Deborah Willis

Deborah Willis is a Canadian writer.

Biography

Daughter of Pauline and Gary Willis, she was born in Calgary, Alberta in 1982 and lived there until leaving to study at the University of Victoria.

Willis has worked as a technical writer and a bookseller at Munro's Books in Victoria, British Columbia, and currently works as Senior Editor and Submissions Coordinator for Freehand Books in Calgary. She lives in Calgary with her partner, Kris Demeanor, and their daughter.

Writing

Willis' fiction has appeared in The Virginia Quarterly, The Iowa Review, The Walrus, and Zoetrope.

Willis was a writer-in-residence at the Joy Kogawa House in Vancouver, and at MacEwan University in Edmonton.

In 2023, Willis published her novel Girlfriend on Mars. The New York Times wrote in a review: "Every detail is sharply placed by Willis, who has a scorching sense of humor and a soft spot for humanity down here on Earth." The novel was longlisted for the 2023 Giller Prize.