For more information,
contact the QWF office:

1200 Atwater, Suite 3
Montréal, QC
H3Z 1X4
Téléphone: (514) 933-0878

info@qwf.org

Writers' Programs

Writers in Schools

The Culture in the Schools program gives students and teachers the opportunity to meet a professional writer in the classroom to exchange ideas about writing, language and literature, or various aspects of the writing profession. They may also participate in writing workshops.

The program is intended for students of Quebec public and private educational institutions in the French-language and English-language sectors, at the pre-school, primary and secondary levels. For a complete repertoire of writers eligible to participate in the program, see the program web site.

Writers are selected for the repertoire on the basis of proposals submitted during an open call for applications which is usually held every two years. The next call for applications for the Writers in Schools program is scheduled for 2010. For more information, contact the QWF office.

Union des écrivaines et écrivains québécois Ministère de la Culture et des Communications
Writers in CEGEPs

The Quebec Writers' Federation is responsible for revising the list of writers eligible to participate in the Quebec Writers-in-Cegeps program. Modeled after the successful Writers-in-Schools program and financed by the Quebec Ministry of Culture and Communications, this program sends writers on day-long visits to Cegeps throughout the province. English-language Cegeps are the primary audience, but French-language Cegeps are also encouraged to invite English-language writers. (Each Cegep can invite two writers per school year.)

Writers receive an honorarium of $500 per day for a day of readings and lectures, or a day of writing workshops, and $400 per day for a day of meetings and discussions. Of this, the Cegep pays $100, while the rest comes from the Ministry of Culture and Communications.

For more information, please click on the appropriate link below:

Union des écrivaines et écrivains québécois Ministère de la Culture et des Communications
Writers in the Community

Writers in the Community is a new program that the QWF has undertaken in partnership with a number of community groups to bring the literary arts to those who are left out of the artistic mainstream. Recent QWF partners have included The Centre for Literacy, Leave Out ViolencE, Tyndale St-Georges Community Centre, the Jewish General Hospital, VOYCE (Voices Of Youth in Care) and Batshaw Youth and Family Services.

Street Story

Writers in the Community video! Click on the image above to see the new Writers in the Community web page, where you'll find a music video and several poems created by participants in the Writers in the Community Program.

Mentorship Program

For the seventh year in a row, the Quebec Writers' Federation is proud to offer the only English-language writing mentorship program in the province of Quebec. This four-month program pairs experienced, professional writers with emerging writers who are deemed ready by an independent jury to benefit concretely from one-on-one, intensive mentoring.

The QWF Mentorship program is designed to help promising emerging writers make the transition to the next stage of their careers. Over a period of approximately four months, mentors are expected to devote 35 to 40 hours to reading and responding to their mentee’s work and giving guidance towards the goal of publication or production. Mentees are expected to commit a minimum of 15 to 20 hours per month to the program. Remuneration for mentors is $1200. There is no fee for the mentees. This program is made possible by a grant from the Canada Council for the Arts.

To Apply for a Mentor

Emerging writers of fiction, non-fiction, poetry, plays and screenplays are invited to apply to be mentored by an established author over a period of four months (February 1st 2009 to May 31st 2009). To apply, please submit FOUR copies of the following:

  • A one-page cover letter with a brief bio of yourself as a writer and a description of how your writing will benefit from a mentor’s guidance;
  • An eight- to ten-page sample, double-spaced, from the project you wish to work on. No more than ten pages will be forwarded to the jury.

    • To Apply to be a Mentor

    Published writers of fiction, non-fiction, poetry, plays and screenplays and young adult fiction or non-fiction with teaching or mentoring experience who would like to be considered for a mentorship position should submit FOUR copies of the following:

  • A one-page bio listing your publications/productions, outlining your teaching experience; and listing the genres/disciplines on which you are qualified to advise;
  • a short description of your approach to mentoring;
  • a declaration of your availability during the period December 15 2008 to May 31 2009. (If selected for the program, you will receive applications from the shortlisted mentees in your genre in late December, and be asked to rank your choices. The actual mentoring would take place from February 1 to May 31, 2009.)

    • Both mentors and mentees will be selected by an independent jury. There is no guarantee that all genres are included in the final pairings. Depending on geographical location, some mentorships may be conducted primarily by email or telephone.

    Mail FOUR copies of your materials to:

    • Mentorship Program
    • Quebec Writers' Federation
    • 1200 Atwater Ave., suite 3
    • Montreal QC, H3Z 1X4

    All submissions MUST BE IN THE QWF OFFICE by 5:00 pm on December 5th, 2008.

    All applicants will be notified of the jury's decision in January 2008.

    Canada Council for the Arts / Conseil des Arts du Canada