Darren Wershler-Henry
Encyclopedia
Darren Wershler aka Darren Wershler-Henry (1966 -) is a Canadian
experimental poet
, non-fiction writer and cultural critic.
A former grave digger, he was the senior editor
of Coach House Books
between 1997 and 2002, where the works he edited included several highly acclaimed books of contemporary innovative poetry, including Fidget by Kenneth Goldsmith
(2000), both volumes of Seven Pages Missing, the collected works of Steve McCaffery
(2000, 2002), Lip Service by Bruce Andrews
(2001), and Eunoia
by Christian Bök
(2002).
Wershler is the youngest poet discussed in Marjorie Perloff
's 21st Century Modernism, which analyzes his second book of poetry, the tapeworm foundry (a Trillium Book Award
finalist in 2000). He has instructed courses in Communication Studies at York University
and Wilfrid Laurier University
and currently is the Concordia University Research Chair in Media and Contemporary Literature (Tier 2) at Concordia University
. He has authored several books about the Internet
, technology and culture, as well as occasional essays on pop culture for newspapers and magazines such as Brick
, Broken Pencil
and This Magazine
.
He lives in Montreal, Quebec.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
experimental poet
Poetry
Poetry is a form of literary art in which language is used for its aesthetic and evocative qualities in addition to, or in lieu of, its apparent meaning...
, non-fiction writer and cultural critic.
A former grave digger, he was the senior editor
Editing
Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, visual, audible, and film media used to convey information through the processes of correction, condensation, organization, and other modifications performed with an intention of producing a correct, consistent, accurate, and complete...
of Coach House Books
Coach House Books
Coach House Books is an independent Canadian publishing company located in Toronto, Ontario. Coach House publishes innovative and experimental poetry, fiction, drama and non-fiction. The press is particularly interested in writing that pushes at the boundaries of convention.-History:The company was...
between 1997 and 2002, where the works he edited included several highly acclaimed books of contemporary innovative poetry, including Fidget by Kenneth Goldsmith
Kenneth Goldsmith
Kenneth Goldsmith is an American poet. He is the founding editor of UbuWeb, teaches Poetics and Poetic Practice at the University of Pennsylvania and is Senior Editor of PennSound. He hosted a weekly radio show at WFMU from 1995 until June 2010...
(2000), both volumes of Seven Pages Missing, the collected works of Steve McCaffery
Steve McCaffery
Steven McCaffery is a Canadian poet and scholar who was a professor at York University. He currently holds the Gray Chair at SUNY Buffalo . McCaffery was born in Sheffield, England and lived in the UK for most of his youth attending University of Hull. He moved to Toronto in 1968...
(2000, 2002), Lip Service by Bruce Andrews
Bruce Andrews
Bruce Andrews is a U.S. poet who is one of the key figures associated with the Language poets .-Life and work:...
(2001), and Eunoia
Eunoia (book)
Eunoia is the title of a set of univocalics by Canadian poet Christian Bök, which consists of chapters written using words limited to a single vowel...
by Christian Bök
Christian Bök
Christian Bök is an experimental Canadian poet. He is the author of Eunoia, which won the Canadian Griffin Poetry Prize, and which has been said to be "Canada's best-selling poetry book ever."-Life:...
(2002).
Wershler is the youngest poet discussed in Marjorie Perloff
Marjorie Perloff
Marjorie Perloff is an Austrian-born U.S. poetry critic.Perloff was born Gabriele Mintz into a secularized Jewish family in Vienna. Faced with Nazi terror, her family emigrated in 1938 when she was six-and-a-half, going first to Zürich and then to the United States, settling in Riverdale, New York...
's 21st Century Modernism, which analyzes his second book of poetry, the tapeworm foundry (a Trillium Book Award
Trillium Book Award
The Trillium Award is given annually by the government of the Province of Ontario and is open to books in any genre: fiction, non-fiction, drama, children's books, and poetry. Anthologies, new editions, re-issues and translations are not eligible. Three jury members per language judge the...
finalist in 2000). He has instructed courses in Communication Studies at York University
York University
York University is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's third-largest university, Ontario's second-largest graduate school, and Canada's leading interdisciplinary university....
and Wilfrid Laurier University
Wilfrid Laurier University
Wilfrid Laurier University is a university located in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. It also has campuses in Brantford, Ontario, Kitchener, Ontario and Toronto, Ontario and a future proposed campus in Milton, Ontario. It is named in honour of Sir Wilfrid Laurier, the seventh Prime Minister of Canada....
and currently is the Concordia University Research Chair in Media and Contemporary Literature (Tier 2) at Concordia University
Concordia University
Concordia University is a comprehensive Canadian public university located in Montreal, Quebec, one of the two universities in the city where English is the primary language of instruction...
. He has authored several books about the Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
, technology and culture, as well as occasional essays on pop culture for newspapers and magazines such as Brick
Brick (magazine)
Brick is a Canadian literary magazine published twice a year out of Toronto, Ontario.The magazine publishes book reviews, poetry, memoirs, fiction, essays and interviews with both Canadian and international writers. It was founded in London, Ontario By Stan Dragland and Jean McKay in 1977 and was...
, Broken Pencil
Broken Pencil
Broken Pencil is a Canadian magazine, which profiles zine culture and independent arts and music. The magazine publishes four times annually and is based in Toronto.The magazine was founded in 1995 by Hal Niedzviecki...
and This Magazine
This Magazine
This Magazine is an independent alternative Canadian political magazine. It was launched "by a gang of school activists" in 1966 as This Magazine is About Schools, a journal covering political issues in the education system...
.
He lives in Montreal, Quebec.
Poetry
- Update (with Bill Kennedy)
- apostrophe (with Bill Kennedy)
- the tapeworm foundry
- NICHOLODEON: a book of lowerglyphs
Non-fiction
- Guy Maddin's My Winnipeg
- The Iron Whim: A Fragmented History of Typewriting
- The Original Canadian City Dweller's Almanac (with Hal NiedzvieckiHal NiedzvieckiHal Niedzviecki is a Canadian novelist and cultural critic.Born into a Jewish family, he was raised in Ottawa, Ontario and Potomac, Maryland, did his undergraduate studies at the University of Toronto and his graduate studies at Bard College...
) - FREE as in speech and beer: open source, peer-to-peer and the economics of the online revolution
- CommonSpace: Beyond Virtual Community (with Mark Surman)
- Internet Directory 2001 (with Scott Mitchell)
- The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Online Shopping for Canadians (with Preston Gralla)
- Internet Directory 2000 (with Scott Mitchell)
- A Brief yet Extensive History of Rodeo Clowns (with Bill Kennedy)
External links
- dw: Darren Wershler's home page
- Status Update
- Darren Wershler's faculty page at Concordia University
- Darren Wershler-Henry's page at the Electronic Poetry Center
- e-book: NICHOLODEON
- e-book: CommonSpace
- e-book: FREE as in speech and beer
- e-book: the tapeworm foundry
- the apostrophe engine
- Darren Wershler-Henry interview and reading on CBC Radio program And Sometimes Y
- Darren Wershler-Henry interview on CBC Radio program The Contrarians
- Darren Wershler-Henry interview on NPR Weekend Edition
- Darren Wershler-Henry profile in This Magazine
- Darren Wershler-Henry profile in Taddle Creek Magazine
- Review of The Iron Whim in The New Yorker
- Review of The Iron Whim in The New York Times Review of Books