We’ve listed many of the following events in previous blogs, but in case you missed them, here they are again – plus a few new events and opportunities. Scroll down to read all the details.
Note: the Federation of BC Writers is not directly affiliated with the following organizations or groups.
Submit your event or announcement to our next blog post here, or contact Rachel at rachel@bcwriters.ca.
The Writer’s Studio Reading Series
Monday, November 27
Container Brewing Ltd., 1216 Franklin Street Vancouver, BC
FREE
The SFU Writer’s Studio Reading Series is back! Join us for an action-packed evening of readings in a variety of genres by members of the Writer’s Studio community.
Readers TBA. Hosted by James Duncan and Maggie Derrick.
The series continues the third Monday of every month. Learn more about The Writer’s Studio.
https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/the-writers-studio-reading-series-nov-27-tickets-740405220947
Storied: Writing and Illustrating Comics with Michele Assarasakorn and Nathan Fairbairn
Wednesday, November 29th, 7:00 – 8:00 pm
ONLINE
Free event; registration required
A BC and Yukon Book Prizes event, Michele Assarasakorn and Nathan Fairbairn will be offering mini-lectures on writing and illustrating comics and graphic novels. Michele and Nathan’s book PAWS: Mindy Makes Some Space was a finalist for the 2023 Christie Harris Illustrated Children’s Literature Prize.
Find out more and register at https://bcyukonbookprizes.com/event/storied-writing-and-illustrating-comics-with-michele-assarasakorn-and-nathan-fairbairn/
Meet & Greet: King’s MFA
Creative Nonfiction: Wednesday, November 29, 4:00 pm Pacific Standard Time
Fiction: Thursday, November 30, 4:00 pm Pacific Standard Time Online
Online via Zoom
Find out more about the University of King’s College MFA in Creative Nonfiction or Fiction at one of these one-hour, online Meet & Greet sessions. Get your questions answered, hear from faculty, mentors, students and alumni about the program, and get details on how to apply.
To learn more or to register for these or other Meet & Greet sessions, visit https://ukings.ca/future-students/mfa-meet-and-greets/
Sidney Literary Festival Presents: An Evening with John Vaillant
Friday, December 1, 7:00 PM (Doors open at 6:30 PM)
Shoal Centre, 10030 Resthaven Drive, Sidney, BC
Tickets $15.00 at Tanner Books (cash only) or from Eventbrite
John Vaillant will join us to read from and discuss his latest book, Fire Weather: The Making of a Beast, his account of the colossal wildfire in Fort McMurray and the rapidly changing relationship between fire and humankind. All proceeds will support the 2025 Sidney Literary Festival.
For more information, visit http://www.sidneyliteraryfestival.ca/december-1-2023/
Book Launch: Better Next Year: An Anthology of Christmas Epiphanies
Friday, December 1st from 6:00- 8:00 PM
Caffe Fantastico Roastery, 965 Kings Rd. Victoria, BC
Free
Please join Munro’s Books in launching Better Next Year: An Anthology of Christmas Epiphanies.
Hosted by J. J. Lee, with readings from Joseph Kakwinokanasum and Jordan Kawchuk. Christmas is trumpeted as a time of peace, joy, bounty and goodwill. Believers and non-believers alike covet the spirit of the holidays even when circumstances are screwed up.
Writers marginalized by personal circumstance, faith, and race share memories of surviving bleak Christmases past: holidays spent in shelters, or on the streets; families marred by alcohol and violence; personal struggles with addiction, poverty or grief; isolation and loneliness. Despite these and other obstacles, contributors strive to salvage the spirit of the season. For more info: https://munrobooks.com/events
Wild Prose Reading: Boy, Interrupted, with Jason Jobin, Katłįà, and Jason Schreurs
Sunday, December 3, 2023; Doors 6:30 pm; Open Mic 7:00 pm; Featured Readers 7:30 pm
Paul Phillips Hall, 1923 Fernwood Road, Victoria, BC
Admission: $5 or pay what you can
Free refreshments
Join Wild Prose for Boy, Interrupted, with Jason Jobin, Katłįà, and Jason Schreurs. Jason Jobin will read from his debut memoir about his struggle with cancer as a young man, The Wild Mandrake; Katłįà will read from her second novel about a young Dene man who goes hunting to find that his home has been bulldozed by the government, This House is Not a Home; and finally, Jason Schreurs will read from his debut memoir about how punk rock has helped him and many others cope with their mental health issues, Scream Therapy: A Punk Journey Through Mental Health.
For more information, visit https://www.
Please bring CASH for admission and books.
Workshop: Unlock LinkedIn for Your Freelance Business
Canadian Freelance Guild (CFG)
Wednesday, December 6, 3:00 pm Pacific Time (6:00 pm Eastern Time)
ONLINE: https://canadianfreelanceguild.wildapricot.org/event-5460343
$5.00 for CFG members; $10.00 for FBCW members (registration code required)
NOTE: REGISTRATION CLOSES AT 12 PM ET ON THE DAY OF THE EVENT
Join social media experts Mina Einifar and Vanessa Chiasson on a tour of LinkedIn, the favoured social media networking platform for many working professionals. Learn how these two digital marketers use LinkedIn to their advantage in their freelance business. They’ll show you how to follow their lead.
Pandora’s Collective Presents: A Night for Giving – A Special Chapbook Launch and Fundraiser
Tuesday, December 12th, 2023, 7:00 – 9:00 pm
Celebration Hall at Mountain View Cemetery
5445 Fraser St, Vancouver, BC
Free Registration: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/760249144657?aff=oddtdtcreator
Please join us as poets Kevin Spenst, Kurt Trzcinski, Salena Wiener and Christina Shah Rig Veda share readings from their newly released chapbooks. Vancouver Poet Laureate Fiona Tinwei Lam will open the evening off with a reading. A portion of the proceeds from book sales will go toward Pandora’s Fundraiser. Since 2006 Pandora’s Collective has run a fundraiser for the youth and their families in need from Musqueam over the holiday season.
If you cannot be at the event, please consider sending a cash donation through Pandora’s website or a gift by getting in touch with Bonnie Nish at blnish_pandoras@yahoo.ca.
Dave Williamson National Short Story Competition
Submissions open: Friday, December 1, 2023
Entry Deadline: Thursday, February 15, 2024
Fee: $20.00 per entry
The Manitoba Writers’ Guild is thrilled to announce that the Dave Williamson National Short Story Competition has returned for its second year – with cash prizes worth $2000, complimentary membership for winners, and guaranteed publication for winners and honorary mentions.
For complete guidelines visit https://mbwriters.ca/programs/short-story-competition/, or contact MWGcontesto@gmail.com (the ‘o’ in contesto is the letter ‘o’ not the number zero).
Next Generation Short Story Awards
Submission deadline: February 28, 2024
The 2024 Next Generation Short Story Awards is open to all authors, even first-time authors, in the U.S., Canada, or internationally who have an original short story (5,000 words or less) written in English that has not been previously published.
For more information, visit https://shortstoryawards.com/guidelines.php
OPEN: Pottersfield Prize for Creative Nonfiction
Submission Deadline: April 30, 2024 (early submissions encouraged)
For the seventh annual prize, Pottersfield Press is again looking for submissions from writers who can provide a manuscript of 30,000 to 150,000 words in any of the following categories: history, memoir, autobiography, biography, literary journalism, political or social commentary, travel writing or virtually any existing or new category that uses the nonfiction medium to tell a story or put forward an idea.
The First Prize winner will receive a contract for the publication of the winning book along with a $1000 advance on 10% royalty for all sales. The Second Prize winner will also see the publication of the book and a $800 advance on 10% royalties.
For submission guidelines and more information, visit https://www.pottersfieldpress.com/creative-prize-for-nonfiction
In Vino Veritas – 1-Week Creative Writing Retreats in Tuscany
Two Sessions: May 5 – 11 OR September 29 – October 5, 2024
The In Vino Veritas workshop is held at a picturesque wine estate in the Tuscan countryside near Montalcino. Work on your latest writing project, chat with fellow writers, or enjoy inspiring walks through the vineyards.
