Dear Traces community,
Welcome to Feuilles, a monthly newsletter where we will be sharing news, events, contributor & editor updates, and community resources.
I can’t believe it is already September. For some reason, this year has passed more quickly than most. Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that we launched Traces nearly one year ago, and it’s been a wild ride! We’re so grateful for each of you, dear readers and contributors, for helping make our first two issues a success.
With the Labour Day weekend behind us, it is easy to be nostalgic about summertime. This June, I was lucky to spend three weeks visiting my family in Newfoundland. Keep reading for my NFLD book recommendations from this summer!
Traces News
Help us reach 300 subscribers!
Traces Journal will officially be one year old when we launch our autumn issue this November 2025. Our goal is to have 300 subscribers by then! Give us a hand by sharing Traces with your friends, family, colleagues, church communities, and closeted poetry lovers.
Submissions are open
With our autumn issue just around the corner, remember that you have one more month to submit your work to us! For this issue, we are seeking reviews, interviews, and poetry submissions. Submissions can be made via our Submittable portal or sent directly to one of our editors. Submissions close October 1, 2025.
The Order of Love
Our new Traces dispatch, “The Order of Love,” is published monthly. The September installment is now live! Read the latest below, and leave a comment to let us know what you think.
We’re Hiring!
Traces continues to look for new editors to join our team. We are always open to applications for Contributing Editors, and we are currently searching for a new Interviews Editor. If you have any questions or are interested in applying, please send a CV and a brief cover letter to traces.editor@gmail.com.
Contributor Sightings
The Traces community out in the wild…
Jesse Keith Butler: New Poem in Autumn Sky Poetry Daily
Read Jesse Keith Butler’s poem “The Life We Chose,” from his debut poetry collection, The Living Law. You can read Steven Searcy’s review of the collection, written for Traces Journal, here.
Josh Tiessen: Artist-in-Residence at the Moshava Art Gallery, NYC
Congratulations to Josh Tiessen, who is on his way to NYC to take up a new position as Artist in Residence at the Moshava Art Gallery! To learn more about Tiessen’s work, read his conversation with Maya Venters for Traces Journal.
Bret van den Brink: PhD Candidate at the University of Toronto
Contributing Editor, Bret van den Brink, began his PhD in English at the University of Toronto. For his hot takes on literature and religion, follow him on Twitter/X.
Daniel Cowper, Letters from an Island
Daniel Cowper continues his essay series, Letters from an Island, at the New Verse Review: A Journal of Lyric and Narrative Poetry. Read his latest, “Who Forgot About Beauty? And Why?”
Poetry in Place: New Anthology Includes Traces friends & contributors
A new poetry anthology from Guernica Editions, titled “Poetry and Environmental Hope in a Southern Ontario Bioregion,” includes poems from Madhur Anand, Mia Anderson, Fitsum Areguy, Elise Arsenault, Gary Barwin, Anna Bowen, Klyde Broox, Linzey Corridon, Corri Daniels, Brian Day, Adam Dickinson, Joanne Epp, Jaidyn Fenton, Linda Frank, Marilyn Gear Pilling, Alyssa General, Catherine Graham, David Haskins, Cornelia Hoogland, Karen Houle, Mark Kempf, Greg Kennedy, Paula Kienapple-Summers, Stacey Laforme, Janice Jo Lee, John B. Lee, Sheryl Loeffler, Tanis MacDonald, Daniel MacIsaac, Chandra Maracle, Kate Marshall Flaherty, Geoff Martin, Elizabeth McCallister, Daniel David Moses, Honey Novick, Mariam Pirbhai, Arwen Roussell, Bernadette Rule, Doug Sikkema, Jennifer Tan, John Terpstra, Elizabeth Tessier, and Anna Yin.
Do you have a publication, event, or milestone you’d like to share with the Traces community? Submit your news to be featured in a future edition of “Contributor Sightings.”
Ordinary Time
Things we’re reading and listening to in our spare time…
“Chores” by Maggie Burton
When I was in Newfoundland this summer, I was determined to pick up as many titles from Breakwater Books as I could fit into my suitcase. So far, my favourite poetry collection has been Maggie Burton’s “Chores,” which won the 2024 Canadian First Book Prize from the Griffin Poetry Prize.
The book explores various perceptions and responsibilities of “women’s work” (ie, the work of sustaining life) from the particularities of a Newfoundlander’s perspective. Burton’s imagery and language are deeply rooted in the landscape and culture of the Rock, giving mainland Canadian readers a glimpse into the lives of women on the far east coast.
Second Reading
Returning to old or forgotten loves…
“Autumn, Wildcat Creek” by Maurice Cullen
In keeping with the Newfoundland theme of this edition of Feuilles, let me briefly highlight an autumnal painting by one of my favourite Canadian painters, Maurice Cullen. I first discovered Cullen at the MBAM for his painting, “Ice Harvest” (p.s. Quebecers can attend the MBAM for free this month!). I have since delighted in viewing many of his paintings in person at galleries across Canada. Here is a little taste of one of his more expressionistic works from 1925.
Community Events & Opportunities
Call for Halloween Poems at the New Verse Review
Our friends at the New Verse Review: A Journal of Lyric and Narrative Poetry are currently open for submissions to their Halloween issue! Last year’s issue included poems from Traces contributors & friends, including Alex Rettie and Daniel Cowper. Submissions are open now until September 19th, 2025.
CARDUS: Fall Nature Walk at Chedoke
Cardus is hosting a fall nature walk to explore the grounds of Chedoke Estate. Guided tours will be led by a local naturalist, focusing on birds and their fall migration patterns, as well as learn about the natural heritage of this escarpment property.
Date: September 20, 2025 | Time: 8:30am - 11:30am
University of Alberta Press: Accepting poetry manuscripts
The University of Alberta Press is accepting poetry manuscripts between September 1 and 30. The Press will select up to three manuscripts for publication in 2027. Note: All submissions must be from poets who are Canadians or landed immigrants. Deadline is September 30, 2025.
Presence: A Journal of Catholic Poetry: Open for Submissions
Presence is open for submissions for their annual issue, which will be published in April 2026. They are accepting poetry and translations until October 1st, 2025.
Morrice in Venice at the McMichael Art Gallery (ON)
The exhibition, “Morrice in Venice,” has been extended into November 2025 due to popular demand. James Wilson Morrice, born in Montreal, was the first Canadian painter to regularly travel to Venice, and this exhibition collects his works from the mid-1890s to the early 1900s. Now through November 23, 2025.
Off the Beaten Path
The Veiled Virgin
You may be familiar with this sculpture by Giovanni Strazza, which often goes viral on social media due to the incredible rendering of fabric in stone. I recently learned that this sculpture is housed in St. John’s, Newfoundland, right here in our own backyard. You can read more about the sculpture, its fascinating history, and how to see it for yourself on the Newfoundland & Labrador Heritage Website.
Thanks for mentioning NVR's Halloween issue!
Thanks for the shoutout!