25th Trillium Award

Trillium Takes Ontario: Emily Schultz

 
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Trillium Award

Open Book loves Trillium season! Find out more about the talented authors nominated for the Trillium Book Award by following our special new series. We'll catch up with as many of these writers as we can in the lead-up to the awards announcement on Tuesday, June 18th. You can hear the finalists read from their nominated works on Wednesday, June 17th at the Bram & Bluma Appel Salon at the Toronto Reference Library. Visit Open Book's Events page for details.

Emily Schultz was nominated for the Trillium Book Award for her novel The Blondes (Doubleday Canada). Today Emily tells us why seclusion and three dollar drinks are essential to any writer's routine.

Open Book:

What was one source of inspiration for your Trillium-nominated book, and how did that spark find its way into the final version of your project?

Emily Schultz:

I was reading a copy of Vanity Fair that I found on a plane and I noticed that almost all the advertisements featured blonde women. And then I came to this spread by Gucci where a gang of women looked absolutely murderous. Beautiful, yet there was something menacing about them. I was looking to write about women, about friendships and about our power struggles. When I saw that ad, I just said, “The Blondes” in this creepy voice, and it seemed like the way for me to write about those things.

OB:

What was an essential part of your writing routine while you worked on this book?

ES:

I wrote the bulk of it shut up in a cabin, miles from any internet connection. I wanted to feel the seclusion of the character. It was like Evil Dead meets Yaddo.

OB:

What location in Ontario do you think would make the best writers' retreat, and why?

ES:

Wallaceburg, Ontario. It’s my hometown. Real estate is cheap, it’s an hour from the Detroit Airport, and drinks are $3.00. I’ve done some of my best writing here.



Emily Schultz is the co-founder of the literary journal Joyland and the host of the podcast Truth & Fiction. Her writing has appeared in several newspapers, magazines and anthologies. Her novel Heaven Is Small was named a finalist for the 2010 Trillium Book Award. She has worked as an editor and as a creative writing instructor. Emily currently lives in Brooklyn and Wallaceburg with her husband where together they write scripts.

For more information about The Blondes please visit the Doubleday Canada website.

Buy this book at your local independent bookstore or online at Chapters/Indigo or Amazon.

Visit the OMDC website to read more about the Trillium Book Award.

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