Maureen Hynes
BIO
Biography

Maureen Hynes is a Toronto poet whose first book, Letters from China (Women's Press, 1981), was an account of her teacher training experiences in Chengdu, China at the end of the Cultural Revolution.

She has published six collections of poetry (see below) Her poetry has appeared in over thirty anthologies, including Best Canadian Poetry in English 2010, Ed. Lorna Crozier; Best Canadian Poetry in English 2016, Ed. Helen Humphreys: Best of the Best Canadian Poetry in English: Tenth Anniversary Edition, 2017, Eds. Molly Peacock and Anita Lahey; and Best Canadian Poetry 2021, Ed Souvankham Thammavongsa.  

Maureen’s poems have appeared in dozens of journals across Canada and internationally, and in the first and second volumes of In Fine Form: The Canadian Book of Form Poetry, eds. Kate Braid and Sandy Shreve. Her poems have also appeared in over 30 anthologies.

Maureen has given readings, workshops and taken part in panels across Canada and in the U.S, England, Scotland, and Australia. She has also taught in the University of Toronto’s Creative Writing Program.

Besides her literary work, Maureen has also written ESL academic texts, and academic articles in the fields of second language acquisition, women's training issues, race relations and human rights, labour history and labour studies. In 2010, with David Kidd, she co-authored Mapping Our Work: Toronto Labour History Walking Tours, and conducts tours of Toronto's labour history sites. With Lost Rivers Toronto and other poets, she’s developed poetry walks focusing on Toronto’s buried rivers; and with the Ireland Park Foundation, walking tours on the history of Toronto’s Irish community. She has led poetry workshops in several cities across Canada, and taught in the University of Toronto’s Creative Writing Program. Maureen is Poetry Editor for Our Times, Canada’s national labour magazine (www.ourtimes.ca).

ADDRESS
City: Toronto, Province/Territory: Ontario
EMAIL
GENRE
Poetry
LANGUAGES
English
PUBLICATIONS
Publications
Title
Rough Skin
Publisher
Wolsak and Wynn
Year
1995
Title
Harm’s Way
Publisher
Brick Books
Year
2001
Title
Marrow, Willow
Publisher
Pedlar Press
Year
2011
Title
The Poison Colour
Publisher
Pedlar Press
Year
2015
Title
Sotto Voce
Publisher
Brick Books
Year
2019
Title
Take the Compass
Publisher
McGill-Queen's University Press
Year
2023
AWARDS
Awards
Name
League of Canadian Poets Gerald Lampert Award (best first book of poetry)
Publication
Rough Skin
Year
1996
Name
League of Canadian Poets Raymond Souster Award (longlisted)
Publication
The Poison Colour
Year
2015
Name
League of Canadian Poets Pat Lowther Award (longlisted)
Publication
The Poison Colour
Year
2015
Name
The Petra Kenney Poetry Award, London, England, awarded at the Canadian High Commission (second prize)
Year
2006
Name
Finalist for the U.S.- based Golden Crown Literary Society's Award for Poetry, an award that honours "books written by women who love women."
Publication
Sotto Voce
Year
2020
Name
League of Canadian Poet's Pat Lowther Award (shortlisted)
Publication
Sotto Voce
Year
2020
LINKS
PUBLIC PRESENTATIONS AND WORKSHOPS
Workshop details
Audience Size
8-25
Intended Audience
High school or general adult audience.
Workshop Length
60-120 minutes
Workshop Description
Workshop description

Workshops or presentations for a general adult audience, or high school students, on specific aspects of reading and writing poetry, as decided in conjunction with the sponsor..

EQUITY INITIATIVE
As part of the Union’s Equity Implementation Plan, we are committed to increasing awareness of authors who are Black, Indigenous, racialized, LGBTQI2S, or living with a disability. This author identifies as:
Members who identify as:
LGBTQI2S
Programs & Interests
Interested in participating Union’s Ontario Writers-in-the-Schools program:
All members are eligible for the Union’s Ontario Writers-in-the-Schools program. Are you interested in participating in this pro
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Interested in participating in the Northern Ontario WITS program:
The Union’s Northern Ontario Writers-in-the-Schools program funds in-person visits to northern Ontario schools when possible. Ar
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