About
Ainsley Hawthorn, PhD (Yale), is a cultural historian, sensory scholar, and author who writes about forgotten events, curious folklore, and the surprising connections between past and present.
She is a columnist with CBC, a blogger for Psychology Today, and has contributed to The Globe and Mail, the National Post, The Weather Network, The Dance Current, TheIndependent.ca, and the Newfoundland Quarterly. In 2020, she co-created Apocalypse Then, a CBC radio series that looked at past pandemics to help shed light on the COVID experience.
Her nonfiction anthology Land of Many Shores: Perspectives from a Diverse Newfoundland and Labrador was named one of The Telegram's Top Ten Books of 2021, and in 2022 she received a Radio Television Digital News Award for Best Digital Opinion (East Region). Her first solo-authored non-fiction book, The Other Five Senses, is represented by The Margret McBride Literary Agency.
She is available for interviews, speaking engagements, hosting, and workshops. Please send an e-mail for details.
As seen in...
Awards
Writing Prizes
Honours
2024, Winner, Off Topic Publishing January Fiction Contest, for the short story "The Sea, Like Glass"
2022, Best Digital Opinion, Radio Television Digital News Awards (East Region), for the article "Think wearing masks in everyday life is a new concept? Think again"
2021, Top 10 Book of 2021, The Telegram, for the anthology Land of Many Shores
2006, Honourable Mention, 19th Annual Year’s Best Fantasy and Horror Anthology, for the short story "In Grandmother's House"
2004, McIlquham Foundation Prize in English, Queen’s University, for the short story "In Grandmother's House"
2003, James H. Stitt Prize in Poetry, Queen’s University, for the poem "Crossing the Break"
Grants
2023, Professional Project Grant, ArtsNL, for the book Apocalypse Then
2022, Community Arts Program Grant, ArtsNL, for the anthology On the Edge
2022, Professional Artists' Travel Fund Grant, ArtsNL
2021, Research and Creation Grant, Canada Council for the Arts, for the anthology Outer Reaches/Inner Workings
2020, Concept to Realization Grant, Canada Council for the Arts, for the anthology Land of Many Shores
2020, Individual Artist Grant, City of St. John's, for the anthology Land of Many Shores
2020, Professional Artists' Travel Fund Grant, ArtsNL (declined due to COVID-19)
2019, Professional Project Grant, ArtsNL, for the book The Other Five Senses
Academic Honours
Public Engagement Awards
2018, Quick Start Fund Grant for Public Engagement, Memorial University
Postdoctoral Fellowships
2014, Visiting Research Fellowship, Distant Worlds: Graduate School for Ancient Studies, University of Munich
2013-14, Advanced Seminar in the Humanities Fellowship, Ca' Foscari University of Venice and Venice International University
Graduate Fellowships
2008-09, Paul C. Gignilliat Dissertation Fellowship, Yale University
2004-08, Yale University Graduate School Fellowship, Yale University
2004-05, Marty Memorial Scholarship, Queen’s University
Undergraduate Honours
2004, Medal in Philosophy, Queen’s University
2004, Jaganathan Muraleenathan Book Prize in Philosophy, Queen’s University
2004, Prize for Best Paper, Undergraduate Classics Conference, University of Alberta
2001-04, Dean’s Honour List with Distinction, Queen’s University
2003, Wallace Near Prize in Classics, Queen’s University
2002, John D.B. Walton Arts '45 Scholarship, Queen’s University
2001, Maclennan Prize in Greek, Queen’s University
Undergraduate Entrance Scholarships
2000-04, National Millennium Excellence Scholarship, Canada Millennium Scholarship Foundation
2000-04, Chancellor’s Scholarship, Queen’s University
1999, Centenary of Responsible Government Scholarship, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador
College Scholarships
1998-2000, United World College Scholarship, Lester B. Pearson United World College of the Pacific
Memberships
