Andre Fenton

By Georgina Mbamalu

Andre Fenton Photography by Paul Adams

From a very young age, North-end Halifax’s Andre Fenton had a love of literature. In elementary school, he would run around the classroom proclaiming to his classmates that he would one day be an author. His love for the written word only magnified; in high school English classes, twopage assignments often expanded into 80 pages by the due date. Fostering connections in the poetry community and a chance encounter with poet laureate El Jones brought Fenton to a slam poetry semi-final event where he placed third and won the finals. When he made the leap to film school, he learned the techniques used to make a film scene so special. It was clear to Fenton and to the world, everything was setting him up to thrive in the creative space. “I always had a big passion for words. No matter the medium. I never saw myself in the fiction I was reading and as a young Black author I wanted to create a real, diverse Nova Scotia that I know, and love and have that reflected in my works.” The need for reflection aided Fenton in telling his most recent published work Worthy of Love. The fiction novel highlights the story of Adrian

Carter, a mixed-race teenager from North-end Halifax and his journey of self-discovery. Fenton described writing the book as an awesome experience and didn’t realize how important this story was for young Black men, a group that is severely underrepresented in the world of young adult fiction. Fenton gives back to the community as much as he can by speaking at schools throughout Nova Scotia and speaking in African Canadian Literature courses. “I think it’s important for young Black folks to see another young Black person out there and pursuing their dreams in this field of work.” “A young person came up to me and told me that my writing felt as if it was written for them. Things like that keep me motivated to pursue this line of work. I want Black youths’ feelings to be validated,” he adds. His next book will be released through Nimbus Publishing in June 2020. His third book will be released with Formac Publishing and is currently in its very early stages.