Paula Jane Remlinger’s first book of poetry was more than ten years in the making.
But it was worth it.
The volume, entitled, ‘This Hole Called January’, published last year by Thistledown Press, took top honours for poetry at the Saskatchewan Book Awards announced in mid-June.
“It’s an incredible honour, and also very humbling to be included in the group of poets who have won this award over the years,” said Remlinger in an interview on Tuesday, June 23. “The award is named in honour of the late Anne Szumigalski, who was a fantastic poet.”
Remlinger, who lives on an acreage in the hamlet of Beaver Creek with her husband Trent, began writing at an early age. By 13, she’d already had her work published in the Western Producer and Prince Albert Daily Herald.
“I grew up in Prince Albert, and when I was young, a man named John V. Hicks was the poet-in-residence for the city,” said Remlinger. “I met him a few times and I was very inspired. He gave me a gift by showing me that it was possible to make a living, and a life, as a writer.
“So when I did my Masters Degree I did my thesis on John Hicks.”
With four university degrees and a wealth of experience in both writing and teaching, Remlinger said publishing a book of poetry has always been one of her goals.
But she also wanted to do it right. Self-publishing or simply posting online wasn’t an option.
“If you want to be taken seriously as a poet, you have to go through a traditional publisher,” said Remlinger. “The professional gatekeeping is what ensures the quality of the finished book.”
She said her years of experience as an editor helped her evaluate her own writing objectively.
“It took a long time to get to the point where I felt my writing was strong enough to publish,” said Remlinger. “My poetry is based on my experiences, emotions and surroundings. I deal with themes of identity and isolation; there’s darkness and tension, but there’s also humour and light. That’s what life is like.”
She said the title poem for her book reflects the reality of a Saskatchewan winter.
“There’s no sun for a long time, and a lot of people struggle to get through January,” she said. “But it’s something you have to live with.”
Remlinger said she wrote the collection of poems that make up ‘This Hole Called January’ over a period of ten or fifteen years. She approached Thistledown Press, the Saskatchawan-based publisher of John Hicks’ books, with the manuscript.
It was accepted by the publisher, but then the real work began.
“They assigned an editor to work with me,” said Remlinger. “He was excellent. My original manuscript had 80 poems, and the published book has 44. My editor went though and picked the strongest poems, and I said which ones were the most important to me to be included.
“From there we started culling and reworking and polishing the poems.”
Seeing the book in its finished form was a thrill; but being notified in February that the volume was nominated for the Saskatchewan Book Awards was an even bigger one. The announcement last week that she had won the poetry award was indescribable, she said.
“It was very exciting,” she said. “I didn’t expect to win. I never met Anne Szumigalski, but I’ve always admired her work. It’s a true honour to be mentioned in the same breath with her.”