Wayde Compton

Wayde Compton (born 1972) is a Canadian poet.

Life[]

Compton was born in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Compton is the Director of The Writer's Studio, a creative writing program at Simon Fraser University. He also teaches English at Emily Carr University of Art and Design.

He has written 2 published books of poetry and a book of essays, and edited the first comprehensive anthology of black writing from British Columbia. He co-founded Commodore Books, the first black-oriented press in Western Canada, with David Chariandy and Karina Vernon in 2006. In 2002 he co-founded the Hogan's Alley Memorial Project, a grassroots organization that archives the history of Vancouver's black community.

In 1996 he penned the semi-autobiographical poem "Declaration of the Halfrican Nation".^[1]^[2]

In addition to his published writing, Compton also performs turntable-based sound poetry with Jason de Couto.

Publications[]

Poetry[]

49th Parallel Psalm. Vancouver: Advance Editions, 1999.
Performance Bond. Vancouver: Arsenal Pulp Press, 2004.

Short fiction[]

The Outer Harbour: Stories. Vancouver: Arsenal Pulp Press, 2014.

Non-Fiction[]

After Canaan: Essays on Race, Writing, and Region. Vancouver: Arsenal Pulp Press, 2010.

Edited[]

Bluesprint: Black British Columbian Literature and Orature. Vancouver: Arsenal Pulp Press, 2001.
The Revolving City: 51 poems and the stories behind them (edited with Renée Sarojini Saklikar). Vancouver: Anvil Press, 2015.