Kay Hill


Kathleen Louise Hill was a Canadian author and playwright from Nova Scotia, known for her 13-part television series on Mi'kmaq legends. She was the author of over one hundred stage plays and radio dramas across her career. Her children's book Joe Howe: The Man who was Nova Scotia was the winner of the Evelyn Richardson Award at the Atlantic Book Awards in 1981.

Biography

Kay Hill was born on 7 April 1917 in Halifax, Nova Scotia, to parents Henry and Margaret Elizabeth Hill. She attended Halifax County Academy for one year, where she earned a business diploma.
After graduating from Halifax County Academy, Hill began working as a freelance fiction writer. She did secretarial work while saving money to write full-time. After several years writing radio and television scripts, she was approached by the Halifax Canadian Broadcasting Corporation in August 1960 to create a pilot for a television series on Mi'kmaq legends. With the success of the pilot, she subsequently wrote the scripts for a 13-part series. The legends detailed in the series established the basis for her first book, Glooscap and his Magic, published in 1963.
Hill was the author of over one hundred stage plays and radio dramas. One of her most popular comedies was Cobbler, Stick to Thy Last, set in 1780s Cumberland County. Her three-part play Three to Get Married was broadcast on CBC Television in 1958.
In 1969, Hill was awarded the Book of the Year award by the Canadian Library Association for her children's book And Tomorrow The Stars. She received the Vicky Metcalf Award in 1971 from the Canadian Authors Association, and in 1981 her book Joe Howe: The Man who was Nova Scotia received the Evelyn Richardson Award at the Atlantic Book Awards.
Hill lived in the historic Mackie House in Ketch Harbour. She made oil paintings in her spare time. She died in Halifax on 14 March 2011, at the age of 93.

Publications

Books

  • Plays

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