news | Friday October 18, 2013

The Victoria Writers Festival: Woodpeckers, Writers, and Words!



The second annual Victoria Writers Festival takes place today and tomorrow at Camosun College in Victoria, British Columbia, with readings and panels in the Gibson Auditorium.

The young festival, founded by local writers Sara Cassidy, Julie Paul, and John Gould, was formed in response to the void left by the former International Literary Arts Festival. From the VWF website: We are a collective of writers who deeply miss the International Literary Arts Festival that was the highlight of spring in Victoria for many years.

The festival celebrates its second year with writing workshops led by acclaimed writers, The Carol Shields Lecture led by Jan Zwicky, anthology launches, and readings and panel discussions organized around main themes, such as family, sex, and landscape.

A schedule of events is available here.

Among many of the talented guest authors is Talon author M.A.C. Farrant. Farrant will read her dreamlike, humourous, and insightful work alongside Shaena Lambert, Anne Fleming, and others in Carousel, a reading held on Friday evening, hosted by Greater Victoria Public Library CEO Maureen Sawa.

More information, including a list of featured authors and startling videos of this year’s “symbolic bird,” is available on this poster or on the festival’s website.