Ottawa’s newest poet laureates say they plan to collaborate with local arts groups and host creative writing workshops for the elderly and high school students, aiming to make poetry more accessible and engaging.
David O’Meara will serve as the English poet laureate and Véronique Sylvain will serve as the French poet laureate for two years as part of City of Ottawa’s Poet Laureate Program which promotes poetic expression in both official languages.
The program, part the city’s cultural landscape since 2017, seeks to inspire creativity and community through a deep appreciation for poetry.
“There is a very strong poetry community in Ottawa because we are relatively a compact city. The last poetry festival we had in March had four evenings of events, which were all sellouts. So that shows that there is an interest in poetry in Ottawa, and people will come out for it,” said Frances Boyle, a writer and a board member with VERSe Ottawa.
The idea is to have a poetry ambassador that nurtures a vibrant poetry community in Ottawa and have a kind of representative for poetry at large.
Frances Boyle, a writer and a board member with VERSe Ottawa
VERSe Ottawa, a not-for-profit organization that aims to get people actively involved in poetic arts, oversees the Poet Laureate Program on behalf of the city.
“The idea is to have a poetry ambassador that nurtures a vibrant poetry community in Ottawa and have a kind of representative for poetry at large,” Boyle said.
“I don’t know if it was lack of interest, lack of impetus, or, you know, just sort of the city cutting back funding, but for many years, there was no poet laureate. When the founders of VERSe Ottawa wanted to start up the organization, one of their main purposes was to bring back the poet laureate position and it was very important that, given Ottawa is a bilingual city, there be both a French language and English language poet laureate,” she said.
A three-person committee selects the laureates.
O’Meara said the program “is a great forum for an artist to officially address the public nature of art in our society.
“VERSe Ottawa is an essential component of the Ottawa Arts scene. Like the wonderful Ottawa International Writers Festival, it defines the literary excellence of the community. No great city can be vital for long without these kinds of literary events.”
Véronique Sylvain
Sylvain comes from the French community in Kapuskasing, in Northern Ontario. She has been in Ottawa for 15 years and got her master’s degree in French studies from the University of Ottawa.
When she started writing poetry, she said in an interview she did not take it seriously.
“I think what helped me start to take it more seriously, was seven or eight years ago. I applied for a grant with the Ontario Arts Council, and I was eligible because I was writing poetry, but I also got involved with songwriters in Ontario. And that’s when I got my first grant for my first poetry book.”
During her tenure, Sylvain hopes to bring Ottawa and Gatineau poets together to write. She will go into high schools and senior living communities to give creative writing workshops.
“I like when I can do workshops, you don’t know who you’re going to meet, what difference you’re going to make in people’s lives and what difference they’re going to make in your life,” Sylvain said.
Besides writing and performing poetry, Sylvain works as a communications agent at Éditions David.
David O’Meara
O’Meara has been active in Ottawa’s literary scene for a long time. Originally from Pembroke, Ont., he is a prolific author, poet and playwright.
He got started in poetry through anthologies and literature classes in school. “Most importantly, I met other poets and I just kept writing,” O’Meara said.
For the next two years, O’Meara plans to partner with other art groups in areas such as dance, visual art and music, to bring different audiences together.
“I want to promote important causes and services that we have in the city. I’m hoping to host events, inspire collaboration, and make art appear in unexpected places,” he said.
