This week’s blog features online events, workshops and a call for submissions open to members across the province and beyond, and in person events in Summerland, Greater Vancouver, Campbell River, Fanny Bay, Sooke and Victoria, as well as a call for applications for the Writer-in-Residence program at Haig-Brown House.
Are you hosting a book launch or an open mic? Are you a member of an in-person writing group looking for new participants, or a writer looking for a local writing group? Let us know what’s happening in your community!
Submit your blog post here, or contact Rachel at rachel@bcwriters.ca.
Note: While we believe that the listings in this blog may be of interest to FBCW members and the general writing community, the Federation of BC Writers is not directly affiliated with any of the following organisations or groups.
OPEN TO ALL

FREE Online Workshop: Marketing your Novel with Book Brush
Presented by Sisters in Crime – Canada West
Saturday, March 25, 2023, 10 AM on Zoom
Create eye-catching graphics and professional-looking ads that will take your social media presence, book covers, and more to a whole new level. Join Kathleen Sweeney as she shares some of our favourite Book Brush tips and tricks for making your marketing efforts fun and easy. Discover how to transform simple images into stunning, attention-grabbing graphics that will help you stand out from the competition. Register for free: https://sinc-cw.ca/upcoming-

Can-Lit Challenge
Virtual Author Q&A with YOUR Book Club
March 1 – June 30, 2023
Email info@tidewaterpress.ca
Support Canadian authors and meet one virtually! Select a Tidewater Press title for your book club, order copies from your independent bookstore or Black Bond Books between March 1 and June 30, 2023, and request a virtual Q&A with the author.

Call for Applicants:
Writer in Residence Haig-Brown House
Deadline for Applications: March 31, 2023
Haig-Brown House, Campbell River, BC
https://www.haig-brown.bc.ca/writer-residence/
Published authors are invited to apply for the 2023-2024 Haig-Brown House Writer in Residence position. The residency entails spending the winter months (or a portion thereof) living in the Haig-Brown Heritage House. The writer’s time will be divided between pursuing personal writing projects and providing literary advice and support to the local community. The writer would also participate in the Museum at Campbell River’s winter programming.
Email public.programs@crmuseum.ca
Call for Submissions: Winter Happiness Anthology
Deadline: March 31, 2023
Lilac Arch Press
Aylesbury, Saskatchewan
https://lilacarchpress.com/submission-guidelines/
Lilac Arch Press is looking for your essays, short stories, poems, photographs or original artwork for a book celebrating and promoting contentment, coziness and the beauty you find in winter. Submissions or questions can be sent to submissionslilacarchpress@gmail.com. Note that there is typically a 3-6 month wait time for a response in all categories.
Okanagan
Summerland
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Double Book Launch: Ecology + Bicycle Travel!
Tuesday, March 14, 2023, 7:00 PM
George Ryga Arts and Cultural Centre, 9525 Wharton St, Summerland, BC
FREE
Join renowned ecologist and nature writer Don Gayton and adventure cyclist Meaghan Hackinen for a doubleheader book launch. Don will read from his new release, The Sky and the Patio (New Star Books), a collection of essays that fuses ecology and deeply personal insights about Don’s Okanagan Valley homeland–and beyond. Meaghan will read from her travel memoir South Away: The Pacific Coast on Two Wheels (NeWest Press), a rollicking Tolkien-inspired journey down the coast from Northern BC to (almost) the tip of the Baja Peninsula. Presented in partnership with the Ryga Arts Festival. Q & A to follow; refreshments available; signed books available for purchase.
https://www.summerlandreview.com/community/summerland-authors-to-launch-new-books/
Greater Vancouver

Poetry Reading, Live and On Zoom
Wednesday, March 15, 2023, 7:30 PM
Fairleigh Dickinson University Auditorium, 842 Cambie St, Yaletown, BC
FREE
Join us for a reading featuring poets Kim Trainor and Dominque Bernier-Cormier, plus an OPEN MIC, both for those joining in person and via Zoom. Free to attend. Hosted by Poets Corner Reading Series, https://poetscorner.ca/
To register, go to https://tinyurl.com/2hjazhze. Email PoetsCornerReadingSeries@gmail.com

Workshop: Writing Your First Children’s Book, with Alicia Peters
Wednesday, March 29, 7:00 – 8:30 PM
North Vancouver City Library
120 14th Street West, North Vancouver
In this 1.5 hour interactive workshop, we’ll dive into the basics of getting your first children’s book onto the shelf. From conquering writer’s block, to self-publishing, to marketing your work and beyond, we will touch on the key steps to publishing your first book. Come prepared to engage in thoughtful exercises! You’ll go away with ideas, resources, and suggestions for taking your book journey to the next level.
This workshop is tailored to beginners and those looking for guides, tips, and tricks.
For more information, visit https://www.nvcl.ca/events/writing-your-first-childrens-book

City of Vancouver Book Award
Deadline for Applications: April 14, 2023 at 4 PM
Submissions are now being accepted for the 2023 Vancouver Book Award. The award recognizes books that deepen our understanding of Vancouver, including its place on the traditional territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and səl̓ilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) peoples, and their rich cultures and oral traditions. The book must have been published in 2022, and may have been written and/or published anywhere in the world. For more information, visit: https://vancouver.ca/people-programs/submit-a-book.aspx

Poetry: Phyllis Webb Memorial Reading






