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Access to the 2021 Whistler Writers Festival video recordings of readings and workshops
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All times noted in the schedule are PDT – Pacific Daylight Time, or UTC – 7 (Coordinated Universal Time).
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The festival reading pass is back! Treat yourself to a literary cornucopia of 20 festival reading events, in-person and/or online. There is a limited quantity of this incredible pass offer.
The festival workshop pass returns! Elevate your writing practice by attending up to 8 festival workshop events, in-person and/or online, all for one pass price. There is a limited quantity of this incredible pass offer. Note: The pass does not include W2: Pitch Your Heart Out! One-on-One Time with a Trade Publishing Pro, which must be purchased separately.
Paula Ayer (Greystone Books), Cody Caetano (Cooke McDermid), Catharine Chen (Arsenal Pulp Press), Don Gorman (Rocky Mountain Books), Vici Johnstone (Caitlin Press), Stephanie Sinclair (Penguin Random House), Jen Sookfong Lee (ECW Press)
Sponsored by: SFU Continuing Studies – Creative Writing
New to the publishing game, or in need of some sage advice to reset your course through Canada’s traditional publishing landscape? Join industry experts—publishers, editors, and agents, who can hint at what they’re looking for in a manuscript, how to best position your book for a successful acquisition, and how to make the most of your industry and writer networks. One of our most popular sessions!
Moderator: Katherine Fawcett
Cody Caetano (Cooke McDermid), Catharine Chen & Jesmine Cham (Arsenal Pulp Press), Don Gorman (Rocky Mountain Books), Vici Johnstone (Caitlin Press), James Penco (Greystone Books), Stephanie Sinclair (Penguin Random House), Jen Sookfong Lee (ECW Press)
Book a fifteen-minute spot to pitch your work to an industry insider and bet on your literary dreams! Use this precious one-on-one time with some of Canada’s most respected publishing decision-makers to pitch your book, story idea, or poetry collection. Come prepared with a five-minute pitch and/or questions for these publishers, editors, and agents.
This session fee includes one 15-minute pitch on a first-come, first-choice basis. Choose up to four pitches total. Pro tip: Research these publishers before booking to ensure a good fit for your work (read the bios and Google the kinds of books they publish).
Important to know: You can choose the individual publisher/agent and 15 minute time slot at check-out.
Pitch Your Heart Out! tickets are sold separately from festival tickets. Use the button below.
Whistler Public Library
Join poet and author Mary MacDonald in conversation with Robert Bringhurst, one of Canada’s most respected poets, typographers, linguists, and probing cultural historians. Bringhurst is well known for his award-winning translations of Haida storytellers. In The Ridge, he offers a work of nonfiction in poetic form, intensely focused on the ecological past, present and future of the West Coast of Canada. A work of discipline and passion composed of language, The Ridge explores how the land and people are fundamentally linked. Bringhurst is a lyrical poet with the curiosity of a scientist, and the winner of the Lieutenant Governor’s Award for Literary Excellence, former Guggenheim Fellow in poetry, and officer of the Order of Canada.
Moderator: Mary MacDonald
Canada’s Best Independent Authors of 2023
Squamish Lil’wat Cultural Centre
Accomplished writers are increasingly turning to independent publishing as a financially and creatively satisfying alternative to the traditional model. Meet some of the best independent authors in the country as finalists for the Whistler Independent Book Awards (WIBA) read from books nominated in children’s literature, fiction, and non-fiction categories. Winners will be announced at Friday night’s Literary Cabaret.
Moderator: Lynn Duncan
With Tsawaysia Spukwus and Yvonne Wallace
Squamish Lil’wat Cultural Centre
Sponsored by: Nesters Market
Back by popular demand, a celebration of the art and tradition of oral storytelling features Yvonne Wallace (Lil’wat Nation) and Tsawaysia Spukwus (Squamish Nation), keepers of stories and songs indigenous to the shared Lil’wat and Squamish territory. To prepare local emerging storytellers, this year the festival hosted oral storytelling workshops to sleuth out Sea to Sky’s emerging storytelling talent. Local storytellers were mentored and chosen to share the stage with Yvonne and Tsawaysia. We are so excited to bring the entertaining, personal, and culturally diverse tradition of oral storytelling back to the festival again this year.
Moderator: Rebecca Wood Barrett
With Kilmeny Denny & Lynn Duncan
Fairmont Chateau Whistler & Online
Today’s authors have multiple options when it comes to publishing. How do you find a publisher? Should you consider self-publishing? What is hybrid publishing? What about e-books and audiobooks? This session provides information that will help authors make the choice that best suits their needs.
PUBLISH LIKE A PRO: WORKSHOP SERIES
Presented by: Vivalogue Publishing
With Kilmeny Denny & Lynn Duncan
Fairmont Chateau Whistler & Online
This session provides practical advice on turning your manuscript into a polished book on a budget while avoiding rookie mistakes. Do you need an editor? If so, how do you find one and what does it cost? What about proofreading? What are the trends in cover design? What are the best printing options for you and your book? Where and how can you sell and promote your book? Includes a resource list of do-it-yourself options.
PUBLISH LIKE A PRO: WORKSHOP SERIES
Presented by: Vivalogue Publishing
With Kilmeny Denny & Lynn Duncan
Fairmont Chateau Whistler & Online
Looking for impartial feedback from your peers and industry experts? Whether you are trying to refine your concept, decide on a title or polish a sales pitch, this session is an opportunity to hear the opinions of the facilitators and other authors. This is an interactive workshop, and participants will be encouraged to complete a worksheet prior to the session.
PUBLISH LIKE A PRO: WORKSHOP SERIES
Presented by: Vivalogue Publishing
Fairmont Chateau Whistler
Sponsored by: Penguin Random House
Celebrated Vancouver-based author John Vaillant is a master of literary non-fiction whose previous titles in the genre, The Golden Spruce and The Tiger, are award-winning international bestsellers. In this much-anticipated event, local science/environment writer and author Leslie Anthony leads a conversation with John about his latest book, Fire Weather: The Making of a Beast, which tells the story of the 2016 Fort McMurray fire in peerless detail. By also exploring the interconnected histories of humankind’s relationship to fire, the oil industry, the automobile, and climate science, Vaillant has crafted not only another brilliant read, but a message that couldn’t be more timely, as Canada experiences its worst fire season on record.
Participants and book clubs are encouraged to read Fire Weather to fully engage in the discussion. Visit your local library, bookseller, or the fine folks at Armchair Books in Whistler to get your copy.
Moderator: Leslie Anthony
Maury Young Arts Centre
Join us in celebrating the launch of Whistler’s first literary journal, The Lupine Review. The inaugural edition, both in print and online, was inspired by a desire to showcase the region’s developing talents. Welcome these budding writers and artists to the festival, explore their works, and help develop and sustain The Lupine Review — an exciting collaborative volunteer initiative. Cake will be served, and a toast will be raised!
Maury Young Arts Centre
Sponsored by: Canadian Authors Association
Sashay your way to the Literary Cabaret and enjoy a night of literary musings and live music. The West Coast Front band will jam alongside guest authors Cody Caetano (Half Bads in White Regalia), Patrick deWitt (The Librarianist), Justene Dion-Glowa (Trailer Park Shakes), Michael Janyk (Go to the Start), Jen Sookfong Lee (Superfan), Jennifer Manuel (The Morning Bell Brings the Broken Hearted), Nick Marino (East Side Story: Growing up at the PNE), Rabbi Paul Plotkin (Wisdom Grows in My Garden), and Bronwyn Preece (knee deep in high water : riding the Muskwa-Kechika) as they read from their newest books.
The West Coast Front features music director Geeta Das (trumpet, saxophone, and percussion), Rajan Das (upright bass), Jason Overy (percussion), and Rosalind Steel (piano and electric keys). During the evening, the winners of the Whistler Independent Book Awards will be announced for the Fiction, Non-fiction, and Children’s categories. Be sure to get your tickets now before this popular event sells out!
MC: Stephen Vogler
The Federation of BC Writers welcomes festival presenters and workshop participants to stop by for a chat about all things writing! We hope you’ll feel inspired by the festival and take advantage of this quiet space to write, meet fellow writers, and connect with our team. Coffee, tea, and treats are on hand to fuel your writing.
9 – 10 a.m. Writers Talking: Bryan Mortensen, Executive Director of the Federation of BC Writers, welcomes all writers to join him in conversations about writing, publishing, and to connect with other writers
10 – 11 a.m. Writing Sprint: join other writers for a writing sprint, accompanied by pianist Andrew Sims
1 – 3 p.m. Micro Writing Retreat: join other writers for quiet, focused writing time
With Emily Pohl-Weary
Fairmont Chateau Whistler
Do you have a story or anecdote about yourself that you’ve told millions of times to entertain people? A great way to get inspired is to sift through your own memories and experiences. Starting with reality and stretching the facts until they’re no longer recognizable (and, hopefully, even more entertaining) is the perfect starting place for a story that only you can tell!
Fairmont Chateau Whistler
Join Michael J. Hathaway, author of What a Mushroom Lives For: Matsutake and the Worlds They Make, for a fascinating talk to discover how the prized matsutake mushroom is silently yet powerfully shaping worlds, from the Tibetan plateau to the mushrooms’ final destination in Japan. A BC and Yukon Book Prize finalist, What a Mushroom Lives For offers a surprise-filled journey into science and human culture, and shows how fungi shape our planet and our lives in strange, diverse, and often unimaginable ways.
With Todd Lawson, Paige Maylott, Tara Sidhoo Fraser, WIBA Winner
Fairmont Chateau Whistler
Sponsored by: Rocky Mountain Books
Our guest authors’ newest works are sure to spawn interesting discussions on the theme of ‘bodies’; how they can betray us, how reckoning with gender identity can heal us, and how our souls and psyches inhabit these corporeal shells we live in. This year’s non-fiction writers panel welcomes Todd Lawson (Inside the Belly of an Elephant: A Motorcycle Journey of Loss, Legacy and Ultimate Freedom), Paige Maylott (My Body is Distant), and Tara Sidhoo Fraser (When My Ghost Sings). The event will also include the winner of the Whistler Independent Book Award for non-fiction.
Moderator: Leslie Anthony
With Iona Whishaw
Fairmont Chateau Whistler
This workshop will outline how Iona Whishaw writes, and what she refers to as “Pantsers vs. Plotters.” Iona is a Pantser, therefore the workshop will reflect this—what is the difference between the two? Which authors are plotters, and which are pantsers? How is her writing practice influenced by ‘Pantsing’ and how does this help in her creative process? Iona is the author of ten books (eleven in 2024!) of the popular Lane Winslow mystery series.
With Esi Edugyan and Peggy Janicki
Whistler Public Library
Calling kids of all ages! Cozy up and join authors Esi Edugyan (Garden of Lost Socks) and Peggy Janicki (The Secret Pocket) as they read from their new picture books. Garden of Lost Socks, illustrated by Amélie Dubois, takes readers on a whimsical journey of friendship, curiosity, and discovery of the magic of a vibrant community. The Secret Pocket is based on the author’s own mother’s experience at residential school. It chronicles survival and resilience in the face of genocide and cruelty and is a celebration of quiet resistance to injustice. Sewing skills passed down through generations of Indigenous women gave children a future, stitch by stitch.
With Yvonne Blomer, Anita Lahey, Jane Munro
Fairmont Chateau Whistler
11:30 – 12:45 p.m. PDT | In-person $27
Sponsored by: BDO
“I’m not writing about nature. I’m writing about humanity.” – Barry Lopez
In an essay writer Barry Lopez wrote for Orion Magazine, he asked the question if it is “still possible to face the gathering darkness and say to the physical Earth, and to all its creatures,
including ourselves, fiercely and without embarrassment, ‘I love you,’ and to embrace fearlessly the burning world?”
Ecopoetry is poetry that imagines changing the way we think and feel about living in the world. It takes a critical lens towards our relationship with the planet. These poets are writing in times of dire need, and yet, with the power of hope. Ecopoetry is the art of wrestling with and showing the reader the work can be done.
Moderator: Mary MacDonald
With Shari Lapena, Eve Lazarus, Emelia Symington-Fedy, Iona Whishaw
Fairmont Chateau Whistler
Sponsored by: The Whistler Grocery Store
Amber Cowie investigates four new thrillers by award-winning authors; Shari Lapena (Everyone Here is Lying), Eve Lazarus (Cold Case BC: The Stories Behind the Province’s Most Sensational Missing and Murdered Persons Cases), Emelia Symington-Fedy (Skid Dogs) and Iona Whishaw (To Track A Traitor) to uncover the secrets behind their seductive suspense and true crime tales. Both structure and storytelling will be explored with short readings and in-depth discussion. Every audience member will be invited to solve the mystery in a fan fiction crime story based on one of the authors’ characters and the lucky winner will take on all four books! This event is presented in collaboration with BC and Yukon Book Prizes.
Moderator: Amber Cowie
With Todd Lawson
Fairmont Chateau Whistler
Local author Todd Lawson (Inside the Belly of an Elephant: A Motorcycle Journey of Loss, Legacy and Ultimate Freedom) and publisher of Mountain Life Media, uses his ‘go for it, and get out of your own way’ attitude in writing and in life, as he pursues his passions for all things outdoor adventure, sport, photography, and education. His workshop will cover aspects of eliminating passive voice, using dialogue to make your stories more engaging, and enhancing stories with your own unique descriptors that will make any piece ‘pop.’ Come ready to write!
With Jennilee Austria-Bonifacio, Erum Shazia Hasan, William Ping, WIBA Winner
Fairmont Chateau Whistler
Sponsored by: Pasta Lupino
Moderator and author Kevin Chong leads a conversation with four authors of fiction about the topics and passions that drive their work: the isolation and loneliness of the immigrant experience; the dangers of assumptions; the complicated search for meaning and connection in human rights work; and persecution of race and faith. Featuring Jennilee Austria-Bonifacio (Reuniting with Strangers: A Novel in Stories), Erum Shazia Hasan (We Meant Well), William Ping (Hollow Bamboo), and the 2023 Whistler Independent Book Awards winner for fiction.
Moderator: Kevin Chong
Fairmont Chateau Whistler
Join Jasmine Sealy in a captivating conversation with multi-award winning, Canadian literary phenom Esi Edugyan, author of Washington Black, Out of the Sun: Art, Race and the Future, We Are Bone and Earth, Dreaming of Elsewhere, and Half-Blood Blues, which won the Scotiabank Giller Prize and was a finalist for the Man Booker Prize, the Governor General’s Literary Award, the Rogers Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize and the Orange Prize. They will traverse a wide-ranging conversation about Edugyan’s body of work, exploring ideas of racial and cultural identity, the institution of slavery, the language of music, and her latest role as the Booker Prize chair of judges.
Moderator: Jasmine Sealy
Featuring Brent Butt
Fairmont Chateau Whistler
Sponsored by: RGF – Integrated Wealth Management
In comedy, killing is a good thing. From the popular entertainer Brent Butt, comes an unexpectedly dark and twisted thriller, Huge. An award-winning screenwriter and International Emmy nominee, Butt delivers a debut novel that tells the tale of a trio’s standup comedy tour turned terrifying. Join us for a murderously wicked Saturday night of standup comedy, a Huge reading performance, and thriller-themed improv from Whistler’s own Laugh Out LIVE! comedy troupe. Tickets for our Saturday Night Special include your very own copy of Huge, killer appetizers, and a criminally delicious liquid libation.
The Federation of BC Writers welcomes festival presenters and workshop participants to stop by for a chat about all things writing! We hope you’ll feel inspired by the festival and take advantage of this quiet space to write, meet fellow writers, and connect with our team. Coffee, tea, and treats are on hand to fuel your writing.
9 – 10 a.m. Writers Talking: Bryan Mortensen, Executive Director of the Federation of BC Writers, welcomes all writers to join him in conversations about writing, publishing, and to connect with other writers
10 – 11 a.m. Writing Sprint: join other writers for a writing sprint, accompanied by pianist Andrew Sims
11am – 1p.m. Micro Writing Retreat: join other writers for quiet, focused writing time
With Yvonne Blomer, Justene Dion-Glowa, Rabbi Paul Plotkin
Fairmont Chateau Whistler
Take in the fresh mountain air and enjoy exciting readings and lively literary conversation with awarding-winning authors, Yvonne Blomer (The Last Show on Earth), Justene Dion-Glowa (Trailer Park Shakes) and Rabbi Paul Plotkin (Wisdom Grows in My Garden). Starting from the Fairmont Chateau Whistler, you will meander through the forests of Lost Lake Park to the lakeside and back. The flat gravel trail is a 3.2 km round trip. This session will go ahead rain or shine, so please bring appropriate outdoor wear.
Moderator: Grant Lawrence
With Emelia Symington-Fedy
Fairmont Chateau Whistler
When it comes down to it, the question we have to answer when writing about others is — can I look this person in the eye? Whether they’re an abuser, family member, or part of your community, it might not matter as much what they’ve done, as how it will affect you going public. Do you have the strength or interest to engage with public opinion? This is the first question of many that Emelia will offer in this one-hour class — to help prepare you for the consequences of honesty in memoir. Emelia will share personal writing examples from her book, Skid Dogs, to illustrate that sometimes there is more empowerment in omission. By the end of the session, you’ll feel more confident in what “truths” you want to tell, why you want to tell them, and how to stand behind yourself.
With Mona Awad, Kevin Chong, Alicia Elliott, Rowan Jetté Knox
Fairmont Chateau Whistler
Sponsored by: Sea to Sky Welding and Fabrication
Enjoy the Fairmont’s delicious Whiskey Jack Continental buffet breakfast in the good company of other booklovers before the enthralling BookTalk begins. Moderator and author William Ping will engage four award-winning authors — Mona Awad (Rouge), Kevin Chong (The Double Life of Benson Yu), Alicia Elliott (And Then She Fell), and Rowan Jetté Knox (One Sunny Afternoon) — in conversation about their new releases. Their books offer startling and insightful views of: the obsession with beauty and the complicated relationships between mothers and daughters; a graphic novelist who loses control of his own story when his fraught upbringing in 1980s Chinatown resurfaces; a mind-bending look at motherhood and mental health of a young Indigenous woman whose picture perfect life may have horrifying consequences; and a profoundly moving memoir of how recovery from trauma, triggered by online abuse, can lead to newfound strength, resilience and confidence.
Moderator: William Ping
With Leslie Gentile, Emily Pohl-Weary, Andrea Warner, WIBA Winner
Whistler Public Library
Sponsored by: Marquis Book Printing
The unknown can be a scary place, especially for youth. Moderator Sara Leach explores books with characters, both real and imagined, who boldly and bravely seek to find the truth, even when they don’t know what lies ahead. Join us for an in-depth conversation with acclaimed children’s and YA authors, Leslie Gentile (Shamus the Urban Rez Dog), Emily Pohl-Weary (How to Be Found), Andrea Warner (Rise Up and Sing!: Power, Protest and Activism in Music) and the 2023 Whistler Independent Book Awards winner for children’s fiction. These authors don’t shy away from tackling big, challenging mysteries and injustices in a way that all ages can absorb and understand.
Moderator: Sara Leach
Fairmont Chateau Whistler
Join Katherine Fawcett (Swan Suit, Little Washer of Sorrows) and Mona Awad (Bunny, All’s Well, Rouge, 13 Ways of Looking at a Fat Girl) as they discuss the astonishing and circular influences of film and TV, books, social media, and now, Artificial Intelligence on the creative and business process. Awad’s award-winning book Bunny, a mix of fairytale, horror, and satire, has been influenced by certain mean-girl characters spawned on film and TV. After the book was released, a BookTok fan-casting hashtag gained a viral 4.1 billion views. Hollywood came knocking, and the book is being adapted for the screen and a loyal fan base. As digital permeates and gives, so does it take, and Awad is one of the first authors to bring a copyright lawsuit against the makers of ChatGPT for using her books to train the AI chatbot without consent, credit, or compensation.
Moderator: Katherine Fawcett
With Laugh Out LIVE!
Fairmont Chateau Whistler
8:00 – 10:00 p.m. PDT | In-person $35
They say comedy is tragedy plus timing. And there’s nothing more tragic for creatives than a mental logjam. Help us smash the barriers at the Writer’s Block Party, with the hilarious improv troupe Laugh Out LIVE! featuring Dave Francis, Rebecca Mason, and Ira Pettle.
A not-to-be-missed Whistler experience, this smorgasbord of high energy improv, edgy stand-up, and all-original sketch comedy takes a humorous shot at literary clichés, obsessive writers, and fanatical booklovers. Whether you’re a writer or reader, liven up your Sunday night with a gut-busting giggle!
With Laugh Out LIVE!
Fairmont Chateau Whistler
They say comedy is tragedy plus timing. And there’s nothing more tragic for creatives than a mental logjam. Help us smash the barriers at the Writer’s Block Party, with the hilarious improv troupe Laugh Out LIVE! featuring Dave Francis, Rebecca Mason, and Ira Pettle.
A not-to-be-missed Whistler experience, this smorgasbord of high energy improv, edgy stand-up, and all-original sketch comedy takes a humorous shot at literary clichés, obsessive writers and fanatical booklovers. Whether you’re a writer or reader, come close out the 2023 festival with a belly-laugh!