Alix Ohlin is a Canadian novelist and short-story writer. She was born and raised in Montreal, Quebec, and lives in Vancouver, British Columbia. She is a recipient of the 2022 Lambda Literary Award for Bisexual Literature for her short story collection, We Want What We Want.
Biography On January 1, 2018, Ohlin became the chair of the University of British Columbia's creative writing program. In addition to her appointment as chair, Ohlin also joined the program as an associate professor where she specializes in teaching fiction, screenwriting, and environmental writing, as well as serving as a mentor to younger writers. She led the transition of the Creative Writing Program into the School of Creative Writing, and the establishment of an Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Committee. In July 2022, Ohlin completed her term as Director, and now continues to teach and write within the School of Creative Writing.
Previously, Ohlin taught at McGill University as the Mordecai Richler Writer-in-Residence for 2016–17. Ohlin was also an English professor at Lafayette College in Easton, Pennsylvania, a faculty member in the Warren Wilson College MFA Program for Writers.Dean Bakopoulos, "On Not Letting Go: An Interview with Alix Ohlin". Fiction Writers Review, 30 July 2012. in North Carolina, and has taught writing at the New York State Summer Writers Institute. She taught and worked at Portsmouth Abbey School, in Rhode Island, as writer-in-residence from the fall of 2002 through the spring of 2004.
Ohlin graduated magna cum laude from Harvard University with an English and American Literature and Language degree in 1992 and earned a master's in fine arts degree in writing from the Michener Center for Writers, University of Texas at Austin in 2001.
Ohlin published her debut novel The Missing Person in 2006, and followed up with the short story collection Babylon and Other Stories in 2007. Her second novel, Inside, and her second short story collection, Signs and Wonders, were both published on the same day in 2012."Montreal-born novelist Alix Ohlin goes deep Inside" . Calgary Herald, 10 August 2012. Inside was a shortlisted nominee for the 2012 Scotiabank Giller Prize and the Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize."Scotiabank Giller Prize short list announced". Toronto Star, 1 October 2012.
Her newest novel, Dual Citizens, was published in 2019."28 works of Canadian fiction to watch for in spring 2019". CBC Books, January 25, 2019. It was shortlisted for the 2019 Giller Prize,Deborah Dundas, "Michael Crummey, Ian Williams are in, Margaret Atwood and André Alexis are out on Giller Prize short list". Toronto Star, September 30, 2019. the 2019 Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize,"André Alexis, Michael Crummey shortlisted for $50K Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize". CBC Books, September 24, 2019. and the 2020 ReLit Award for fiction."38 books shortlisted for 2020 ReLit Awards". CBC Books, April 27, 2021.
Her short story collection We Want What We Want received the Lambda Literary Award for Bisexual Fiction in 2022, and was shortlisted for the 2021 Atwood Gibson Writers' Trust Fiction Prize,Deborah Dundas, "‘May the force be with you’: Five finalists for the first Atwood Gibson Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize announced". Toronto Star, September 29, 2021. and the 2022 ReLit Award for short fiction."Short fiction from Norma Dunning, David Huebert, Alix Ohlin among works shortlisted for 2022 ReLit Awards". CBC Books, May 9, 2022.
Bibliography
Novels The Missing Person (2006, ) Inside (2012, ) Dual Citizens (2019, )
Short fiction Collections Babylon and Other Stories (2007, ) Signs and Wonders (2012, ) We Want What We Want: Stories (2021, ) Stories TitleYearFirst publishedReprinted/collectedNotesQuarantine2017
Awards YearTitleAwardResultRef.2012InsideGiller PrizeShortlistRogers Writers' Trust Fiction PrizeShortlist2019Dual CitizensGiller PrizeShortlistRogers Writers' Trust Fiction PrizeShortlist2021We Want What We WantAtwood Gibson Writers' Trust Fiction PrizeShortlist2022Lambda Literary Award for Bisexual FictionWinner
References
External links Alix Ohlin