Pathways Winnipeg Alumni Launches First Book
The Fairy King by Emma Porter
Book launch and signing: Saturday, December 14, 2019
Merchants Corner – 541 Selkirk Avenue
2:30pm – 5:00pm
Emma Porter is a 2015 Pathways to Education Winnipeg alumni, a Pathways Winnipeg Student Parent Support Worker, a university student, and, now, a published author.
Emma has always loved the art of storytelling. As a child, she would take nearly daily trips to the library and was inspired by the names on the covers of her books; she wanted to be like the authors and illustrators who worked together to make stories come to life. She knew at a young age that she wanted to create books, but she was torn. She couldn’t decide whether she should be a writer or an artist! She loved doing both!
Then, on one extremely special day in grade two, someone special helped guide her on her storytelling path. The beloved children’s book author, Robert Munsch, was visiting her school and she had the opportunity to speak to him. That’s when he gave her some life-changing advice: “Why limit yourself? You can do both!”
Shortly after meeting Robert Munsch, she began writing and illustrating stories.
In high school, her love of writing grew. Influenced by a myriad of mythologies, The Fairy King was born from a dream that Emma had about a winged boy sailing on a ship. In her last year of high school, Emma could be seen in our program and at St. John’s High School with the draft of her yet-to-be published work under her arm for people to read, edit, and critique—many of whom she lovingly acknowledges played an important role in helping her along this book-writing adventure.
With help from a former Pathways to Education Winnipeg staff, Claire Friesen, Emma was able to navigate the world of self-publishing to get her story out into the world. Since the book was printed in June 2019, she has travelled to Miami for the Miami Book Fair where she did a book signing and established new fans.
Where has Emma’s drive to write come from?
“I just really liked writing and I wanted to keep doing it. But it’s also about wanting to leave a physical trace of my time here on earth. Having stories written and existing physically for others to read helps you leave a mark.”
– Emma
Today, Emma keeps busy balancing her full-time role as a Student Parent Support Worker at Pathways Winnipeg and studying Rhetoric and English at the University of Winnipeg. She is also working on several new writing projects, including a memoir called Blue Lips and a manga series called Moon Rising.
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