Alan Cumyn
Alan Cumyn is the author of the beloved Owen Skye children’s novels—The Secret Life of Owen Skye, After Sylvia and Dear Sylvia—which combined have either won or been short-listed for twelve national awards in Canada. He has also adapted After Sylvia for the stage and authored seven wide-ranging novels for adults including Burridge Unbound, a Giller Prize finalist, and The Famished Lover, which was recently longlisted for the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award. Alan was born in Ottawa, Canada, and he still lives in the same neighbourhood where he grew up. But he has also travelled widely. He taught English in China and Indonesia, ran a group home in Toronto, and for eight years wrote on international human rights issues for the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada. He has an M.A. in Creative Writing from the University of Windsor and he has taught at the Humber School for Writers and the Banff Centre for Fine Arts, and he has served as writer-in-residence at the University of Ottawa. Alan is First Vice Chair of The Writers’ Union of Canada. You can read more about Alan and his work at: www.alancumyn.com.
Faculty Writing for Children & Young Adults
