It’s been a pretty good year so far for Lisa Bird-Wilson.
The Saskatoon Métis author is the recipient of four Saskatchewan book awards for her collection of short fiction stories, Just Pretending.
Bird-Wilson was also given a YWCA women of distinction award last week.
She says right now is a great time to be in the arts in Saskatchewan and there is a very vibrant scene within the Aboriginal community.
“Just even in the local community, I see so much going on,” she says. “These young people who are starting to get interested in writing, interested in the arts, are really taking off with it and really creative. They’re so impressive.”
Bird-Wilson adds although her book was released in April 2013, it has really started to pick up momentum this year.
She adds in spite of the fact the stories are fictional; they are not created totally from scratch.
“You’re drawing from your experiences. You’re drawing from other people’s experiences. You’re drawing from snippets of conversations or interviews or things that have affected you somehow or stuck with you.”
Bird-Wilson has been all over the province giving readings from Just Pretending, from La Ronge to Swift Current.