What to do when your fictional sleuth refuses to die? A detective writer's attempts at writing his masterpiece.

A very successful detective fiction writer, Leo Basilius, decides to bring his popular crime series to a close and take a sabbatical on the Greek island of Nysa where, as a young man, he wrote his first books - poetry and short stories. He returns there intending to write his master piece. The one he knows he has in him. Surrounded by his wife and new island friends, he settles in to write. But unexpectedly his main character, Detective-Sargeant Vass Levonian, appears demanding that Basilius resurrect him. The hauntings multiply and inspiration doesn’t come. Leo Basilius wants to find fulfilment as a writer. But can he? Is it too late? Can you leave a mark? And what should that mark be? What do we leave behind? What is our legacy? And … Is there still time to do something about it?

Pan Bouyoucas came to Canada with his Greek parents in 1963. After studies in architecture, he obtained a BFA in film and theatre at Concordia University and worked a few years as a film critic. Since 1975 he has written in French seven novels, a collection of short stories, a book for children, a dozen radio dramas, and stage plays, many of them translated into several languages. From the Main to Mainstreet (a.k.a. Divided We Stand), which he wrote in English, in 1989 for Montrealâ??s Centaur Theatre, was the best-selling show ever staged at Torontoâ??s Canadian Stage Company. The recipient of many literary awards and nominations in Canada and abroad, Bouyoucas is also a talented translator and the winner of the 2002 Quebec Writers Federation Prize for translation.

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Maureen Labonté is a dramaturge, translator, and teacher. She has also coordinated a number of play development programs in theatres and playwrights” centres across the country. In 2006, she was named head of program for the Banff Playwrights Colony at the Banff Centre. She was dramaturge at the Colony from 2003–2005. She was also Literary Manager in charge of play development at the Shaw Festival from 2002–2004. Previous to that, she worked at the National Theatre School of Canada, first developing and running a pilot directing program and then coordinating the playwrighting programme and playwrights” residency. She still teaches at NTS.

Mauren has translated more than thirty Quebec plays into English. Recent translations include: The Bookshop by Marie-Josée Bastien, Everybody's WELLES pour tous by Patrice Dubois and Martin Labreque, and The Tailor's Will by Michel Ouellette. She will soon be starting work on: Wigwam by Jean-Frédéric Messier and Bienvenue à (une ville dont vous êtes le touriste) by Olivier Choinière.

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