SYLVIA FRASER was born in Hamilton, Ontario and graduated from the University of Western Ontario with an Honors B.A. in English & Philosophy. She worked for many years as a feature writer for the Toronto Star Weekly, travelling extensively throughout North America, including the Arctic, as well as Mexico, Panama, Europe, and Africa. Literary Critic Elizabeth Westbrook described Sylvia's writing as "the best kind of fiction: accessible and entertaining stories embedded in rich complexity." She is responsible for six novels: Pandora (1972), The Candy Factory (1975), A Casual Affair (1978), The Emperor's Virgin(1980), Berlin Solstice (1984), and The Ancestral Suitcase (1996). Her non-fiction works include: The Quest for the Fourth Monkey: A Thinker's Guide to the Psychic and Spiritual Revolution (published in 1992 as The Book of Strange) awarded the American Library Association Book List Medal in 1994; My Father's House: A Memoir of Incest and of Healing (1987), extensively translated and adapted for the stage, received the Canadian Authors Association Non-Fiction Book Award in 1987. Fraser is also the recipient of the Women's Press Club Award for Canadian Journalism, 1967 and 1968; the President's Medal for Canadian journalism, 1968; and the National Magazine Gold Medal for Essays, 1994.
For many years, Fraser taught Creative Writing at Banff Centre. She has conducted numerous lectures and workshops sponsored by a variety of universities. She served on the Arts Advisory Panel to The Canada Council and was a member of The Canada Council's 1985 Cultural Delegation to China. Currently, Sylvia is vice-chair of The Writers' Development Trust, a charitable organization for the support and promotion of Canadian authors.