Fiction
May 2021
October 2012
“The Sweater,” winner of The Malahat Review’s UVic 50th Anniversary Fiction Prize.
As final judge, D. W. Wilson singled out this story and commented, “To me, this story shines because the narrator’s voice is so honed, all the way down to a language level, that it is impossible not to trust her: she’s funny, endearing, and she has a way of observing the world that is fresh to us; that is, her observation saturates the entire story. Whether it’s the fresh language (‘clear and sun-kissed as an Okanagan summer’) or the sometimes-bizarre details that cement the father-daughter relationship (‘When I get home, my dad microwaves me an egg in a glass ramekin’), the reader believes not only in her, but in the world she creates. On its own, clever language and kooky observations aren’t enough to build a world, but this voice pays just as much attention to how the world is observed, how every detail can spin a character, such that the two — voice, and the world it builds — become inseparable. This is powerful world-building, powerful authenticity.”
Read “The Sweater” here.
Read an interview with Laura here.
Non-Fiction
The Globe & Mail’s Facts & Arguments
December 25, 2013: Why I have to surf in the Pacific on Boxing Day
October 6, 2011: I’m a Justin Bieber fan (and I’m an adult)
May 17, 2011: I quit my master’s program
Laura Nicol 