Biography

Born in Toronto, Ontario

Ontario

Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....

, Steffler was educated at the University of Toronto

University of Toronto

The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...

 and the University of Guelph

University of Guelph

The University of Guelph, also known as U of G, is a comprehensive public research university in Guelph, Ontario, Canada. It was established in 1964 after the amalgamation of Ontario Agricultural College, the Macdonald Institute, and the Ontario Veterinary College...

. Since 1975 he has lived in Corner Brook

Corner Brook, Newfoundland and Labrador

Corner Brook is a city located on the west coast of the island of Newfoundland in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada....

, Newfoundland and Labrador

Newfoundland and Labrador

Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada. Situated in the country's Atlantic region, it incorporates the island of Newfoundland and mainland Labrador with a combined area of . As of April 2011, the province's estimated population is 508,400...

 where he taught at Sir Wilfred Grenfell College (a campus of Memorial University of Newfoundland

Memorial University of Newfoundland

Memorial University of Newfoundland, is a comprehensive university located primarily in St...

). Steffler currently resides in Montreal, teaching at Concordia University.

His novel The Afterlife of George Cartwright (1992) won the 1993 Thomas Head Raddall Award

Thomas Head Raddall Award

The Thomas Head Raddall Award is a Canadian literary award, presented annually by the Writers' Trust of Canada and the Writers' Federation of Nova Scotia, to the best work of adult fiction published in the previous year by a writer from the Atlantic provinces...

 and was nominated for the English-language Fiction category of the 1992 Governor General's Awards

1992 Governor General's Awards

Each winner of the 1992 Governor General's Awards for Literary Merit received $10,000 and a medal from the Governor General of Canada. The winners were selected by a panel of judges administered by the Canada Council for the Arts.-Fiction:Winner:...

.

His books of poetry include That Night We Were Ravenous (1998), which won the 1999 Atlantic Poetry Prize

Atlantic Poetry Prize

The Atlantic Poetry Prize is a Canadian literary award, presented annually by the Writers' Federation of Nova Scotia, to the best work of poetry published by a writer from the Atlantic provinces.-Winners:*1998 - Carmelita McGrath, To the New World...

.

On December 4, 2006, Steffler became Canadian Parliamentary Poet Laureate

Canadian Parliamentary Poet Laureate

-Role:According to the laureate's official Web site: "The Poet’s role is to encourage and promote the importance of literature, culture and language in Canadian society...

, a position intended to "encourage and promote the importance of literature, culture and language in Canadian society. Federal legislators created the position in 2001 to draw Canadians’ attention to poetry, both spoken and written, and its role in our lives." Steffler's term expired in November 2008.

Poetry

• An Explanation of Yellow. Ottawa: Borealis Press, 1981.
• The Grey Islands. Toronto: McClelland and Stewart, 1985.
• The Wreckage of Play. Toronto: McClelland and Stewart, 1988.
• That Night We Were Ravenous. Toronto: McClelland and Stewart, 1998.
• The Grey Islands. London, ON: Brick Books, 2000.
• Helix: new and selected poems. Montreal : Signal Editions, 2002.
• The Grey Islands, unabridged audio edition (2007)
• Lookout. Plattsburgh, NY: McClelland and Stewart, 2010. ISBN 9780771082672 (shortlisted for the 2011 Griffin Poetry Prize
  Griffin Poetry Prize
  The Griffin Poetry Prize is Canada's most generous poetry award. It was founded in 2000 by businessman and philanthropist Scott Griffin. The awards go to one Canadian and one international poet who writes in the English language....
  
  )

Novels

• The Afterlife of George Cartwright
  George Cartwright (trader)
  George Cartwright , trader, explorer, born in Marnham, England, died unmarried in nearby Mansfield, England....
  
  . Toronto: McClelland and Stewart, 1992. New York: Henry Holt & Co., 1993.

Anthologies

• Coastlines: The Poetry of Atlantic Canada, ed. Anne Compton, Laurence Hutchman, Ross Leckie and Robin McGrath (Goose Lane Editions, 2002)

Except where noted, bibliographical information courtesy Canadian Poetry Online.

External links

• Canadian Poetry Online: John Steffler - Biography and 6 poems (Collecting, Bay of Islands, 1998; The Green Insect; Invited In; Work; March 22; That Night We Were Ravenous)
• John Steffler at the Parliament of Canada website
• John Steffler on the University of Toronto Library Canadian Poets List
• Griffin Poetry Prize biography of John Steffler, including video clip
• "At the Foot of a Wall" from That Night We Were Ravenous, online at CBC Words at Large
• John Steffler speaks about his appointment as Canada's Parliamentary Poet Laureate, online at CBC Words at Large (audio)