Science Fiction Writer
ROBERT J. SAWYER
Hugo and Nebula Winner

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Robert J. Sawyer will be Writer in Residence at The Merril Collection of Science Fiction, Speculation and Fantasy (the SF special collection of the Toronto Public Library) from April 1 to June 30, 2003; he will be the first writer to hold this post since Judith Merril herself in 1987.

Members of the public can submit manuscripts to be critiqued by Sawyer, who will meet in hour-long one-on-one sessions at The Merril Collection with each author (at no cost to the individual).

Sawyer will give a reading in the Beeton Auditorium of the Toronto Reference Library (789 Yonge Street) on Tuesday, March 18, 2003, at 7:30 p.m.; run a series of noon-hour seminars at the Toronto Reference Library; and more.

The Merril Collection, founded in 1970 with the donation by famed writer and editor Judith Merril of her personal SF library, has grown into the world's largest public-library reference collection of science fiction. Lorna Toolis is the collection head.

Sawyer, who won the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America's Nebula Award for Best Novel of 1995 (for The Terminal Experiment) and has been nominated six times for the Hugo Award, is the author of 15 SF novels, including the just-released Humans. He is on the creative-writing faculties of the Banff Centre for the Arts and the University of Toronto.

Manuscripts can be submitted by mail, or dropped of in person:

The Merril Collection
Lillian H. Smith Branch
Toronto Public Library
239 College Street, 3rd Floor
Toronto, Ontario  M5T 1R5

(416) 393-7748

Please include your phone number and/or email address so that an appointment may be scheduled for you to come in to see the Writer-in-Residence. Note: although manuscripts can be mailed in, critiques will only be presented in person at the Merril Collection. You must come to the Merril Collection for your meeting with Rob Sawyer.

Manuscript must be in standard manuscript format (see here for details), and should be no more than 15 pages long. The library reserves the right to limit the number of manuscripts accepted.

When you drop off your manuscript, the library staff will book an hour-long appointment for you with the Writer in Residence. The Merril Collection is open, and appointments can be scheduled, Mondays to Fridays from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., and Saturdays from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.; the library is closed on Sundays and statutory holidays.

This Writer in Residence program is sponsored by the Toronto Public Library and the Friends of TPL's South Region.

For more information about Robert J. Sawyer's residency, please contact The Merril Collection at (416) 393-7748.

Links:

• Comments from those who saw Rob during this program
• The Fledglings: the workshop that came out of Rob's residency
• The Merril Collection
• The Friends of the Merril Collection
• Rob Sawyer's advice on writing

More Good Reading

Press Release index
Futurism index
Top Ten Things to Know About Robert J. Sawyer
Rob's Newsletter

My Very Occasional Newsletter