Over 50 acclaimed writers attending. Tickets go on sale August 10.

The Whistler Writers Festival is proud to announce that one of the most recognizable names in Canadian literature Lawrence Hill will be headlining this year’s festival, alongside acclaimed writers Grant Lawrence, Nino Ricci, Eleanor Wachtel, Eric Walters and more.

Hill is the award-winning and internationally bestselling author of The Book of Negroes, which won a multitude of awards including the Rogers Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize, the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize and CBC Radio’s Canada Reads. His new novel The Illegal will be released in September and tells the story of a young marathon runner who flees from a repressive government and is forced into hiding.

Hill will join CBC radio personality and author Grant Lawrence on stage at the Fairmont Chateau Whistler on Saturday, October 17 for an intimate conversation about his new novel The Illegal and the craft of writing.

“We are thrilled about the caliber of authors attending this year, including Lawrence Hill who is such a well-known literary talent in Canada and will be an incredible draw for readers and writers alike,” said Stella Harvey, Director of the Whistler Readers and Writers Festival. “Our mix of authors comprises award-winning fiction and non-fiction writers, CBC radio hosts, journalists, short story writers, children and young adult writers, cookbook writers, crime writers, poets and more.”

The 50 acclaimed writers featured at this year’s festival include:

• Novelist Nino Ricci whose book Lives of the Saints spent 75 weeks on the Globe and Mail’s bestseller list and who has received multiple awards (including two Governor General’s Awards) for his eight novels.
• Children and young adult writer Eric Walters who has published over 90 novels and picture books, all of which have become bestsellers.
• CBC radio host Eleanor Wachtel who co-founded and hosts the flagship literary show Writers & Company.
• Journalist Amanda Lindhout whose memoir A House in the Sky recounts her experience of being kidnapped by Islamist insurgents in southern Somalia.
• Crime writer William Deverell who won the Dashiell Hammett Prize for literary excellence in North American crime writing for his novel Trail of Passion.
• CBC broadcaster and author Linden MacIntyre who won the Scotiabank Giller Prize for his novel The Bishop’s Man.
• Fiction writer Camilla Gibb who has authored five internationally acclaimed novels, including The Beauty of Humanity Movement.
• Australian novelist Steve Toltz whose comic novel A Fraction of the Whole was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize.
• Acclaimed novelist and short story writer Marina Endicott whose novel Good to a Fault was shortlisted for the Scotiabank Giller Prize.

The festival will also once again host on evening with cookbook authors, with this year’s chefs being Emily Wight (Well Fed, Flat Broke), Susan Musgrave (A Taste of Haida Gwaii) and to add a twist to the event, the festival has added wine author James Nevison (Had a Glass).

“We’ve specially designed the festival to appeal to writers as well as readers and book clubs,” said Harvey. “We will have our usual sell-out workshops on the craft of writing, as well as new sessions like creating open conversations about books and the lives of writers especially geared to readers and book club members. We will also have a session for writers to pitch their book ideas directly to publishers, agents and editors.”

The full program for the Whistler Writers Festival will be released on August 10. Tickets go on sale the same day.