Korah graduate now a published author

Former Sault resident and Korah Collegiate graduate Sarah Felix Burns is pleased to announce the publication of her first book.

Jackfish, the Vanishing Village was written in six months by the social worker-turned-author and draws from many inspirations.

The village of Jackfish, now a ghost town after being abandoned in 1962, is located just east of Terrace Bay.

"The notion of being from somewhere that no longer exists was very intriguing," says Burns.

"It got me thinking about homeland and how that affects the soul of a person when they lose their homeland or can never return home again for whatever reason."

Her experiences as a social worker also influenced the overall theme of the novel.

"Working intimately with people who were forced from their homelands and who could never return was a defining moment in my life and subsequently in my writing as well."

Growing up in Gros Cap, Burns was heartbroken when her parents were forced to sell her childhood home due to health reasons.

She transposed these intimate feelings of homelessness into her work.

Burns is currently in the process of locating a publisher for her second effort while working on a third.

Influenced by the work of Margaret Laurence, Alice Munroe, Dorothy Allison and Sherman Alexie, Burns has chosen to write full time.

"In my writing, I don't copy people I have known in real life. Rather, in my mind, I become them," she states.

"I mine my own experiences and my sunbconscious in order to uthentically portray all of the characters in my writing. My goal is to illustrate all sides of humanity with compassion and honesty. Because of this, some of my writing is quite raw and may be emotionally difficult for some readers."

Now residing in Colorado, Burns with the help of her publisher have been working to arrange a launch party/book signing in Sault Ste. Marie, and hope to do so this coming spring.

Follow this link to order your copy of Jackfish, the Vanishing Village.

About Jackfish, the Vanishing Village

Jackfish, The Vanishing Village tells the story of a woman unravelling from a traumatic past and her yearning for redemption.

When her sister dies prematurely, Clemance-Marie Nadeau leaves her family and village behind, boarding a train bound for Sault Ste. Marie, where she falls under the spell of a charming stranger who promises her a life of adventure, and then holds her captive with her guilt and his threats of violence.

Years later, when Clemance moves to the United States, she feels like an outsider, but Clemance is also in exile from herself.

Discovering she is pregnant at the age of forty-two sets in motion a series of events that awakens a painful memory, long-buried in her embattled body, and so begins the long and sometimes harrowing journey back to her homeland, and to herself.

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