Ami McKay explained

Birth Place:Lebanon, Indiana
Nationality:American-Canadian
Occupation:Novelist, playwright and journalist
Alma Mater:Indiana State University
Children:2

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

Personal life and education

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

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

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. This condition has inspired her writing, most prominently Daughter of Family G.

Career

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

In 2000, she devoted herself to writing full-time. During this time, she "began writing and producing documentaries for CBC Radio." 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. 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

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

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.[6]

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

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.
2003Daughter of Family GAtlantic Journalism Award for Feature Writing for RadioFinalist
Winner
"Illumination"Writers' Union of Canada Short Prose CompetitionWinner
2004H.R.(Bill) Percy Prize for Unpublished NovelSecond
2007Atlantic Book Awards' Booksellers' Choice AwardWinner
Evergreen AwardWinner[8]
International Dublin Literary AwardLonglist
Libris Award for Best AuthorWinner
Libris Award for Best FictionWinner
2009JeromeRobert Meritt Award for Outstanding Play by a Nova Scotian PlaywrightFinalist[9]
Robert Meritt Award for Outstanding Sound or Original ScoreWinner
2017Sunburst Award for Adult FictionFinalist[10] [11]
Thomas Raddall Atlantic Fiction AwardWinner[12]
2018Nothing LessRobert Meritt Award for Outstanding Musical DirectionFinalist[13] [14]
Robert Meritt Award for Outstanding Original ScoreFinalist
Robert Meritt Award for Outstanding Play by a Nova Scotian PlaywrightFinalist
2020Daughter of Family GEvelyn Richardson Non-Fiction AwardWinner[15] [16]
Robbie Robertson Dartmouth Book AwardWinner

Writing credits

Books

Fiction

Nonfiction

Other

Affiliations

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Gardner . Suzanne . 2013-12-16 . Ami McKay . 2023-05-21 . . 2023-04-13 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230413145053/https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/ami-mckay . live .
  2. Web site: McKay, Ami 1968- . 2023-05-21 . Encyclopedia.com.
  3. Web site: January 2012 . There is no frigate like a book . Ami McKay . 2020-08-05 . 2020-10-20 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201020004031/https://amimckay.com/tag/halifax-public-library/ . live .
  4. Web site: 2020-07-13 . How a family history of dying young shaped Ami McKay and changed cancer research . 2023-05-21 . . 2023-05-13 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230513234622/https://www.cbc.ca/radio/thenextchapter/full-episode-july-13-2020-1.5299449/how-a-family-history-of-dying-young-shaped-ami-mckay-and-changed-cancer-research-1.5299451 . live .
  5. Web site: van Koeverden . Jane . 2019-05-24 . Ami McKay's novel The Birth House being adapted for TV . 2023-05-21 . . 2021-09-23 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210923064439/https://www.cbc.ca/books/ami-mckay-s-novel-the-birth-house-being-adapted-for-tv-1.5148964 . live .
  6. Web site: 2011 . Meet Canada Reads 2011 nominee Ami McKay . 2023-05-21 . CBC Books.
  7. Web site: 2017-12-04 . 100 novels that make you proud to be Canadian . 2023-05-21 . . 2023-04-30 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230430204547/https://www.cbc.ca/books/100-novels-that-make-you-proud-to-be-canadian-1.4194710 . live .
  8. Book: Evergreen Award™ Winners and Nominees 2005–2022 . . 9 . 2023-05-21 . 2022-05-19 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220519091905/https://forestofreading.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/10-Evergreen-Archive-2022.pdf . live .
  9. Web site: The 2009 Robert Merritt Awards . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20140903080536/http://www.merrittawards.ca/downloads/pdf/winners-2009.pdf . 3 September 2014 . 29 September 2013 . Robert Merritt Awards official website . Theatre Nova Scotia.
  10. Web site: 2017-07-20 . Awards: Sunburst; BOA Short Fiction . 2023-05-21 . Shelf Awareness.
  11. Web site: Robertson . Becky . 2017-07-17 . Ami McKay, Sylvain Neuvel among Sunburst Award finalists . 2023-05-21 . . en . 2022-05-22 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220522161447/https://quillandquire.com/awards/2017/07/17/ami-mckay-sylvain-neuvel-among-sunburst-award-finalists/ . live .
  12. Web site: Meakin . Jonathan . 2017-06-01 . 2017 East Coast Literary Award Winners Announced . 2023-05-21 . Atlantic Books . en-US . 2022-10-07 . https://web.archive.org/web/20221007175923/https://atlanticbooks.ca/stories/2017-east-coast-literary-award-winners-announced/ . live .
  13. Web site: Lake . Michael . 2018-03-27 . 2b Theatre sweeps the 2018 Robert Merritt Theatre Awards with eight wins . 2020-08-04 . The Coast Halifax . en.
  14. Web site: 2018 . Theatre Nova Scotia's Robert Merritt Award Nominations 2018 . 2020-08-04 . Theatre Nova Scotia . 2021-02-14 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210214010921/https://immediac.blob.core.windows.net/theatrenovascotia/Nominations%202018.pdf . live .
  15. Web site: Carter . Sue . 2020-07-02 . Ami McKay, Gemma Hickey double winners at Atlantic Book Awards . 2023-05-21 . . en . 2022-08-18 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220818144237/https://quillandquire.com/omni/ami-mckay-gemma-hickey-double-winners-at-atlantic-book-awards/ . live .
  16. Web site: Walt . Peggy . 2020-06-30 . 2020 Atlantic Book Awards Winners Announced . 2023-05-21 . Atlantic Books . en-US . 2023-03-24 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230324071905/https://atlanticbooks.ca/stories/2020-atlantic-book-awards-winners-announced/ . live .

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