England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
. His father was an industrial arts teacher, who moved the family to Newfoundland, Canada three years later, eventually settling in Corner Brook. After high school, Winter attended
Memorial University
Memorial University of Newfoundland, also known as Memorial University or MUN (), is a public university in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, based in St. John's, with satellite campuses in Corner Brook, elsewhere in Newfoundland and i ...
, graduating in 1986 with a BA in economic geography.Smith, S. (2007, July). Change is Good. ''Quill & Quire''
Winter's first short story collection, ''Creaking in Their Skins'', was published in 1994. In 1999, editor John Metcalf at
The Porcupine's Quill
The Porcupine's Quill is an independent publishing company in Erin, Ontario, Canada. The Porcupine's Quill publishes contemporary Canadian literature, including poetry, fiction, art and literary criticism. It is owned and operated by Tim and Elke ...
published his second book of stories, ''One Last Good Look''. Winter moved 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 anch ...
in 1999, where he published his first two novels: ''This All Happened'' (2000) and ''The Big Why'' (2004).
Much of Winter's fiction chronicles the life and adventures of his fictional alter ego, Gabriel English. ''This All Happened'', for example, is organized as a fictional diary, with 365 entries describing Gabriel's life in St. John's, his relationship with filmmaker Lydia Murphy, and the progress of the novel he is trying to write.Canadian Encyclopedia /ref> The book was nominated for the 2000
Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize
The Atwood Gibson Writers' Trust Fiction Prize, formerly known as the Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize, is a Canadian literary award presented by the Writers' Trust of Canada after an annual juried competition of works submitted by publishers. A ...
and won the inaugural Winterset Award.
''The Big Why'' was a historical novel narrated by real-life American artist
Rockwell Kent
Rockwell Kent (June 21, 1882 – March 13, 1971) was an American painter, printmaker, illustrator, writer, sailor, adventurer and voyager.
Biography
Rockwell Kent was born in Tarrytown, New York. Kent was of English descent. He lived much of ...
describing the time he spent in
Brigus
Brigus is a small fishing community located in Conception Bay, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. Brigus was home to Captain Bob Bartlett and the location of his residence Hawthorne Cottage.Canada travel guide. Lonely Planet 14th Edition (2020) ...
, Newfoundland, in 1914. Kent was eventually deported from Newfoundland on suspicion of being a German spy.
Winter was one of the judges of the 2006
Giller Prize
The Giller Prize (sponsored as the Scotiabank Giller Prize), is a literary award given to a Canadian author of a novel or short story collection published in English (including translation) the previous year, after an annual juried competitio ...
, and his line drawings illustrate
Noah Richler
Noah Richler is a Canadian author, journalist, and broadcaster who was raised in Montreal, Quebec, Canada and London, England. He is the son of Canadian novelist Mordecai Richler.
Richler worked for many years as a radio documentary producer for ...
's ''This is My Country, What's Yours? A Literary Atlas of Canada'' (2006). He serialized short teasers for each chapter of his third novel, ''The Architects are Here'' (2007), on
Facebook
Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin Mosk ...
.
''The Death of Donna Whalen'' (2010), his fourth novel, is described by the author as "documentary fiction".Coady, L. (2010, Sept 17). The drama of real life ... and death. ''Globe and Mail''. /ref> It uses court documents, transcripts and other material to tell the story of Donna Whalen, a St. John's woman stabbed to death, possibly by her boyfriend Sheldon Troke. The book is based on the 1993 murder of Brenda Young.
He divides his time between Toronto and Newfoundland, and is the brother of novelist
Kathleen Winter
Kathleen Winter (born 1960) is an English-Canadian short story writer and novelist.
Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize
The Atwood Gibson Writers' Trust Fiction Prize, formerly known as the Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize, is a Canadian literary award presented by the Writers' Trust of Canada after an annual juried competition of works submitted by publishers. A ...
(for ''This All Happened'')
*2000 Winterset Award (for ''This All Happened'')
*2004 Short list, Trillium Book Award (for ''The Big Why'')
*2004 Short list, Thomas Head Raddall Award (for ''The Big Why'')
*2004 Long list, IMPAC Literary Award (for ''The Big Why'')
*2007 Long list,
Giller Prize
The Giller Prize (sponsored as the Scotiabank Giller Prize), is a literary award given to a Canadian author of a novel or short story collection published in English (including translation) the previous year, after an annual juried competitio ...
Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize
The Atwood Gibson Writers' Trust Fiction Prize, formerly known as the Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize, is a Canadian literary award presented by the Writers' Trust of Canada after an annual juried competition of works submitted by publishers. A ...
(for ''The Death of Donna Whalen'')
*2013 Longlist,
Scotiabank Giller Prize
The Giller Prize (sponsored as the Scotiabank Giller Prize), is a literary award given to a Canadian author of a novel or short story collection published in English (including translation) the previous year, after an annual juried competition be ...
(for ''Minister Without Portfolio'')
Bibliography
Short fiction
*''Creaking in Their Skins'' (1994)
*''One Last Good Look'' (1999)
*''
The Sparky Book
''The Sparky Book'' is a 2006 animated/live-action short film by Newfoundland filmmaker Mary Lewis, about the near-death of a young girl who undergoes heart transplant surgery, and the death of her beloved pet dog, Sparky.
The story is based o ...
''
Novels
*''This All Happened'' (2000)
*''The Big Why'' (2004)
*''The Architects Are Here'' (2007)
*''The Death of Donna Whalen'' (2010)
*''Minister Without Portfolio'' (2013)
Non-fiction
*''Into the Blizzard: Walking the Fields of the Newfoundland Dead'' (2014)