In the weight of dew, Daniela Elza’s remarkably elegant debut book of poetry, we are taken on a literal, metaphorical and philosophical journey from the city, inland through (mostly) British Columbia. In the miles and meditations Elza’s poems travel light, with the ‘shape of me nameless’. the weight of dew settles around us, after the long journey of contemplation. These poems are delicate, condensed, crystallized, yet paradoxically spacious, not only visually but philosophically. They gently ask questions about our existence. Use language to investigate belief. Use metaphor to awaken consciousness. Beautifully transforming us through the alphabet of her knowing.

Daniela Elza grew up and lived on three continents before immigrating to Canada in 1999. Her poetry collections are the weight of dew (Mother Tongue Publishing, 2012), the book of It (2011), and milk tooth bane bone (Leaf, 2013). the broken boat is her fourth book. In 2011, Daniela earned her doctorate in Philosophy of Education from Simon Fraser University. She continues to contribute to the field of Poetic Inquiry. Her Masters degrees are in English Philology, and Linguistics (TESL/TEFL). In the literary community, Daniela facilitates writing workshops, mentors emerging writers, edits, and performs. She coordinates and hosts a reading series (Twisted Poets Literary Salon at Hood29 on Main St.), that shines a light on hundreds of published and emerging writers. Used to crossing geographic, cultural and semantic borders, Daniela’s work often dwells in liminal, and in between spaces between word and world, and the inherent possibilities for transformation through the attention. Daniela's poetry has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize, Best of the Net Anthology, and has won numerous contests. Her essay Bringing the Roots Home was nominated for the 2018 Pushcart Prize. She is currently exploring her passion for the personal and lyric essay. Daniela lives in Vancouver, and works at the Bolton Academy for Spoken Arts.

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