Collection history

Historically, literary studies and literary-archival work has focused on the stories of white, male writers. As a way of disrupting this narrow focus, the Unarchiving the Margins Collection digitizes, preserves, and brings to life almost 80 tapes of literary audio from the fonds of a diverse set of writers from equity deserving groups. The digitization and public distribution of this collection amplifies voices of women, queer writers, and writers of colour who have been historically left out of the archive and thus not highlighted in many digitizing projects. SFU is committed to prioritizing projects that promote content by writers from historically underserved groups in order to ensure that more researchers, scholars, and interested members of the public have access to these materials.    

Highlights

The Unarchiving the Margins Collection brings together interviews, readings, and discussions featuring hundreds of voices and writers from equity deserving groups, such as: Daphne Marlatt, Nicole Brossard, Maria Campbell, Dorothy Livesay, Phyllis Webb, Lillian Allen, Ellen Tallman, Penn Kemp, Jeanette Armstrong, Betsy Warland, Fred Wah, Shani Mootoo, Sharon Thesen, Mary Billy, Anita Rau Badami, Lorna Crozier, and many more! 

Further, the collection also features renowned Canadian male writers, including: George Bowering, Stuart McLean, and bp Nichol.

Women and Words

The Women and Words fonds includes 115 cassettes containing conference panels and readings affiliated with the West Coast Women and Words Society that took place between 1983 and 1998. The first conference, held in Vancouver, BC, brought together dozens of women involved in Canadian print, including publishers, writers, critics, booksellers and journalists. The conference included more than 40 panels and workshops, with presentations from names such as Dorothy Livesay, Phyllis Webb, Eleanor Wachtel, and Margaret Atwood. Beyond the record this fonds provides of second-wave feminist literary history, it is notable for its inclusion of Indigenous women and women from the Caribbean, as well as for putting French- and English-speaking writers and scholars into conversation with each other. It also brings to the fore women involved in other aspects of literary production, including publishing, bookselling, and theatrical production, who are not often captured in literary sound archives. SFU  has secured permissions to make available online 37 of the 115 cassettes, though the remaining 78 have been digitized, and may be listened to in person at SFU Special Collections. 

Shani Mootoo

Unarchiving the Margins contains four tapes from the Shani Mootoo fonds. Mootoo is a Trinidadian fiction writer, video maker, and visual artist who has long been an active member of the Vancouver writing scene. The tapes includes discussions of works such as her short film “English Lesson,” as well as commentary about abortion rights and the prison system.  

Daphne Marlatt

Four tapes are included by renowned Canadian poet and prose writer Daphne Marlatt. Marlatt was a member of Vancouver TISH poetry group, has published over 20 books of poetry, and is a member of the Order of Canada. Marlatt’s work is known for being complex and powerfully feminist. The recordings include interviews about her book Opening Doors in Vancouver’s East End: Strathcona, as well as a reading with fellow Vancouver writers Sharon Thesen and George Bowering. 

Fred Wah

Unarchiving the margins includes twenty-five tapes from the fonds of Fred Wah, a member of Vancouver’s TISH Poetry group and Canada’s former Parliamentary Poet Laureate. Wah is a Chinese-Canadian writer whose work is known for formal innovation and engagement with his mixed heritage. The tapes include readings by Wah, a number of interviews including one of Wah by bp Nichol, and classroom visits. 

Mary Billy

This collection includes literary audio from feminist-activist Mary Billy, a poet and fiction writer who won the International Helen prize and was known for keeping the Femicide List, a list of the names and incidents of women and girls murdered by men in Canada. This collection includes two tapes in which Billy gives conference speeches focussed on feminism. 

Anita Rau Badami

Anita Rau Badami is a South Asian novelist who has been a member of the West Coast writing scene for over 30 years. Two of her tapes have been included in this collection, which gather a conference panel and a CBC Documentary. 

Filling Station

Founded in 1993, Filling Station is a Calgary magazine that publishes innovative writing and art. Four tapes of slam and performance poetry are included in the collection.

Carolyn Zonailo

Carolyn Zonailo is a Vancouver-born writer of Doukhobor heritage, author of numerous books of poetry and long-time publisher of Caitlin Press. Included in this collection is one tape of her poetry set to music. 

Digital collection

75 recordings have now been digitized and made available online. The SFU English Department and SFU Library gratefully acknowledge the financial support provided by the Irving K. Barber Learning Centre’s B.C. History Digitization Program.

View the Unarchiving the Margins digital collection. 

License and usage permissions

This collection is made available for non-commercial research and educational purposes. Numerous rights holders are represented in this collection. Simon Fraser University wishes to hear from any copyright owner, or their representative, who believes that this project has not properly attributed their work or has used it without authorization. Please contact copy@sfu.ca and include the URL of the work in your message.

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