Archie Crail

Archie Crail (born 1944 in Paarl, South Africa)^[1] is a South African-Canadian writer. He was a shortlisted nominee for the Governor General's Award for English-language fiction at the 1992 Governor General's Awards for his short story collection The Bonus Deal.^[2]

Archie Crail
Born	1948 Paarl, South Africa
Occupation	journalist, short story writer, playwright
Nationality	South African-Canadian
Period	1990s
Notable works	The Bonus Deal

Background

A coloured South African of Khoisan descent,^[3] Crail was born and raised in Paarl.^[1] Educated at the University of South Africa,^[4] he was an anti-apartheid activist with the African National Congress,^[1] and studied theology under Desmond Tutu.^[5] He later spent several years living in South-West Africa, continuing his political activism with SWAPO,^[5] and briefly moved to Botswana^[1] before moving to Canada in 1980.^[3]

Crail and his family settled in Regina, Saskatchewan in 1980.^[4] Crail took classes at the University of Regina,^[4] including studying creative writing under Ven Begamudré.^[5]

Writing

His first work, a theatrical play titled Exile, won the Saskatchewan Writers' Guild literary competition in 1989^[6] and was produced by Saskatoon's 25th Street Theatre in 1990.^[7] A touring production of Exile was later mounted in South Africa.^[4]

The Bonus Deal was published by Coteau Books in 1992.^[8] Several of the short stories in The Bonus Deal were also dramatized for CBC Radio.^[4]

In 1991, after the South African government lifted its ban on exiled African National Congress members returning to South Africa, Crail attended the organization's conference in Durban.^[4]

Works

• Exile (1990)
• The Bonus Deal (1992)

References

1. "Can't feel safe, even in Saskatchewan". Windsor Star, February 3, 1995.
2. "Ondaatje leads top literary nominees". Financial Post, November 7, 1992.
3. "The essence of politics; Relocated in Regina, South African writer explores his roots". Edmonton Journal, June 21, 1992.
4. Heather Hodgson, Saskatchewan Writers: Lives Past and Present. University of Regina Press, 2004. ISBN 978-0889771635. p. 63.
5. "A spinner of complex but sturdy prose". The Globe and Mail, November 28, 1992.
6. "Writers pick up $4,800 in prizes". The Globe and Mail, June 7, 1989.
7. 25th Street Theatre Centre at The Canadian Encyclopedia.
8. Claire Rothman, "South African emigre shows lives at breaking point". The Gazette, December 5, 1992.