Thandiwe McCarthy and Jon Claytor on Information Morning Moncton | CBC Radio One (April 30, 2025) [15 min.]
Thandiwe McCarthy is a spoken word poet, writer and public speaker. Jon Claytor is an artist, painter and writer. Both are “Frye Correspondents” at this year’s festival.
Listen here on CBC : https://www.cbc.ca/listen/live-radio/1-26-information-morning-moncton/clip/16143192-authors-poets-scholars-djs-take-moncton-venues-26th
Jon Claytor
Jon Claytor is a graphic novelist, painter, and writer based in Sackville, New Brunswick.
After having established himself as an oil painter, Jon has recently found his passion and true calling in graphic storytelling. He has written many illustrated interviews for the CBC since 2021 and his memoir, Take The Long Way Home was published by Conundrum Press in 2022. His latest graphic novel, Nowhere, about growing up among monsters in a small maritime town, will be published by Goose Lane Editions in 2026. He is currently working on a book about the toxic drug supply affecting rural New Brunswick with harm reduction advocate, Ashley Legere. Jon has also run a number of creative workshops for a variety of audiences focusing on storytelling and comic memoirs.
Jon was born in San Francisco and has lived and worked in Moncton, Sackville, Halifax, Vancouver, Montreal and Toronto. He co-founded SappyFest independent music and arts festival in 2006 and opened Thunder & Lightning Ideas Ltd. in 2013. Jon holds an MFA from York University (2012), attended Nova Scotia College of Art and Design University (1991), and holds a BFA Mount Allison University (1998). He was nominated for a Juno Award for the cover of Gord Downie’s “Battle Of The Nudes” in 2004. His memoir, Take the Long Way Home, was shortlisted for the New Brunswick Book Award for Non-Fiction in 2022. His new graphic novel Nowhere will be published by Goose Lane in March 2026.
Thandiwe McCarthy
Thandiwe McCarthy is a 7th generation African Canadian spoken word poet, writer, public speaker, and the culture correspondent for Maritime EDIT magazine, where he highlights Black community leaders and artists. Known for his unique “Vibe Harvesting” performances, he creates poetry spontaneously at events across the Maritimes.
Thandiwe has co-founded the New Brunswick Black Artists Alliance and organized the provincial event Emancipation Celebration. He played a key role in having August 1st recognized as Emancipation Day in New Brunswick. Though he has stepped back from volunteer work, his contributions have left a lasting impact on the community.
The “Still Here Initiative,” celebrating fifteen generational Black New Brunswick families, is gearing up for a national art exhibition at the Beaverbrook Art Gallery and a globally distributed book published by Goose Lane Editions, both launching in July 2025.
Thandiwe’s memoir, “Social Oblivion: Raised Black in New Brunswick,” is available now.
