2009: ''Camp Fossil Eyes: Digging for the Origins of Words'' (children's book) *2013: ''Conversations with a Dead Man: The Legacy of Duncan Campbell Scott'' (cultural and literary history) *2015: ''The Tongues of Earth: New and Selected Poems'' (poetry) *2018: ''Watch Your Tongue: What Our Everyday Sayings and Idioms Figuratively Mean'' (popular book about the English language) *2019: ''The Organist: Fugues, Fatherhood, and a Fragile Mind'' (memoir of the author's father)


See also

*
Canadian literature Canadian literature is the literature of a multicultural country, written in languages including Canadian English, Canadian French, Indigenous languages, and many others such as Canadian Gaelic. Influences on Canadian writers are broad both ge ...
* Canadian poetry *
List of Canadian poets This is a list of Canadian poets. Years link to corresponding " earin poetry" articles. A *Mark Abley (born 1955), poet, journalist, editor, and non-fiction writer. *Milton Acorn (1923–1986), poet, writer, and playwright * José Acqueli ...
*
List of Canadian writers This is a list of Canadian literary figures, including poets, novelists, children's writers, essayists, and scholars. __NOTOC__ A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X ...


References


External links

*
"Stop / Arrêt"
review of ''Spoken Here'' in the ''
Oxonian Review ''The Oxonian Review'' is a literary magazine produced by postgraduate students at the University of Oxford. Every fortnight during term time, an online edition is published featuring reviews and essays on current affairs and literature. It is ...
'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Abley, Mark 1955 births Living people 20th-century Canadian poets 20th-century Canadian male writers Canadian male journalists Canadian male poets 20th-century Canadian non-fiction writers Canadian Rhodes Scholars Anglophone Quebec people Canadian Unitarians Journalists from Alberta Journalists from Saskatchewan People from Warwickshire (before 1974) Writers from Lethbridge Writers from Saskatoon University of Saskatchewan alumni Montreal Gazette people British emigrants to Canada 21st-century Canadian poets 20th-century English poets 21st-century English poets 21st-century English writers 21st-century Canadian male writers 21st-century Canadian non-fiction writers