Board of Directors

Jodene Wylie - President

Jodene Wylie has lived in the Thunder Bay region all her life. She has a Master of Arts degree in English Literature from Lakehead University and is a lover of books, stories and mystical lands. She occasionally writes short stories and is currently working on her first novel with the hopes of one day publishing. She has a dog named Bailey and is an avid tea drinker, a novice gardener and traveller (as much as she possibly can).

Elizabeth Pszczolko - Vice President

Elizabeth has been involved with NOWW since its early beginnings more than twenty years ago. She recalls early meetings with fellow writers and feeling she had found her "kindred spirits." Since those early days, Elizabeth said it has been wonderful to see how much NOWW and the writing community has grown and developed through the region. Recently retired as manager of the Thunder Bay Public Health Laboratory, Elizabeth is looking forward to finding her writing legs again. because she believes, "writing is about learning and exploring." Her work has been published in the NOWW magazine and she recently started her own blog: www.awonderinglittlevoice.com/

Charles Campbell - Treasurer

Charles Campbell is an accountant by day and writer by evening and weekend. Although he has had succesfully submitted his tax returns for decades, he is far more proud of having his plays selected for the 2015 and 2016 10x10 showcases. Charles joined NOWW to get away from financial statements and to dedicate more time to develop his writing, but much like Michael Corleone, he's been 'pulled back in' and is serving as Treasurer.

Tessa Hargreaves - Secretary

Tessa Hargreaves is a mother of three beautiful boys and an employee of the Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre. She has a Bachelor of Arts Degree from Lakehead University and loves to write and perform poetry. She is an avid consumer of the YA and Fantasy genres, wether it be books, TV shows or movies. She loves dreaming of far off lands and mystical beings and one day she hopes to have the time and commitment to create her own YA novel.

Graham Strong

Graham is a full-time freelance marketing writer, journalist, and ghostwriter and has been a writer his entire life. Graham is a former Editor-in-Chief of Argus, the Student Newspaper of Lakehead University, and helped transition it into one of the first digitally produced newspapers in North America. Graham won an Honourable Mention in NOWW’s first writing contest in 1998 for his short story Hat Trick. Professionally, Graham provides marketing writing services to businesses and organizations around the world. He also writes for several news outlets including the Sudbury Mining Solutions Journal and the Northern Ontario Medical Journal, and has written for Canadian Press. In his spare time he is writing his first novel. Graham lives in Thunder Bay with local potter Noël Keag and their three incredible sons. His favourite writers are Paul Quarrington, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and Hunter S. Thompson.

Doug Diaczuk
Doug Diaczuk is a writer and journalist in Thunder Bay, Ontario. He has a master’s degree in English Literature from Lakehead University and is currently working as a reporter/photographer with the Thunder Bay Source. Doug has been a member of the Northwestern Ontario Writer’s Workshop for the past two years. His work has been published in Geist, Quill and Quire, and Subterrain. In 2015, Doug won the 38th annual 3-Day Novel Contest for his novel Chalk, which was published in 2016. Chalk has also been shortlisted for the Northern Lit Award. Doug’s short story, Frogs Don’t Swim, was included in the NOWW collection, Twenty Years on Snowshoes.

Autumne Atwood

Autumne Atwood is currently a stay at home mom to her beautiful children, Clay and Calliope. She has a Master of Social Work degree from The University of Toronto. She is a lover of books with a strong interest in non-fiction, particularly memoirs. She enjoys writing short stories of a personal nature, yoga, volunteering, and travelling. Autumne lives in Thunder Bay with her husband Lyndon, and their children.

Don Parsons

Don is our administrator and comes to us with a wealth of experience ideally suited to the position. He was a teacher, Vice -Principal, and Coordinator of Student Services for the Thunder Bay Catholic District School Board, He also held positions as an Education Officer for the Northern Schools Resource Alliance and was the Mental Health Project Lead for the Superior Greenstone DSB. Don comes to NOWW with strong public relations, communication, and problem solving skills, and is deft at various social media platforms.