Portal Magazine

Portal Magazine VIU's annual full-colour literary magazine Prime words. Compelling art. Momentous beginnings. What makes Portal so portentous?

Portal is your gateway to accomplished short fiction, poetry, creative non-fiction, scripts, interviews, art, and photography by Vancouver Island University students. Enter Portal’s literary universe and discover worlds and futures ready to unfold. It is “of ourselves and our origins”—a contemporary portrait of literary talent in the making, a portable guide to the VIU from here. First published i

n 1991, Portal Magazine has been and continues to be made possible through the generous support of advertisers, donors, and student fundraising. All inquiries and submissions can be made to:
[email protected]

ONE week until the first Portfolio reading of 2025! Just to get you even more excited, our student opening readers have ...
01/23/2025

ONE week until the first Portfolio reading of 2025! Just to get you even more excited, our student opening readers have been announced and you definitely don’t want to miss them!

As for the main feature of the evening, Amanda Lewis is
is an award-winning editor, writer, and publishing strategist based in the Pacific Northwest, Canada. Amanda was inaugural editorial director with Page Two, and editor and associate managing editor at Penguin Random House Canada. Amanda will be reading from her most recent publication Tracking Giants: Big Trees, Tiny Triumphs, and Misadventures in the Forest which was published by Greystone Books, an instant bestseller when it was released in 2023. Her writing has appeared in the Globe and Mail, Konfekt, Hazlitt, and Quill & Quire.

This event will be held at The Vault on 499 Wallace Street in Nanaimo at 7:30 PM on January 30th!

Join us for an evening of non-fiction and community opened by our very own student writers

Join us on January 30th for the first Portfolio reading of 2025!Amanda Lewis is an award-winning editor, writer, and pub...
01/16/2025

Join us on January 30th for the first Portfolio reading of 2025!

Amanda Lewis is an award-winning editor, writer, and publishing strategist based in the Pacific Northwest, Canada. Amanda was inaugural editorial director with Page Two, and editor and associate managing editor at Penguin Random House Canada. Amanda will be reading from her most recent publication Tracking Giants: Big Trees, Tiny Triumphs, and Misadventures in the Forest which was published by Greystone Books, an instant bestseller when it was released in 2023. Her writing has appeared in the Globe and Mail, Konfekt, Hazlitt, and Quill & Quire.

This event will be held at The Vault on 499 Wallace Street in Nanaimo at 7:30 PM on January 30th!

Join us for an evening of non-fiction and community opened by our very own student writers (to be announced).

See you there!

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Merry Christmas from the Portal Team! 🎄We hope you all have a well spent holiday with great company, good food, and some...
12/25/2024

Merry Christmas from the Portal Team! 🎄

We hope you all have a well spent holiday with great company, good food, and some even better time reading past issues of Portal in anticipation of 2025’s annual April issue (we know you’re obsessed with us 😉)!

We look forward to 2025 to jump right into editing and designing Portal as you know it! See you then ☺️

- The Portal 2025 Team 💜

Wondering where to submit your hard-hitting writing and art that you’re creating during your time off? We’ve got you.Hap...
12/19/2024

Wondering where to submit your hard-hitting writing and art that you’re creating during your time off? We’ve got you.

Happy submitting 🎄✍🏻🎨

❄️Link in bio in our new LinkTree❄️

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Join us this week for our final Portfolio event of the year! Amy Mattes is a Canadian writer coming to read from her deb...
12/03/2024

Join us this week for our final Portfolio event of the year!

Amy Mattes is a Canadian writer coming to read from her debut novel, Late September, published with Harbour Publishing in 2024. She won the Islands Short Fiction Review Contest in 2023 and has been previously published in The Globe and Mail and Portal Magazine.

This event will be held at The Vault on 499 Wallace Street in Nanaimo at 7 PM on December 5th.

Join us for an evening of fiction and community opened by our very own student writers.

See you there!

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A reminder for all VIU students that submissions for Portal 2025 close TODAY @ 11:59PM!!We accept fiction, poetry, non-f...
11/29/2024

A reminder for all VIU students that submissions for Portal 2025 close TODAY @ 11:59PM!!

We accept fiction, poetry, non-fiction, and scripts! Submit up to a total of 3 pieces, max 2000 words each, and up to 5 pieces of art or photography (you can submit both)!

Submissions are free! Don’t miss this opportunity.
We look forward to reading your work!

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Congratulations to Sam Bollinger, our winner for the 2025 Portent Prize!Thank you to everyone who submitted, and keep an...
11/27/2024

Congratulations to Sam Bollinger, our winner for the 2025 Portent Prize!

Thank you to everyone who submitted, and keep an eye out for Sam’s poem in our next issue!

If you submitted a poem and were not selected, or if you missed the chance to submit to Portent, make sure to take advantage of our general submissions, which close this Friday, the 29th!

Meet the masthead for our 2025 issue!🎉We are so excited about our team this year and can’t wait to see what they accompl...
11/20/2024

Meet the masthead for our 2025 issue!🎉

We are so excited about our team this year and can’t wait to see what they accomplish!

And don’t forget—our general submissions are open until the 29th of November!

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A reminder for all VIU students that submissions for Portal 2025 are open! The submission deadline is November 29th, and...
11/12/2024

A reminder for all VIU students that submissions for Portal 2025 are open!

The submission deadline is November 29th, and we accept fiction, poetry, non-fiction, and scripts! Submit up to a total of 3 pieces, max 2000 words each, and up to 5 pieces of art or photography.

Submissions are free! Don’t miss this opportunity.

We look forward to reading your work!

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Join us for the annual Gustafson poetry event, featuring Lisa Roberson!Coming to us all the way from France, Robertson i...
10/18/2024

Join us for the annual Gustafson poetry event, featuring Lisa Roberson!

Coming to us all the way from France, Robertson is a Canadian poet with 10 books of poetry published as well as multiple published titles in other genres.

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Student Reading and Q&A - October 23 - 11:30-1 PM, VIU Bldg 310, Malaspina Theatre Lobby

Community Reading - October 23 - 7:30-9 PM, The Green Olive, 150 Skinner St

Gustafson Lecture - October 24th - 7-8:30 PM, VIU Bldg 355, Rm 203 - Free parking in lot N

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We hope to see you there!

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Thank you to everyone who came out to our first Portfolio spotlight reading of the year, and thank you to all of the wri...
10/05/2024

Thank you to everyone who came out to our first Portfolio spotlight reading of the year, and thank you to all of the writers who shared their poetry!

We had the pleasure of listening to Jan Conn read her wonderful writing. Her newest collection, Peony Vertigo, is out now and available to purchase!

If you missed us last night, we’ll be hosting more events like this throughout the year, so stay tuned!

Just a few weeks left to submit to Portent! Submissions deadline is October 15th, 2024.The winner receives $500 and will...
10/02/2024

Just a few weeks left to submit to Portent! Submissions deadline is October 15th, 2024.

The winner receives $500 and will be published in the 2025 issue of Portal Magazine.

More information can be found on our website, don’t miss this opportunity!
https://portalmagazine.ca/index.php/portent/

The theme year this: Poetry📝

Join us for our first Portfolio event of the year! Jan Conn is a Canadian poet coming to read from her tenth poetry coll...
09/29/2024

Join us for our first Portfolio event of the year!

Jan Conn is a Canadian poet coming to read from her tenth poetry collection Peony Vertigo, published with Brick Books in 2023. Her poetry has received a CBC Literary Prize and was nominated in 2016 for a Pushcart Prize.

This event will be held at The Vault on 499 Wallace Street in Nanaimo.

October 3rd, at 7:00pm.

Enjoy an evening of poetry and community opened by our very own student writers.

See you there!

Art to transport you. From emerging artists, to you in full colour.Portal Magazine is dedicated to supporting student ar...
04/25/2024

Art to transport you. From emerging artists, to you in full colour.

Portal Magazine is dedicated to supporting student artists and photographers, using vegetable-based inks and recycled paper.

Feel the texture of this year’s issue, April 26 at our launch!
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Thank you so much to Karen Solie for coming all the way from Scotland to give her Gustafson Poet’s Lecture this year. So...
04/25/2024

Thank you so much to Karen Solie for coming all the way from Scotland to give her Gustafson Poet’s Lecture this year. So many students gained once in a lifetime experience attending Karen’s readings.

Interviewers Fran Pacchiano and Tara Wohlleben had the opportunity to sit down with Karen for a full interview, which is featured in our upcoming issue.

Join us at our launch for a copy!
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chose “The Whole Animal” by for our sixth book review. This book was recently published by .“I attended Chong’s book l...
04/25/2024

chose “The Whole Animal” by for our sixth book review. This book was recently published by .

“I attended Chong’s book launch. I had just graduated from Okanagan College, where Chong is a professor. It was fascinated to see the literary devices she taught me used in action of her own writing.

“Each short story captivated my attention from the beginning and left me wanting more by the end. Her characters are classified as unlikable because as she says ‘people are often unlikable too’ and it’s more exciting and human in that way.

“I am lucky to such a great a mentor and role model, and am happy to support the work I look up to,” writes Laurent on why he chose this book.

Thank you to all our book reviewers this year. If you’re interested in reading more book reviews, stay tuned for an update on our website!
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Our fifth book review is on “If It Gets Quiet Later On, I will Make a Display” by Nick Thran, published with . This revi...
04/18/2024

Our fifth book review is on “If It Gets Quiet Later On, I will Make a Display” by Nick Thran, published with . This review was written by our amazing Acquisitions Editor, Beatrix Taylor.

“I find the vocation of bookselling fascinating, so when I heard about “If It Gets Quiet Later On, I Will Make a Display” by Nick Thran, I had to get it for my bookshelf. When I learned that I could review for the magazine, I was so excited.

“The idea that bookselling and the arrangement of books can be an artistic expression is lovely. Thran’s book made me look at book displays through a new lens, wondering who arranged them and why in that way.

“In the chaos of today’s world, it seemed only right to shed light on a book about taking pleasure in what could be seen as the mundane and connection with others who do the same,” writes Bea on why she chose this book.

Thran’s book is a unique combination of non-fiction, poetry, and other genres.
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"Brace For Impact," written by talented journalist and memoirist , follows the tale of Megan on her quest to find zen, f...
04/16/2024

"Brace For Impact," written by talented journalist and memoirist , follows the tale of Megan on her quest to find zen, freedom, and independence.

Join Megan in this story at our launch!
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Videos

Portal Turns 30 - Looking Back!
Portal Turns 30 - Looking Back!

As we are one day away from our 30th anniversary launch party tomorrow night, here’s a little look back to our last big milestone! Although the celebrations will look a bit different, join us tomorrow night to celebrate the virtual launch of Portal 2021! You can pre-register for our launch here: https://viu.zoom.us/.../u5IlcOqqqTIoE9GIcYKEpo2SGhTciPO6B21x #portalturns30

Portal Portfolio Series - Juanessa Prince
Portal Portfolio Series - Juanessa Prince

Our new Portfolio Reading with Juanessa Prince is now live! Check it out for some great readings and a behind the scenes look at her writing process. Watch below:

Letter From The Editor - Kiara Strijack
Letter From The Editor - Kiara Strijack

A look ahead to Portal 2021: One of our fabulous Managing Editors, Kiara, gives us a look to head and what you should expect in Portal 2021! #portalturns30

Portfolio Reading Series - Claire Gordon
Portfolio Reading Series - Claire Gordon

Our newest Portfolio Reading with Claire Gordon is now out! Get a sneak peekof her newest poem “Dig the Dogs In” before it comes out in Portal 2021! #portalturns30

Portal Portfolio Series 2021 - Bernice Friesen
Portal Portfolio Series 2021 - Bernice Friesen

Author Bernice Friesen joins Portal to talk about her writing and how she uses her life and family to inspire her art and writing. Her newest novel “Universal Disorder” has a review by Dave Flawse in Portal 2021. Our 30th Anniversary issue hits newsstands on April 30th, stay tuned for more updates! #portalturns30

Portal Portfolio Series 2021 - Nic Ismirnioglou
Portal Portfolio Series 2021 - Nic Ismirnioglou

The newest episode of our Portal Portfolio Reading Series with Nic Ismirnioglou is now up! Nic will have his story “Undercurrent” published in this year’s edition of Portal! Keep it locked to the Portal social media accounts as we count down the days until our 30th anniversary launch! #portalturns30

Portfolio Reading Series 2021 - Lisa Kremer
Portfolio Reading Series 2021 - Lisa Kremer

Our Portfolio Reading with Lisa Kremer, the author of “The Devil Will Have No Part” is now live! Watch below: Don’t forget to subscribe to stay up to date with all our Portfolio Readings with the authors of the amazing stories featured in Portal 2021! #portalturns30

Portfolio Reading Series 2021 - Kristen Bounds
Portfolio Reading Series 2021 - Kristen Bounds

30 Days of Portal continues with the newest episode of our Portfolio Reading Series, featuring Kristen Bounds! You can find Kristen’s non-fiction piece “Given the Circumstances” in Portal 2021 which will be hitting newsstands soon! #portalturns30

Portfolio Series 2021 - Rose McQuirter
Portfolio Series 2021 - Rose McQuirter

#portalturns30 continues today with a new Portfolio reading series from Rose McQuirter, a student writer and contributor to this year's issue of Portal!

Portfolio Reading Series 2021 - Sabrina Mudryk
Portfolio Reading Series 2021 - Sabrina Mudryk

The newest Portfolio Reading with student writer Sabrina Mudryk is now live! Watch below and subscribe to Portal's Youtube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC7IXcomOuHvf9vom0lCESjQ

Portfolio Reading Series - Emily Gain
Portfolio Reading Series - Emily Gain

The newest episode of our Portfolio Reading Series is now out! This week Portfolio host Joe interviews student writer Emily Gain!

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