Jane Eaton Hamilton



Jane Eaton Hamilton (born July 19, 1954) is a Canadian poet, short story writer, and photographer.

Life
Hamilton has published two books of poetry, Body Rain (Brick Books 1992) and Steam-Cleaning Love (Brick Books 1993) and two volumes of short fiction July Nights and other stories, (Douglas and McIntyre, 1991) and Hunger, (Oberon, 2001), and two other books (children's and nonfiction). Her books have been shortlisted for the Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize in the BC Book Prizes, the VanCity Award, the Pat Lowther Award, the Ferro-Grumley Award, and the MIND Book Prize (UK) where a non-fiction title appeared on the Best Books of the Year wrap-up at the UK Guardian newspaper.

Her short work has appeared in such publications as En Route, The New York Times, Macleans and Seventeen. She has won many awards for her short work, including first prize in the CBC Literary Awards (2003), twice first prize in the Prism International Short Story Award, Canadian Poetry Chapbook of the Year from the League of Canadian Poets, the event Non-Fiction Award, and many others.

She and her wife, Vancouver doctor Joy Masuhara, were two of the litigants in the Canadian same-sex marriage case, and when they and their colleagues won their case after a several year battle, they were wed in Toronto on June 28, 2003 shortly after their tenth anniversary. They have two grown daughters, both Jane's biological children, who were adopted by Joy in 1997 when same sex adoptions became legal. Two movies with footage of Jane and Joy were made about their case, one by the NFB called "Why Thee Wed" and the other by Toronto filmmaker Nancy Nicol, called "The End of Second Class."

Jane Eaton Hamilton gave up writing January 1, 2004, six days before the CBC called to tell her she had taken first prize in the literary awards that had seen her as a finalist 20 plus years running. She now works as a photographer, shooting weddings, portraits, fine art and travel photographs, but keeps a very occasional hand in story writing.

Jane Eaton Hamilton is also a Master Gardener, who writes an intermittent column for You Grow Girl called 'The Adequate Gardener.' The garden she creates with her wife was nominated for Vancouver's Best Front Garden Award.

Book awards

 * Hunger, 2003 Publishing Triangle Awards, finalist
 * Hunger was longlisted for the Lambda Literary Award, 2004.
 * Body Rain was short-listed for the Pat Lowther Award.
 * July Nights was short-listed for the VanCity Award and the Ethel Wilson Fiction Award in the BC Book Prizes.
 * Going Santa Fe won the 1997 League of Canadian Poets Canadian Poetry Chapbook Award.

Short story awards

 * Death in One Another's Arms, Yellow Silk Best Story of the Year 1988
 * Death in One Another's Arms, Pushcart Prize Honourable Mention 1988
 * Grain short-short Finalist 1990
 * Prism, short fiction finalist, 1991
 * Easter, Federation of BC Writers short fiction First 1992
 * Accusation, Prism short fiction winner 1993
 * Prism short fiction Honourable Mention 1994
 * Hunger, Paragraph erotic short fiction First 1995
 * How to Have Heart Disease (Without Really Trying), Prism short fiction winner, 1995
 * DNA, Thistledown young adult story contest Finalist 1995
 * Goombay Smash, Prism short fiction first prize winner, 1998
 * How to Have Heart Disease (Without Really Trying), Best American Short Stories Distinguished Story, 1997
 * Territory, This Magazine first prize winner, 1998
 * Wax Brains, Fish finalist 1998
 * Graduation, Journey Prize inclusion, 1998
 * Winter, sub-Terrain runner-up, 1998
 * Cretins, H. E. Francis Award finalist, 1999
 * Fat Ankles, CBC Literary Awards finalist, 1999
 * Tightrope, Serpentine, Honorable Mention, 1999
 * Just Be Glad You Have Heels, Stand (UK) fifth place, 1999
 * Anemones, Exotic Erotic Writing Contest runner-up, 1999
 * Tightrope, Pirate's Alley Faulkner Society contest, finalist, 2000
 * Fat Ankles, Fish Short Story Prize, shortlisted, 1999–2000
 * A Drosophila's Wings, Real Writers (UK), shortlisted, 2000
 * Travel Tips for Girls, Prism International, third prize winner, 2001
 * Wax Brains, The New Quarterly, honourable mention, 2001
 * Travel Tips for Girls, Prism International, third prize, 2001
 * Half Waikiki, CBC/En Route contest finalist, 2002
 * Easter, Fish story contest finalist, 2002
 * Do You Want Whiskey? Canadian Authors Association contest shortlist, 2003
 * Sperm King, Prism International first prize, 2003
 * Many People Have Been Gored, Room of One's Own story contest finalist, 2003
 * The Lost Boy, CBC Literary Awards, first prize, fiction ($6000), 2003
 * Social Discourse: 1944, Pushcart Prize nomination, 2004
 * Wart's Ugly, Carve Magazine finalist, 2004

Poetry awards

 * Elemental, Absolut Vodka finalist 1991
 * League of Canadian Poets Finalist 1991
 * Special Needs, Prairie Fire long poem Honourable Mention 1994
 * Stephen Leacock Poetry Competition, Certificate of Merit, 1995–96
 * Tilden Canadian Literary Awards, Finalist, 1996
 * League of Canadian Poets Finalist 1997
 * Luby's Cafeteria, killeen, Texas, Stand, 5th. Prize, 1998
 * Stand honorable mention, 1998
 * This New Country, Atlanta Review Int'l Merit Award Winner, 1999
 * Crescendo, Pirate's Alley Faulkner Society, semi-finalist, 1999
 * Delor Street, New Letters (University of Missouri) fourth place, 1999
 * Vermilion, Outlaw Editions Chapbook Competition, finalist, 1999
 * Mr and Mrs Mouse, Summer Literary Seminars, Russia, third prize 2000
 * Survivor, finalist ARC contest, 2002

Non-fiction awards

 * CBC Literary Competition Finalist 1989
 * Tilden Finalist 1995
 * Walking on the Ancestors, Event First 1995
 * Federation of BC Writers Finalist (humour) 1995
 * Tilden Canadian Literary Awards, Finalist, 1996
 * Permanent Wave, Belle Lettres, Essay First, 1996
 * Permanent Wave, Pirate's Alley Faulkner Award finalist, 1998
 * Girls Like Me (Or Not), Creative Non-Fiction contest, 2001
 * 21 Questions, Creative Non-Fiction contest, 2001
 * On the Piano, Pirate's Alley Faulkner contest, finalist, 2001
 * Permanent Wave, Prism Maclean Hunter contest shortlist, 2002
 * Being Jane Hamilton, Prism Maclean Hunter contest shortlist, 2002
 * Being Jane Hamilton, Missouri Review Editors' Awards runner-up, 2002
 * Being Jane Hamilton, Grain, co-winner Long Grain of Truth, 2002
 * Waiting for Dierdre, finalist, CBC Canadian Literary Awards 2004

Publications

 * Body Rain, Brick Books, 1991, ISBN 0-919626-50-5
 * July Nights and other stories, Douglas and McIntyre, 1992 ISBN 1-55054-015-7
 * Steam-Cleaning Love, Brick Books, 1993, ISBN 0-919626-68-8
 * Going Santa Fe, League of Canadian Poets, 1997, ISBN 1-896216-06-4
 * Hunger, Oberon Press 2002 ISBN 0-7780-1202-6 (hc)  ISBN 0-7780-1203-4 (pb)