Esi Edugyan still recalls visiting her partner Steven Price when the young couple started dating nearly two decades ago.
As a 20-something student enrolled in the , Esi lived in VictoriaB次元官网网址檚 Cook Street village. She didnB次元官网网址檛 own a car. Travelling to see Steven on the West Shore was always a major expedition.
B次元官网网址淚 had to take three buses and then, at the end of the last ride, I had to hike up a steep hill,B次元官网网址� she says.
Twenty years have brought plenty of changes.
The couple began their lives together downtown but eventually settled in Colwood and started a family, all while crafting impressive literary careers.
| Esi Edugyan and Steve Price at their kitchen table. Don Denton photograph. |
Esi is the author of three novels. She emerged onto CanadaB次元官网网址檚 literary stage with the release of The Second Life of Samuel Tyne in 2004. The ominous and moving portrayal of life in rural Alberta was nominated for the Hurston-Wright Legacy Award. , a story about politics, race, music and relationships in Nazi Germany won CanadaB次元官网网址檚 Scotiabank in 2011 and was shortlisted for the Governor GeneralB次元官网网址檚 Award for English language fiction, Rogers WritersB次元官网网址� Trust Fiction Prize and the United KingdomB次元官网网址檚 prestigious Man Booker Prize. In 2012, the book received the Anisfield-Wolf Book Award. Her latest book, , has just been released.
Steven has earned numerous honours for his poetry, including the in 2006 for Anatomy of Keys, which was also named a Globe & Mail Book of the Year.
In 2011, he completed Into That Darkness, a thriller set in modern-day Victoria. Having secured a coveted international book deal, Price then produced what may arguably be his most ambitious work to date. , recently released in paperback format, is an intriguing tale of globe-spanning mystery set largely in Victorian-era London.
The work is loosely inspired by a Price family tale about StevenB次元官网网址檚 great-grandfather, who fled England after a B次元官网网址渟pot of botherB次元官网网址� with the law. At the end of his westward journey across the continent, A.E. Price settled on southern Vancouver Island, where he started a locksmith business. has since grown to become CanadaB次元官网网址檚 oldest private security firm. The prevalence of decals emblazoned with the trademark red, upper-case B次元官网网址淧B次元官网网址� on storefront windows and residences in Victoria and across Western Canada speaks to the ventureB次元官网网址檚 success through successive generations.
ItB次元官网网址檚 those deep roots and family ties that encouraged Steven, Esi and the coupleB次元官网网址檚 two young children B次元官网网址� both under six years of age B次元官网网址� to call Colwood home.
They agree life on the West Shore offers a good balance of the rural and urban. A walk along the Esquimalt Lagoon Bird Sanctuary, where Emily Carr used to camp out and paint landscapes of a wild coast, or a trip to downtown are only a short ride away. Esi, who was born and raised across the mountains in Calgary, has warmed to her new home.
B次元官网网址淓ven eight years ago, when I first moved here, it felt very far,B次元官网网址� she says. B次元官网网址淚 donB次元官网网址檛 have that feeling any more.B次元官网网址�
Now in their early forties, Esi and Steven are writers of international renown, their books translated into multiple languages, and yet their lives follow a routine familiar to many young families. They embark on weekend family excursions to the Saanich Peninsula or points up the island, spend lots of time at the library and take regular trips to the Royal Bay Bakery for inspiration.
Following our interview at a snug neighbourhood coffee shop, they were off to collect the kids from school.
Picking up the children is a welcome reprieve from their respective writing routines. Both spend up to six hours a day researching projects, trying out ideas, developing characters and unraveling storylines. Esi describes home-office life as providing flexibility but not necessarily the degree of freedom that many office workers might idealize.
First order of business for Esi is digging into a good book, something to get her in the right frame of mind to begin churning out her own narrative voice. Steven jokes that he still has his original writing shirt, its fibres so worn out that heB次元官网网址檚 had to begin wearing a second one over top just to hold everything together. Neither place much credence in writing talismans, but be careful about grabbing their cherished coffee mugs while youB次元官网网址檙e paying them a visit!
There are often multiple ideas on the go, only some of which ever live to see a final chapter.
| Esi Edugyan and Steve Price at home. Don Denton photograph. |
When the kids are home from school, the family adheres to an open-door policy. There is no downtime. No hiding at your desk.
B次元官网网址淩ight from the beginning weB次元官网网址檝e had this open door policy,B次元官网网址� he says. B次元官网网址淲e found that when they felt they could come in and talk with us they didnB次元官网网址檛 feel the need all of the time.
B次元官网网址淎 closed door is an invitation.B次元官网网址�
The advantage of having a fellow writer under the same roof to help work through problems, fuel inspiration and offer advice speaks for itself. Each has grown to welcome the chance to act as sounding board, test reader and advice counsellor. It can happen over dinner, on a Sunday drive or in the middle of the night.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 extremely helpful,B次元官网网址� Esi says. B次元官网网址淪teven is a great editor as well as a great writer, so itB次元官网网址檚 amazing to be able to pass him stuff. I canB次元官网网址檛 believe I have this calibre of an editor right at home.B次元官网网址�
Coming out of the trance-like space caused by extended periods of creative work, they credit the children for easing their transition back to normalcy.
B次元官网网址淚t sounds crazy when you donB次元官网网址檛 have kids of your own, but itB次元官网网址檚 a wonderful thing that these are your best friends in the world and youB次元官网网址檙e spending time with them,B次元官网网址� Steven adds.
As their family life and careers have evolved so too has the city they call home. Steven recalls a childhood of dirt biking with pals in ColwoodB次元官网网址檚 scrubby vacant lots. His neighbourhood had a gritty, rough-around-the-edges reputation. Not so anymore, as new housing projects and commercial developments reshape the landscape. The doesnB次元官网网址檛 feel so far away these days.
B次元官网网址淚t was such a different place back then,B次元官网网址� Steven says. B次元官网网址淏eing somebody who was born and raised here, I think it would be perfectly natural to be disgruntled about all these people coming, but I donB次元官网网址檛 feel that at all. I feel great optimism.B次元官网网址�
-Story by Sean McIntyre
Story courtesy of , a Black Press Media publication
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