Vancouver Notables is the ongoing interview series where “No Fun City” shows off. More like burlesque than a talent show, Vancouver Notables wants you doing what you do best, but with sequins on your nipples. Tell us who you are, what you’re doing that’s of note and why, oh why, are you rocking that boat?
Sean Cranbury is an ardent supporter of Vancouver’s writing community. As the creator of Books on the Radio in 2009, and founder of the Real Vancouver Writers Series in 2010, Cranbury makes it his business to showcase writers both local and international. Books on the Radio returns with new episodes this October, and if you’re looking for some literary conversation in the meantime, Cranbury can be found mixing nerd-culture inspired cocktails at the decidedly awesome Storm Crow Tavern.
Sad Mag: Who are you?
Sean Cranbury: My name is Sean Cranbury. I work as a bartender, writer, and web strategy consultant. I live in east Vancouver. I also am Executive Editor of something called Books on the Radio which is a radio show podcast and blog about books and writers. BOTR has been on hiatus for about a year and will relaunch in early October. I am also founder and Artistic Director for the Real Vancouver Writers Series.
SM: When did you discover your passion for books and writing?
SC: I can’t remember that far back. My mom took a photo of me when I was very young. I am wearing Winnie the Pooh overalls and clutching a book while falling forward with a goofy grin on my face. I can still remember my first bookshelf. It was in the closet of the room that I shared with my older brother. That’s where I kept my prized collection of Frog and Toad books.
Writing was always something that I have done well with. I’ve always tried to challenge my vocabulary and been fascinated by how words sound and how they work together.
SM: How did you get involved in the writing scene in Vancouver?
SC: I worked for several great independent bookstores in the city. Duthie Books, Sophia Books, Albion Books, and I ran the books department at Virgin Megastore for the final few years of its existence. That put me in touch with the local publishing and writing communities.
I’ve stayed in touch with the writing scene as best I can over the years. Books on the Radio and Real Vancouver are examples of me and some friends taking matters into our own hands in order to contribute more directly to the community.
SM: What led you to begin broadcasting “Books on the Radio”?
SC: It was 2009 and I had just been dismissed from my job managing inventory and loss prevention teams for a multinational consumer electronics company. It was a short but instructive foray into the world of corporate boxes.
I basically took my severance cheque and said “screw all of this noise, it’s time to take some control of the situation.” We were experiencing the deepest pockets of the economy’s smoking crater at that time and it seemed like the best possible time to invest in myself and to pursue my own vision for bringing something into the world that hadn’t existed before.
So I decided to build Books on the Radio. I forced myself to learn WordPress, podcasting, audio and video editing, and etc… in order create and control my own content and message. I got in touch with CJSF 90.1 FM (SFU) who agreed to play the show on Wednesdays and thus it was born.
I also turned the enthusiasm and momentum gathered from BOTR into events. I flew to Toronto to speak at the first Bookcamp Toronto, helped to organize the first two Bookcamp Vancouver’s, built the Advent Book Blog with the help of my good friend Julie Wilson (seenreading.com, bookmadam.com), among many other projects during those initial few years. Real Vancouver was born out of that same creative flurry.
The past year has been a time of renewal and re-visioning for BOTR and I’m looking forward to putting in the hard work necessary to make it a success.
SM: How were you involved with Sad Mag’s Fantasy Issue?
SC: I interviewed David Sedaris by phone when he was on tour for his newest book, Let’s Explore Diabetes with Owls. I mentioned the interview to [Sad Mag’s Creative Director] Katie Stewart who thought that it might be fun to include in the next issue. I agreed.
SM: You’ve been involved in a number of projects promoting local writers and local writing. How do you feel about the state of Vancouver’s writing scene?
SC: Vancouver as a literary city is like a fantastic floating airship in a Miyazaki movie. Tentatively tethered to the ground of common sense and cultural tradition but always straining against it, threatening to break free. It’s a fascinating scene to watch because there’s so much going on and so much of it is experimental and challenging.
SM: Best thing you’ve read lately?
SC: And Everyday Was Overcast by Paul Kwiatkowski. Published by Black Balloon Publishing.
SM: Where are you as you answer these questions?
SC: Sitting at my desk in my kitchen office. To my right a rusting Motobecane. To my left my Zoom H4n handheld audio recorder.
SM: You tend bar at a self-professed ‘nerd bar.’ What’s it like working at a place where guests can roll a twenty sided die and save a dollar on a Vulcan Mind Meld shot?
SC: The Storm Crow Tavern is a great place to work. It is a restaurant that has no prefabricated idea for what it is or what it will become. It’s always in a state of creative genesis even if that creativity is often in the service of extreme nerdiness. I work with a lot of great, very creative and talented people at the Storm Crow.
I have been a bartender for as long as I have been a bookseller and it’s a lot of fun to work in a place that values books and literature and giant bas-reliefs of dead dreaming Elder Gods from beyond time and space as much as they value the mixological possibilities of Creme de Cacao.
SM: Last album you listened to?
SC: Cosmic Vortex (Justice Divine) by Weldon Irvine, 1974.
SM: What are you most excited about right now?
SC: I’m excited that Books on the Radio is about to relaunch. Real Vancouver Writers’ Series is now officially a non-profit society and we’re busy making ambitious and slightly ridiculous plans for 2014. And I’m also excited to work on a few writing projects over the next year. Rubber, meet road.
Support Vancouver’s literary community, learn about the city’s literary history and hear more from Sean Cranbury by visiting Sad Mag at Word on the Street! Tomorrow!
This Must Be The Place:
The Evolution of Vancouver’s Cultural Landscape Speakers’ forum
Location Vancouver Public Library Square, Magazine Life Tent
Date Sunday, September 29th
Time 1-2pm
Presenters & Readers Michael de Courcy, Jesse Donaldson, Caroline Adderson, mediated by Sean Cranbury