Here's one for the literary crowd.
The Burnaby Writers' Society has announced the winners of its 2014 writing competition.
The competition asked writers to create one page in any form, any genre - poetry or prose - on the theme of wood.
Taking first place was Kim Clarke Harbridge of New Westminster for Blind Date, with Vancouver's Clarissa P. Green in second for My Father's Radio and Lynne Burnett of West Vancouver in third for Love on the Table.
Lynne also took an honourable mention for Tao, with other honourable mentions going to Dorothy Podmore of Surrey for Moving House, and Vanessa Winn of Victoria for Madrona sheds her skin.
Also named as finalists were Burnaby residents Lyndon Grove, Jadzia Prenosil and Janet Kvammen, along with my own former colleague right here in the Burnaby NOW newsroom, Christina Myers.
Rounding out the finalist list were Doris Anderson, Linda Baker, Edith Baranyay, Laura Benoit, Clarissa P. Green, Ruth Hill, Bernice Lever, Desmond Lindo, Franci Louann, Dorothy Podmore and Julia Van Gorder.
Congratulations to all the finalists and winners.
All the winners and finalists are being invited to read their entires at the society's awards night, set for Tuesday, Oct. 21 at La Fontana Caffe, 101-3701 Hastings St. in North Burnaby.
Check out www.burnabywritersnews.blogspot.com or see www.facebook.com/BurnabyWritersSociety to get all the details.
*
Art lovers, there's plenty of interest for you in Burnaby right now.
First off, don't miss out on the upcoming exhibition at the Burnaby Arts Council's Deer Lake Gallery.
From Darkness Comes Illumination runs from Oct. 11 to Nov. 1.
The exhibition features the work of Gillian Worsley, who creates with Seonas MacMadh as the Civil Disobedience Company.
Worsley works in a variety of mediums, including drawing, painting, screen printing, installation art, textile and film.
"Gillian is inspired by words and their connection to how they make us feel; whether they be song lyrics, poems, quotes or fragments of ideas," a press release notes. "By creating portraits with words, she finds herself connecting with the subject matter in a way that is unrestrained and unrefined. It enables the viewer to look deeper into the persons whom she has portrayed."
You can check out her work at www.civildisobediencecompany.com.
Or, better yet, drop in to the gallery to see it for yourself - there's an opening reception at noon on Saturday, Oct. 11.
Deer Lake Gallery is open Tuesday to Saturday from noon to 4 p.m. It's at 6584 Deer Lake Ave., and admission is free. Call 604-298-7322 or check out www.burnabyartscouncil.org for more details.
*
The Burnaby Artists' Guild also has a show coming up for local arts lovers.
The group is holding its Colour Collection art exhibition and sale at the Shadbolt Centre for the Arts from Oct. 24 to 26.
The opening is set for 7:30 p.m. on Friday evening, Oct. 24, and the show will be open Friday from 7 to 10 p.m., Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The featured artist is Graham Simpson, whose work will be showcased alongside the original artwork of guild members in a variety of styles and mediums.
Artists will be on hand, and demonstrations will be offered.
The show includes a raffle for an original painting, and admission is free.
Call 604-291-6864 or check out www.burnabyartistsguild.com for all the details.
*
For those of you who plan your calendars in advance, I bring you a date correction.
On Sept. 19, you may have noticed an article on the arts front, Experience adventure in library reading series.
The article mentioned a presentation by author Patrick Hill on Thursday, Nov. 23. In fact, astute observers will have noticed that Nov. 23 is not a Thursday - the date should have read Thursday, Nov. 13.
It's part of a series of talks at the Burnaby Public Library's McGill branch, all by authors focusing on adventure, history and the outdoors in B.C.
First up in the series is Chris Czajkowski, who'll be on hand for a reading and slideshow on Thursday, Oct. 2 based on her new memoir And the River Still Sings: A Wilderness Dweller's Journey. You can find out more about her at www.wildernessdweller.ca.
For all the details about the events, check out the library's website at www.bpl.bc.ca/events.
*
The library's Bob Prittie branch is also getting into the spirit of B.C. adventures.
On Thursday, Oct. 16, the library will host a presentation by award-winning author Rosella Leslie, who's touring B.C. with her new book The Cougar Lady: Legendary Trapper of Sechelt Inlet.
Leslie will be on hand with a talk and slideshow about Sechelt's own Asta Bergliot Solberg - or "Bergie," as her friends knew her - who, as a press release notes, climbed wild mountain trails to hunt for goats, spent a night in the woods wrapped in the skin of a bear she'd shot and thought nothing of rowing 25 miles down a dark, windy inlet.
"With equal ferocity she wrangled cougars, conservation officers and the police, who arrested her for packing a rifle in town," the release says.
Leslie has pieced together Bergie's life through interviews, local stories and personal anecdotes. Leslie is the author of three previous books and has co-authored three others.
The presentation runs from 7 to 8:30 p.m.
Check out www.caitlin-press.com for details.
*
Do you have an item for Lively City? Send arts and entertainment ideas to Julie, jmaclellan@burnabynow.com, or find her on Twitter, @juliemaclellan.
