Jamieson Wolf
Number-one bestselling author
The Aurora is a Spark
It’s hard to believe how fast time goes.
Back in April, my novel Minotaur was nominated for a Prix Aurora Award and now here we are in July and voting is almost done. It’s been kind of like a heady dream and the entire experience has been so wonderful. Oddly, being nominated was the motivation that I needed.
When I had finished writing Minotaur, I didn’t have any plans for a sequel, yet there was an idea that wouldn’t leave me alone. My mind kept wondering: What happens now? I started a draft, then another and a third and didn’t get very far. I figured that was it and the story of Minotaur was done.
When Minotaur was nominated, it lit a spark that wouldn’t go away. To my surprise, the words wanted to come, however sparingly. Minotaur took me almost a year to write. It’s hard writing a story that’s set in a labyrinth. There is quite a bit of research about what will and will not grow in almost complete darkness and trying to keep this dystopian story as grounded as possible without losing the magic.
I started a third draft trying to keep the parts of the story that I had already written and I was stuck. For me, getting the Aurora nomination was like a lighted candle in the maze and it showed me where the story could go. I am so thankful for the Prix Aurora Award nomination and the fact that Minotaur is on the ballot for Best YA Novel. I’m also thankful that it gave me the spark I needed to find more light in the darkness.
If you are a member of The Canadian Science Fiction and Fantasy Association (CSFFA), you can now place your vote! Minotaur is up for Best YA Novel. Voting runs from today until July 18th, 2026. You can hop over to the CSFFA website here: https://www.csffa.ca/
If you are not a member of the CSFFA, don’t worry! You can sign up to be a member and it only costs $10. You can find info at the same link. You have until July 18th, 2026, to buy a membership if you’d like to vote in this year’s Prix Aurora Awards. The real bonus is the fact that you get to download and read everything that is on the ballot. That’s a lot of bangs for your buck.
There are so many amazing books, poems and stories to vote for. Check out the full list here: https://www.csffa.ca/awards-information/current-ballot/
In August, the winning creators and works will be revealed during the online Aurora Awards ceremony on Sunday, August 9th, live-streamed on YouTube and LinkedIn
YouTube link for the 2026 Aurora Awards ceremony on August 9th at 5 PM Eastern:
If you’ve already voted for me, thank you. If you haven’t read Minotaur, you still have time to read it and vote. It’s hard to believe that votes close ten days from now! The road to the Prix Aurora Awards seemed so much farther away in April than they do now! Thank you for being with me on this journey and I can’t wait to see how it ends.
Just As I Am – A Poem
When I was old enough
to realize that my body was disabled,
I prayed to God to make me into someone else,
and to take away what made me different.
When I realized that I was gay,
I prayed to God harder than before
forcing my mind to contort itself
into something that I wasn’t
all in order to fit in with a world
that viewed me as
abnormal, different, embarrassing and
something worthy of pity.
I was already disabled and I didn’t want
to be stained with something else.
Most of my life was spent trying to
hide, fight, hate and loathe
who I was.
My mother spoke sense in the storm
that was my mind as a child.
“A lot of people won’t understand you,”
She said.
“You will have to do everything yourself to prove them wrong.”
I have carried those words within me
and I have stopped praying to God
to make me into something else.
Instead,
I pray to Spirit so that I can accept myself
just as I am.
Waling the Desert Sands – A Poem
When we found each other,
I had been wandering the desert
for far too long.
My skin had become chapped
by the wind that whipped
around me,
a barrier built by hate
from others who didn’t care
to understand me
and from myself,
all their words turned inward
against me.
When I saw you for the first time,
your face visible through the wind
I thought it was some kind of mirage,
or that you were a spirit come to find me
so that the sand could finally take me.
Your face became clearer,
sharper,
more focused until
I had to admit that you were real.
When your hand found mine,
your eyes were so close to my own and you
saw into me,
took in all that I was,
and you did not turn away.
When you pulled gently,
I almost fought against you,
afraid that when you saw the real me,
made bare by the desert sand that had sliced
against my skin.
My flesh was raw from the hurt,
but still you saw me as I was,
not as you wanted me to be.
I was able to let the wind go
when you took my hand
because I had found a place to belong.
With my hand in yours,
walking towards a future with you,
I knew that I could leave the desert
behind me.
Prix Aurora Awards – Voting Is Open!
I’m super thrilled! The voting for the Prix Aurora Awards is now open!
If you are a member of The Canadian Science Fiction and Fantasy Association (CSFFA), you can now place your vote! My novel Minotaur is up for Best YA Novel. Voting runs from today until July 18th, 2026. You can hop over to the CSFFA website here: https://www.csffa.ca/
If you are not a member of the CSFFA, don’t worry! You can sign up to be a member and it only costs $10. You can find info at the same link. You have until July 11th, 2026, to buy a membership if you’d like to vote in this year’s Prix Aurora Awards. The real bonus is the fact that you get to download and read everything that is on the ballot. That’s a lot of bang for your buck.
There are so many amazing books, poems and stories to vote for. Check out the full list here: https://www.csffa.ca/awards-information/current-ballot/
I’m so thrilled that my novel is on the ballot. It’s a career first and a dream to even be nominated for a Prix Aurora Award. Ever since I started writing, I’ve dreamed of making it on the ballot and I’m so happy that I made it on the ballot with Minotaur.
You never know when you’re writing a book if people will like it. The journey of writing a book for me can take upwards of a year and the entire time, I had no idea if anyone would want to read a story about a young woman who lives with a disability in the darkness of a labyrinth. I just knew that I had to write it. I’m so glad that other people like the book, too!
Hop on over to the CSFFA website and place your vote. If you love Minotaur, show the novel some love. You will get sparkles automatically sent to you!
Until then, I’ll be within the walls of the labyrinth, making sure that the dark is held at bay.
Glass Magpies – A Poem
I gather letters to myself like a magpie.
They are shiny and sparkling and I need to hold light right now.
As I gather them up,
the light draws me inward so that I can look at myself,
and I can really see myself and who I am
without wondering what layer
to make people comfortable.
These pieces of glass hold onto the light,
making them pulse and shine.
The letters are written in different handwriting,
slashes of F’s, A’s and G’s like bullets written on glass,
each slice of the letter like a scar on the surface burnt black;
To counteract the hatred,
I can also see the soft curls of Q’s, U’s, E’s and R’s
that are written in chalk along the rough surfaces of dark red bricks,
in bright lines like feathers in a rainbow of colours,
ready to break down walls and barriers.
These letters hold a story within them,
of whom I’ve always been;
it just took me a while to see myself properly in the glass.
I walk further along the path,
collecting more pieces of glass along the way.
There is a drumbeat in the air and with each step,
a sense of promise grows in me,
which only increases when I find myself in a clearing.
In front of me,
there is a stone with an outline of me,
and I wonder if it was made by the same hand that made the letters.
Approaching the glass,
I begin to place the shards with the outline,
knowing that when I have filled the whole silhouette with glass,
I will finally be able to see myself
as I truly am.
Buy Little Yellow Magnet from Amazon and Kobo!
Jamieson Wolf has written a compelling story about navigating multiple sclerosis and cerebral palsy. His story will touch your heart, make you cry, then laugh, and inspire you. A touching memoir with a bit of magic…and tarot! ~ Theresa Reed, author of The Tarot Coloring Book
Jamieson Wolf 