Poetry has been at the centre of Lisa Richter’s life for as long as she can remember.

She began writing poems in her early teens and continued through high school and university, seeking out workshops, courses, readings and literary communities wherever she could find them.

“I’ve made a life, rather than a living, out of writing,” says Richter. “And I think I’ve made writing out of a life.”

Richter is the new Mabel Pugh Taylor Writer in Residence. The program provides an established Canadian author with writing time and the opportunity to mentor creative writers from the Hamilton community and beyond, through workshops and one-on-one consultations.

Richter is the author of three poetry collections: Closer to Where We Began (2017), Nautilus and Bone (2020), and Sublunary (2026). Her work explores memory, grief, identity, wonder and the tension between presence and absence.

Richter has also written fiction, creative non-fiction, and personal essays.

“For me, there is a lot of crossover between genres,” she says. “Writing fiction and creative non-fiction taught me a lot about structure and character, while poetry helped my fiction become more focused on language, sound, image and musicality.”

Nautilus and Bone, written shortly after her father’s unexpected death in 2018, explores the life and work of the radical, early 20th century Yiddish poet Anna Margolin, whom Richter describes as a literary and spiritual ancestor.

“Even though grief is individual, it’s also collective and universal,” she says. “Poetry became a way for me to look beyond myself and see myself in conversation with other people.”

Nautilus and Bone won the National Jewish Book Award for Poetry in the United States, the Canadian Jewish Literary Award for Poetry and the Alberta Book Publishers Association’s Robert Kroetsch Award. It was also longlisted for the Raymond Souster Award.

Richter remembers receiving the call about the National Jewish Book Award as one of the defining moments of her career.

“I never wrote the book thinking about winning anything, but getting that validation and recognition really propelled me forward,” she said. “My only regret is that my dad wasn’t alive to see it. He would have been stopping people on the street.”

Her new collection, Sublunary, feels like a homecoming. Unlike Nautilus and Bone, which focuses on a specific historical figure and period, it moves across a broader range of subjects and approaches.

“It feels very much like coming full circle,” she said. “I’ve grown a lot as a writer in the last five years, especially through the mentors, editors, instructors and fellow writers I’ve had the opportunity to learn from.”

Richter’s own path to becoming a published writer was not linear.

As an English major at McGill University in the ’90s, she quickly became involved in all things writing: extracurricular poetry workshops, theatre and poetry readings, eventually joining the editorial board of the literary journal Montage, where she had first been published.

Later, while teaching English as a Second Language for more than 20 years, Richter did everything she could to stay immersed in writing. She took continuing education courses in poetry and fiction, went to readings, took part in numerous multi-genre feedback and critique groups, and continued to submit her poetry to literary journals, culminating in the publication of her first full-length collection at the age of 40.

After completing a bachelor’s degree in adult education at Brock University, she trained as a volunteer facilitator for people in underserved communities with the Writers Collective of Canada, and eventually served as faculty at the Sage Hill Writing Workshops, online and in-person in Muenster, Sask.

Richter’s passions for teaching, writing and lifelong learning eventually led her to obtain her Master of Fine Arts degree in creative writing at the University of Guelph, which she completed in 2025.

“I think there are as many different paths as there are writers,” she said.

Richter describes her approach to mentorship as warm, supportive, engaged and deeply focused on each writer’s individual goals, no matter what their stage of development.

She wants writers to see their work as something still developing and evolving, rather than being judged immediately as good or bad.

“A work in progress is just that — the paint is still wet on the canvas,” she says. “You may not know yet where it’s going, and that’s something to be excited about, rather than daunted by.”

During her residency, Richter is looking forward to meeting writers through one-on-one consultations, offering generative and artist-centred workshops at McMaster University and the Hamilton Public Library, and connecting with Hamilton’s vibrant, diverse community of readers and writers.

She will use the residency to develop a hybrid lyric memoir exploring buried rivers, personal history, ancestral memory and urban landscapes. She also plans to begin work on a new poetry collection.

Richter’s work across poetry, teaching and mentorship reflects the spirit of the Mabel Pugh Taylor Writer in Residence program, says Susie O’Brien, chair of the Department of English and Cultural Studies at McMaster.

“Lisa Richter brings literary accomplishment, teaching experience and a deeply generous approach to mentorship to this year’s residency,” O’Brien says.

“Her work and experience make her wonderfully suited to support writers across the McMaster and Hamilton communities.”

About the Writer in Residence program

The Mabel Pugh Taylor Writer in Residence program is led by English and Cultural Studies in the Faculty of Humanities, in partnership with McMaster University Libraries and the Hamilton Public Library. It is supported by the Taylor family.

Book a consultation 

Lisa Richter will be available for in-person or virtual writing consultations at no charge through the writer-in-residence program.

To book a consultation, please visit Richter’s online calendar.

Writing workshops 

Richter will host a series of free writing workshops during her residency. Details will be shared as available on the events pages of the Hamilton Public Library website. Please check back regularly.

Welcome reception 

The Hamilton Public Library presents a writer in residence welcome reception on Sept. 23, from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Central Library, 55 York Blvd. Everyone is welcome. Register online in advance for this free community event.