Kayt Burgess is a Canadian writer, who won the Three-Day Novel Contest in 2011 for her debut novel Heidegger Stairwell.
[1] Published by Arsenal Pulp Press in 2012, the novel was subsequently a shortlisted nominee for the 2013 ReLit Award in the fiction category.
Heidegger Stairwell, about a successful Canadian indie rock band on the verge of collapse due to internal tensions, is narrated by a former girlfriend of the band's lead guitarist who has recently come out as a trans man,[2] and was noted for its unconventional narrative technique, including "editorial notes" from various characters disputing and contradicting the version of the story presented by the narrator.
[2] The novel was subsequently adapted by music journalist Chandler Levack for the short film We Forgot to Break Up in 2017;[3] and by Karen Knox as the 2024 feature film We Forgot to Break Up.
Born in Manitouwadge, Ontario and raised in Elliot Lake,[1] Burgess was educated at Humber College, the University of Western Ontario and Bath Spa University.