Ami McKay

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Ami McKay
Born1968 (age 55–56)
Lebanon, Indiana
OccupationNovelist, playwright and journalist
NationalityAmerican-Canadian
Alma materIndiana State University
Children2
Website
amimckay.com

Ami McKay (born 1968)[1][2] is an American Canadian novelist, playwright and journalist.

Personal life and education[edit]

McKay was born in Lebanon, Indiana[3] in 1968 and was raised in rural Indiana.[2] She received a bachelor's degree in music education and graduate degree in musicology from Indiana State University.[1]

In 2000, McKay moved with her two sons to Scot's Bay, Nova Scotia[1] to live with the man she would eventually marry.[2]

Many members of McKay's family have Lynch Syndrome, a genetic condition that causes a predisposition for numerous cancers.[4] Later in life, McKay learned that she carries the gene.[4] This condition has inspired her writing, most prominently Daughter of Family G.[4]

Career[edit]

After receiving her graduate degree, McKay moved to Chicago, where she taught music full-time and spent her free-time writing.[1]

In 2000, she devoted herself to writing full-time. During this time, she "began writing and producing documentaries for CBC Radio."[1] Her work has aired on Maritime Magazine, Outfront, This Morning and The Sunday Edition. Her documentary, Daughter of Family G won an Excellence in Journalism Medallion at the 2003 Atlantic Journalism Awards. She was a finalist in the Writers' Union of Canada's Short Prose Competition as well as the recipient of a grant from the Nova Scotia Department of Tourism, Culture and Heritage.

McKay's first novel, The Birth House, was published in 2006 and landed the top spot on Canadian bestseller lists.[citation needed] Her second novel, The Virgin Cure, was published in 2012.

Her first script for the stage, Jerome: The Historical Spectacle, was commissioned by Two Planks and a Passion Theatre Company and was staged at The Ross Creek Centre for the Arts, directed by Ken Schwartz in August 2008.

In 2019, it was announced that The Birth House had been purchased to be adapted for television by Sherry White and Kerri MacDonald and Omnifilm Entertainment Ltd.[5]

Awards and recognition[edit]

In 2003, McKay was an apprentice in the WFNS Mentorship program, where she was paired with Richard Cumyn.[citation needed]

In 2011, The Birth House was one of five finalists in CBC's Canada Reads, having been championed by TV host and designer Debbie Travis.[5][6]

In 2012, McKay received the Established Artist Recognition Award from the Creative Nova Scotia Leadership Council / Province of Nova Scotia.[citation needed] The same year, The Virgin Cure won the Atlantic Independent Booksellers' Association "Bookseller's Choice of the Year" award.[citation needed]

In 2017, CBC Books included The Birth House on their "100 novels that make you proud to be Canadian" list in the 69th position.[7]

Awards for McKay's writing
Year Title Award Result Ref.
2003 Daughter of Family G Atlantic Journalism Award for Feature Writing for Radio Finalist [1][2]
Gabriel Award Winner [1]
"Illumination" Writers' Union of Canada Short Prose Competition Winner [2]
2004 The Birth House H.R.(Bill) Percy Prize for Unpublished Novel Second [citation needed]
2007 Atlantic Book Awards' Booksellers' Choice Award Winner [citation needed]
Evergreen Award Winner [8]
International Dublin Literary Award Longlist [citation needed]
Libris Award for Best Author Winner [1]
Libris Award for Best Fiction Winner [1]
2009 Jerome Robert Meritt Award for Outstanding Play by a Nova Scotian Playwright Finalist [9]
Robert Meritt Award for Outstanding Sound or Original Score Winner [9]
2017 The Witches of New York Sunburst Award for Adult Fiction Finalist [10][11]
Thomas Raddall Atlantic Fiction Award Winner [12]
2018 Nothing Less! Robert Meritt Award for Outstanding Musical Direction Finalist [13][14]
Robert Meritt Award for Outstanding Original Score Finalist [13][14]
Robert Meritt Award for Outstanding Play by a Nova Scotian Playwright Finalist [13][14]
2020 Daughter of Family G Evelyn Richardson Non-Fiction Award Winner [15][16][4]
Robbie Robertson Dartmouth Book Award Winner [15][16][4]

Writing credits[edit]

Books[edit]

Fiction[edit]

  • The Birth House, Knopf Canada (2006)
  • The Virgin Cure, Knopf Canada (2011)
  • The Witches of New York, Knopf Canada (2016)
  • Half Spent Was the Night, Knopf Canada (2018)

Nonfiction[edit]

  • Before My Time: A Memoir of Love and Fate, Vintage Books Canada (2021)
  • Daughter of Family G: A Memoir of Cancer Genes, Love and Fate, Knopf Canada (2019)
    • Prior to publication, segments of Daughter of Family G were featured on CBC Radio's The Sunday Edition
    • In 2003, a segment of Daughter of Family G was selected to air on Soundprint and aired on National Public Radio stations throughout the U.S.

Other[edit]

  • Jerome: The Historical Spectacle, Gaspereau Press 2008
    • First staged by Two Planks and Passion Theatre Company August 1-17, 2008 at the Ross Creek Centre for the Arts
  • Kitchen Ghosts, Feature Documentary for CBC Radio's Outfront
  • The Midwife House, Feature Webumentary for CBC Radio's Outfront
  • From Smart Girl to Scat Girl, Feature Documentary for CBC Radio's Outfront
  • Learning to Box, Personal Essay for CBC Radio's First Person Singular

Affiliations[edit]

  • The Writers Federation of Nova Scotia - Writer's Council Member
  • PEN Canada & the PEN Canada Rapid Action Network
  • Writing Fellow at the Ross Creek Centre for the Arts

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Gardner, Suzanne (2013-12-16). "Ami McKay". The Canadian Encyclopedia. Archived from the original on 2023-04-13. Retrieved 2023-05-21.
  2. ^ a b c d e "McKay, Ami 1968-". Encyclopedia.com. Retrieved 2023-05-21.
  3. ^ "There is no frigate like a book". Ami McKay. January 2012. Archived from the original on 2020-10-20. Retrieved 2020-08-05.
  4. ^ a b c d e "How a family history of dying young shaped Ami McKay and changed cancer research". CBC Books. 2020-07-13. Archived from the original on 2023-05-13. Retrieved 2023-05-21.
  5. ^ a b van Koeverden, Jane (2019-05-24). "Ami McKay's novel The Birth House being adapted for TV". CBC Books. Archived from the original on 2021-09-23. Retrieved 2023-05-21.
  6. ^ "Meet Canada Reads 2011 nominee Ami McKay". CBC Books. 2011. Retrieved 2023-05-21.
  7. ^ "100 novels that make you proud to be Canadian". CBC Books. 2017-12-04. Archived from the original on 2023-04-30. Retrieved 2023-05-21.
  8. ^ Evergreen Award™ Winners and Nominees 2005–2022 (PDF). Ontario Library Association. p. 9. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2022-05-19. Retrieved 2023-05-21.
  9. ^ a b "The 2009 Robert Merritt Awards" (PDF). Robert Merritt Awards official website. Theatre Nova Scotia. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 September 2014. Retrieved 29 September 2013.
  10. ^ "Awards: Sunburst; BOA Short Fiction". Shelf Awareness. 2017-07-20. Retrieved 2023-05-21.
  11. ^ Robertson, Becky (2017-07-17). "Ami McKay, Sylvain Neuvel among Sunburst Award finalists". Quill and Quire. Archived from the original on 2022-05-22. Retrieved 2023-05-21.
  12. ^ Meakin, Jonathan (2017-06-01). "2017 East Coast Literary Award Winners Announced". Atlantic Books. Archived from the original on 2022-10-07. Retrieved 2023-05-21.
  13. ^ a b c Lake, Michael (2018-03-27). "2b Theatre sweeps the 2018 Robert Merritt Theatre Awards with eight wins". The Coast Halifax. Retrieved 2020-08-04.
  14. ^ a b c "Theatre Nova Scotia's Robert Merritt Award Nominations 2018" (PDF). Theatre Nova Scotia. 2018. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2021-02-14. Retrieved 2020-08-04.
  15. ^ a b Carter, Sue (2020-07-02). "Ami McKay, Gemma Hickey double winners at Atlantic Book Awards". Quill and Quire. Archived from the original on 2022-08-18. Retrieved 2023-05-21.
  16. ^ a b Walt, Peggy (2020-06-30). "2020 Atlantic Book Awards Winners Announced". Atlantic Books. Archived from the original on 2023-03-24. Retrieved 2023-05-21.

External links[edit]

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