ARMSTRONG, Luanne (A.) 1949-

PERSONAL: Born June 15, 1949, in Creston, British Columbia, Canada; daughter of Robert William (a farmer) and Dorothy (a homemaker; maiden name, Klingensmith) Armstrong; children: Dorothy Woodend, Avril Woodend, Geronimo Morris, Naiches Morris. Education: University of Victoria, B.A. (with honors), 1972; University of British Columbia, M.F.A., 2001, and doctoral study.

ADDRESSES: Home—3476 Tupper St., Vancouver, British Columbia V52 3B7, Canada. E-mail— [email protected].

CAREER: Alberta Status of Women Action Committee, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, researcher, writer, and provincial coordinator, 1986-88; Kamloops Women's Resource Centre, executive director, 1988-89; Nicola Valley Institute of Technology, Merritt, British Columbia, Canada, instructor in English, 1989-92; Kootenay Lake Environmental Information Project, research coordinator, 1993; consultant to Eco-Sounder (environmental magazine), Indonesia, 1994; British Columbia Library Trustees Association, publicity and newsletter coordinator, 1998-2000; writer and creative writing teacher at schools through western Canada, including College of the Rockies, Lanbara College of Continuing Education, Kootenay School of the Arts, Yukon Community College, Nelson Fine Arts Center, Okanagan School of the Arts, and Kaslo School of the Arts; workshop presenter. Editor for publishers Blue Lake Books and HodgePog Books, both beginning 1999; Berton House, writer-in-residence, 2000. Vancouver Public Library, board member, 2002-04. Creator and editor, Other Voices, 1988-90.

MEMBER: Writers Union of Canada (chair of writers in schools committee, 2003-04), Canadian Society of Children's Authors, Illustrators, and Performers, Federation of British Columbia Writers, Children's Writers and Illustrators, Art Starts in Schools.

AWARDS, HONORS: Grants from Canada Council and Canadian Research Institute for the Advancement of Women, both 1992; "Our Choice" selections, Canadian Children's Book Centre, 1995, for Annie, 1997, for Arly and Spike, and 2001, for Jeannie and the Gentle Giants; first prize, Winner's Circle Writing Contest, Canadian Authors Association, for "Tuning the Rig"; other awards including poetry award from Burnaby Writers Association.

WRITINGS:

Castle Mountain (poetry), Polestar Press (Nelson, British Columbia, Canada), 1981, reprinted, 2002.

(Editor) From the Interior: A Kootenay Women's Anthology, 1984.

Annie (novel), Polestar Press (Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada), 1995.

Bordering (novel), Gynergy Books (Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, Canada), 1995.

The Woman in the Garden (poetry chapbook), Peachtree Press, 1996.

Arly and Spike (juvenile novel), HodgePog Press (Edmonton, Alberta, Canada), 1997.

The Colour of Water (novel), Caitlin Press (Prince George, British Columbia, Canada), 1998.

Maggie and Shine (young adult novel), HodgePog Books (Edmonton, Alberta, Canada), 1999.

Jeannie and the Gentle Giants (young adult novel), Ronsdale Press (Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada), 2001.

The Bone House (novel), New Star Books (Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada), 2002.

Into the Sun (young adult novel), illustrated by Robin Leurew, HodgePog Books (Edmonton, Alberta, Canada), 2002.

Breathing the Mountain (poetry chapbook), Leaf Books (Lantzville, British Columbia, Canada), 2003.

Pete's Gold (young adult novel), Ronsdale Press (Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada), in press.

Work represented in anthologies, including Home: A Bioregional Anthology, New Society Press; and Resist, Women's Press (Toronto, Ontario, Canada). Contributor of articles, short stories, and poetry to periodicals, including Vancouver Sun, Western Living, Flare, Georgia Straight, Salon Online, and Herizons. Editorial board member of periodicals Educational Insights and Geist.

WORK IN PROGRESS: Blue Valleys, a memoir.

SIDELIGHTS: Luanne A. Armstrong told CA: "I have spent most of my life in the Kootenay region of British Columbia, where I raised four children on an organic farm. I always wanted to be a writer from the time I first learned to read. I can't remember why, only that reading seemed to me so magical that writing must be equally magic. I now write in several genres: award-winning children's books, adult novels, and poetry. In my academic research, I am considering questions concerning memoir and autobiography.

"The most surprising thing I have learned as a writer is how financially unrewarding writing can be at times. My favorite book is always the one I am currently working on because I see so much potential in it. I have always worked at a variety of jobs, including coordinating women's groups, teaching at a First Nations college, and teaching in Indonesia with an environmental organization. I was also the editor for Blue Lake and HodgePog Books in Vancouver, which published literary and children's books before it folded.

"Finding the time and money to write is always difficult, but I am always working on at least two writing projects. I write about ideas, so I hope my books are both entertaining and thought provoking."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Herizons, fall, 2003, Noreen Shanahan, review of The Bone House, p. 33.

Resource Links, April, 2002, Veronica Allan, review of Jeannie and the Gentle Giants, p. 12; April, 2003, Victoria Pennell, review of Into the Sun, p. 11.