BEGIN:VCALENDAR
VERSION:2.0
PRODID:-//Quebec Writers' Federation - ECPv6.15.20//NONSGML v1.0//EN
CALSCALE:GREGORIAN
METHOD:PUBLISH
X-WR-CALNAME:Quebec Writers' Federation
X-ORIGINAL-URL:https://qwf.org
X-WR-CALDESC:Events for Quebec Writers' Federation
REFRESH-INTERVAL;VALUE=DURATION:PT1H
X-Robots-Tag:noindex
X-PUBLISHED-TTL:PT1H
BEGIN:VTIMEZONE
TZID:America/New_York
BEGIN:DAYLIGHT
TZOFFSETFROM:-0500
TZOFFSETTO:-0400
TZNAME:EDT
DTSTART:20250309T070000
END:DAYLIGHT
BEGIN:STANDARD
TZOFFSETFROM:-0400
TZOFFSETTO:-0500
TZNAME:EST
DTSTART:20251102T060000
END:STANDARD
BEGIN:DAYLIGHT
TZOFFSETFROM:-0500
TZOFFSETTO:-0400
TZNAME:EDT
DTSTART:20260308T070000
END:DAYLIGHT
BEGIN:STANDARD
TZOFFSETFROM:-0400
TZOFFSETTO:-0500
TZNAME:EST
DTSTART:20261101T060000
END:STANDARD
BEGIN:DAYLIGHT
TZOFFSETFROM:-0500
TZOFFSETTO:-0400
TZNAME:EDT
DTSTART:20270314T070000
END:DAYLIGHT
BEGIN:STANDARD
TZOFFSETFROM:-0400
TZOFFSETTO:-0500
TZNAME:EST
DTSTART:20271107T060000
END:STANDARD
END:VTIMEZONE
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260416T170000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260416T190000
DTSTAMP:20260420T151844
CREATED:20260407T142706Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260407T142738Z
UID:10004906-1776358800-1776366000@qwf.org
SUMMARY:Book Launch: What We Choose to Forget by Guy Rex Rodgers
DESCRIPTION:Save the date for Guy Rex Rodger’s highly anticipated book launch. After his hugely successful feature documentary\, What We Choose to Remember\, ELAN’s founder and friend is publishing What We Choose to Forget\, a book of the stories of English-speaking Quebecois he collected on his film tour across Quebec. \nJoin us on April 16 at the beautiful Conseil des arts de Montréal Atrium for an elegant schmoozer-style Book Launch. \nRegister now.
URL:https://qwf.org/event/book-launch-what-we-choose-to-forget-by-guy-rex-rodgers/
LOCATION:Conseil des arts de Montréal Atrium\, 1210 Sherbrooke Street East\, Montréal\, QC\, H2L 1L9\, Canada
CATEGORIES:Book Launch
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://qwf.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/645150272_908192191853509_5121938476003185309_n-scaled.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260416T174500
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260416T194500
DTSTAMP:20260420T151844
CREATED:20251211T190726Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251211T190726Z
UID:10004739-1776361500-1776368700@qwf.org
SUMMARY:Creative Play for Writers (In Person)
DESCRIPTION:This workshop is designed for writers from any genre but artists from other mediums are welcome to join. \n\n\n\nYou can’t use up creativity. The more you use\, the more you have. \n\n\n\n~      Maya Angelou \n\n\n\nMany writers have other creative outlets. Maya Angelou danced. D.H. Lawrence painted. Miranda July makes films. Creativity thrives across disciplines; when writers tap into other art forms\, surprising things can happen on the page. \n\n\n\nCreative Play for Writers is a hands-on\, exploratory workshop that uses visual art\, music\, movement\, film\, and more to spark new writing. Each session invites you to engage with a different form of creative expression—not to master it\, but to play with it—and discover how it can fuel your storytelling. \n\n\n\nYou’ll respond to rich\, sensory prompts\, collaborate with others\, and experiment freely. Whether you’re feeling stuck\, looking for new inspiration\, or simply aiming to reconnect with the joy of making things\, this workshop offers a playful and supportive space to expand your creative practice. \n\n\n\nWe will explore exercises and readings from Syllabus by Lynda Barry\, Workbook by Steven Heighton\, and The Book of Alchemy by Suleika Jaouad. We will also touch on the ideas and art of Rebecca Belmore and Elizabeth Zvonar\, among others\, as inspiration. Weekly exercises and homework will be given.
URL:https://qwf.org/event/creative-play-for-writers-in-person/2026-04-16/
LOCATION:QWF Office\, 1200 Atwater Avenue\, Room 3\, Westmount\, QC\, H3Z 1X4\, Canada
CATEGORIES:QWF Workshops,Workshops
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://qwf.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/7.png
GEO:45.4886431;-73.5864377
X-APPLE-STRUCTURED-LOCATION;VALUE=URI;X-ADDRESS=QWF Office 1200 Atwater Avenue Room 3 Westmount QC H3Z 1X4 Canada;X-APPLE-RADIUS=500;X-TITLE=1200 Atwater Avenue\, Room 3:geo:-73.5864377,45.4886431
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260416T174500
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260416T194500
DTSTAMP:20260420T151844
CREATED:20260107T182233Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260107T182237Z
UID:10004785-1776361500-1776368700@qwf.org
SUMMARY:Crafting a Compelling Personal Essay (Thursdays)
DESCRIPTION:The personal essay sits at the crossroads of memory\, imagination\, and reflection. It is a form that invites vulnerability and experimentation\, asking writers to turn the lens inward while reaching outward toward readers. This ten-week workshop explores the craft of creative nonfiction through readings\, discussion\, and guided writing exercises. Together\, we’ll study a wide range of contemporary essayists and thinkers such as Sheila Heti\, Alicia Elliott\, Maggie Nelson\, James Baldwin\, Leslie Jamison\, and Joan Didion\, whose work challenges and expands our understanding of form\, voice\, structure\, and truth-telling. \n\n\n\nEach week\, participants will write in response to prompts designed to help them develop their voice\, experiment with structure\, and explore the ethical and emotional complexities of writing about real lives (our own and others’). We will discuss fragments and braids\, confession and restraint\, intimacy and distance\, always returning to the central question: how do we shape lived experience into compelling art? \n\n\n\nBy the end of the workshop\, participants will have generated several essay fragments and drafts\, gained tools for revision\, and deepened their understanding of the essay as both a personal and public act. Writers will leave with at least one essay draft they can continue to refine beyond the course. No prior experience is required—just a willingness to read closely\, write bravely\, and share generously. \n\n\n\nWeek 1 — What Is a Personal Essay?Theme: Truth\, memory\, and the boundaries of nonfiction.Readings:Sarah Manguso\, The Two Kinds of Decay (selections)Joan Didion\, “On Keeping a Notebook”In-Class:Introductions & course goalsDiscuss “truth” vs. “fact” in essayPrompt: Write a short scene from memory\, then annotate where memory failsHomework: Write a 600–800-word vignette about a formative memory. \n\n\n\nWeek 2 — Memory and FragmentTheme: Shaping nonlinear memory.Readings:Sheila Heti\, Motherhood (fragmented passages)Maggie Nelson\, Bluets (selections)In-Class:Discussion: how fragment builds resonanceExercise: Write three fragmentary takes on the same memoryHomework: Develop a mosaic-style essay (1\,000 words). \n\n\n\nWeek 3 — Intimacy and ConfessionTheme: The essayist’s voice and vulnerability.Readings:Alicia Elliott\, “A Mind Spread Out on the Ground” (title essay)Leslie Jamison\, The Empathy Exams (title essay excerpt)In-Class:Confessional vs. performative honestyPrompt: Write a letter to someone you cannot send it toHomework: Expand into a 1\,200-word letter-essay. \n\n\n\nWeek 4 — Deepening Voice\, Tone & Emotional RegisterTheme: How voice\, tone\, and emotional distance shape the personal essay.Readings:Zadie Smith\, “Fail Better”Katherena Vermette\, selected interviews on writing community\, trauma\, and point of viewIn-Class:Discuss tonal shifts: intimacy\, distance\, authority\, hesitanceExercise: Rewrite a paragraph in three distinct tonal registers (tender\, analytical\, ironic)Homework: Revise your Week 3 letter-essay with purposeful tonal modulation. \n\n\n\nWeek 5 — Structure and FormTheme: Chronology\, braiding\, and experimentation.Readings:Jenny Offill\, Dept. of Speculation (fragmented passages on structure)Eula Biss\, “Time and Distance Overcome”In-Class:Discuss braiding personal + cultural historyExercise: Write a short braided passage (memory + outside text/reference)Homework: Draft a braided essay (1\,200–1\,500 words). \n\n\n\nWeek 6 — The Self as CharacterTheme: Distance between narrator and narrated self.Readings:Sheila Heti\, How Should a Person Be? (essayistic passages)James Baldwin\, “Notes of a Native Son” (opening sections)In-Class:Compare Baldwin’s authority with Heti’s uncertaintyPrompt: Write a scene twice — once from the past self’s POV\, once from the present self’s POVHomework: Develop one version into a polished essay draft. \n\n\n\nWeek 7 — Risk\, Ethics\, and ResponsibilityTheme: Writing what feels dangerous; truth vs. harm.Readings:Katherena Vermette\, interview excerpts on writing community\, family\, traumaAlexander Chee\, “The Autobiography of My Novel”In-Class:Debate: what’s “too much” to share?Workshop 2–3 student essaysHomework: Revise draft based on feedback. \n\n\n\nWeek 8 — Revision and CompressionTheme: Re-seeing\, cutting\, deepening.Readings:Jenny Offill\, Dept. of Speculation (compression and brevity passages)Joan Didion\, “Goodbye to All That”In-Class:Revision strategies (How to “write coldly”)Prompt: Take a draft and cut it to 70% length without losing essenceHomework: Prepare a near-final essay draft (1\,500–2\,000 words). \n\n\n\nWeek 9 — Workshop Intensive & Thematic ExcavationTheme: Deep structural and thematic revision.Readings:None — focus on student manuscripts.In-Class:Half-class workshopIdentifying the essay’s “governing question”Discuss strategies for expansion vs. contractionHomework: Revise based on workshop + draft your artistic statement. \n\n\n\nWeek 10 — Final Workshop & Publication PathsTheme: Reflection and sharing.Readings:None — focus on participant work.In-Class:Final peer workshopDiscuss venues for publishing personal essays (journals\, anthologies\, online mags)Closing: Write a brief artistic statement on your personal essay practiceHomework: Submit final essay + artistic statement. \n\n\n\nBy the end\, students will have:\n\n\n\nA stronger sense of their essayistic voice and relationship to truth. \n\n\n\nA good command of how to craft a compelling personal essay. \n\n\n\nExperience with both traditional and experimental essay forms.
URL:https://qwf.org/event/crafting-a-compelling-personal-essay-thursdays/2026-04-16/
LOCATION:QC
CATEGORIES:QWF Workshops,Workshops
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://qwf.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/4.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260416T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260416T190000
DTSTAMP:20260420T151844
CREATED:20260331T170158Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260408T202334Z
UID:10004886-1776366000-1776366000@qwf.org
SUMMARY:borders\, boundaries\, margins: an evening of poetry readings
DESCRIPTION:Thursday\, April 16\, 2026\, 7:00 pm ET\n\n\n\nPoetry Matters warmly invites you to borders\, boundaries\, margins\, an evening of poetry readings with Shanice Nicole\, Carlos A. Pittella\, and Elizabeth Wood. \n\n\n\nFree and open to the public \n\n\n\nPlease register here \n\n\n\nThe following day\, we will extend our exploration of poetry in a roundtable discussion featuring members of the Poetry Matters research project\, in collaboration with McGill Psychology. This will take place in Arts W-120\, from 12-3 pm (Friday\, April 17th). All are welcome.  \n\n\n\nShanice Nicole is a Black feminist educator\, facilitator\, writer\, (out)spoken word artist\, and mother based in Montreal. Her debut children’s book\, Dear Black Girls\, published in 2021 by Metonymy Press\, is described by Shannon Ozirny of Quill and Quire as a “powerful\, honest affirmation of belonging that is striking in its poeticism.” She is also the curator of free community resources such as Jobs & Things and All Black Everything Montreal. Shanice Nicole was nominated as Gala Dynastie’s Author of the Year in 2022 and named as one of CBC’s Black Changemakers in 2024.  \n\n\n\nCarlos A. Pittella is a Latinx poet and editor currently residing in Lethbridge/Sikóóhkotoki. He is the recipient of a 2022 Frontier Global Poetry Prize. While completing his MA in English and Creative Writing at Concordia University\, he was also awarded a 2023 Forces AVENIR award as part of the Headlight Anthology editorial team. His poetry is haunted by borders and bureaucracies and often inhabits the movement of being in-between places\, languages\, and times. “There is such a lovely propulsion to Pittella’s lyrics\,” writes poet and publisher Rob McClennan. Pittella’s writing has appeared in places such as Shō\, Jacket2\, Glyphöria\, & The Capilano Review. His first chapbook in English footnotes after Lorca was published in 2024 by above/ground press\, and in 2025 he published Propersitions with Cactus Press. His latest work\, the manifesto Dante’s Bureau\, will be published by Anstruther Press in 2026. \n\n\n\nOriginally from rural Ontario\, Elizabeth Wood is a Montreal-based educator\, visual artist\, art writer\, and poet. She “distill[s]” poetry from “rending moments\,” Dawn MacDonald observes. Wood’s first chapbook Outlaw\, Rainy Day appeared in 2022 (Turret House Press). Wood is a contributor to their collective chapbook XTRACTS Studio #7 (2022). Her chapbook\, The quiet only knows half of itself\, was published through Anstruther Press in 2025. Wood’s poems and writing on art have appeared in numerous arts publications\, exhibition catalogues\, and poetry journals. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n \n\n\n\n\n\n\nregister\n\n\n\n\n\n\n 
URL:https://qwf.org/event/borders-boundaries-margins-an-evening-of-poetry-readings/
LOCATION:Rocket Science Room\, #204-170 Jean Talon O.\, Atlas Building Little Italy\, Montreal\, Quebec\, H2R 2X4\, Canada
CATEGORIES:Reading
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://qwf.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/borders-boundaries-margins.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260416T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260416T190000
DTSTAMP:20260420T151844
CREATED:20260414T200534Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260415T165834Z
UID:10004927-1776366000-1776366000@qwf.org
SUMMARY:I Remember: A Writing Workshop
DESCRIPTION:Organized in partnership between the Blue Metropolis Literary Festival\, Rodaisun\, and Grapeseed Books. \nHosted by Rodaisun\, a writing workshop that incorporates sound and performance\, on the theme of what it means to take stock of our personal inventory\, in order to turn that into poetry (which is the backbone of RDS). This investigation will be conducted through the lens of Joe Brainard’s book I Remember — a NY painter and poet who died prematurely of AIDS-related complications. The audience will be guided with a writing prompt during two 30-40min sets of live improvised jazz. The sound charges the space and serves as the anchor for the stream of conscious writing. There will be a 15-minute break between sets. At the end\, people will be invited to read what they’ve written. \nWriting prompts by RODAISUN\, music by Aaron Dolman\, Kevin LaFleur\, and Zach Bachand. Second hand books for sale by Pome’s Books. \nGet tickets: https://www.grapeseedbooks.com/product-page/i-remember-w-rodaisun-x-blue-metropolis
URL:https://qwf.org/event/i-remember-a-writing-workshop/
LOCATION:Parquette\, 1345 Rue de Bellechasse\, Montreal
CATEGORIES:Festival,Workshops
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/avif:https://qwf.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/321c60_b4ba3b32b9544b858efc6ac163491b16mv2.avif
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260416T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260416T203000
DTSTAMP:20260420T151844
CREATED:20260408T173838Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260408T183010Z
UID:10004914-1776366000-1776371400@qwf.org
SUMMARY:Book Launch: Banished Rose by Leila
DESCRIPTION:Join Montreal author Leila for the launch of her poetry collection Banished Rose. \nAbout the Book\nBanished Rose is a luminous collection of poetry spanning over two decades\, tracing the delicate arc of one woman’s journey from adolescence to creative maturity. From her first verses at age twelve to a reflective voice of thirty-four\, Leila conjures vivid imagery and deep emotion to illuminate her journey. \nEach poem becomes a moment of immersion\, a meditation on the present. With raw honesty and lyrical grace\, she invites listeners into an intimate world shaped by love\, heartbreak\, personal transformation\, and spiritual awakening. \nBanished Rose is a testament to the healing power of words\, a companion for anyone navigating life’s joys and sorrows\, and a reminder that within every heartache lies the possibility of grace. \nAbout the Author\nDaniela Beatriz Leal Reyes (Leila)\, is a Chilean independent author and poet\, based in Montreal\, Canada since 2018. She published her first book of poetry in October 2025\, Banished Rose\, a work published in English\, which brings together 47 poems and traces the author’s journey originally written in Spanish and translated into English by the poet herself. \nOne of his works\, Toque de Libertad\, included in his book\, was also published in the poetry anthology Trazos de hojas secas (2025)\, by Ediciones Converso.
URL:https://qwf.org/event/book-launch-banished-rose-by-leila/
LOCATION:Le Bon Vieux Temps\, 2051B rue Saint-Denis\, Montreal\, Quebec\, H2X 3K8\, Canada
CATEGORIES:Book Launch
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://qwf.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/Flayer-Book-Launch-event-1.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260416T200000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260416T220000
DTSTAMP:20260420T151844
CREATED:20251211T190726Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251211T190726Z
UID:10004747-1776369600-1776376800@qwf.org
SUMMARY:Slantwise: Writing the Prose Poem
DESCRIPTION:For poets\, prose writers\, and curious in-betweeners. All levels welcome. \n\n\n\nWhat happens when a poem refuses the line? Or when a paragraph shifts under the influence of rhythm\, repetition\, and associative logic? The prose poem claims a wonderfully hybrid space between genres. It’s written using sentences as units of meaning but driven by compression\, imagery\, voice\, and lyric intensity. What actually differentiates poetic prose from a prose poem? The ambiguity itself can be useful creative fuel. \n\n\n\nOur workshop will invite poets to explore possibilities beyond the line break\, and prose writers to loosen their attachment to traditional narrative. Each week\, we will: \n\n\n\n\nRead and discuss a prose poem and/or short craft-focused text\n\n\n\nRespond to a generative writing prompt meant to inspire new writing\n\n\n\nWorkshop participants’ pieces in a supportive and inclusive environment\n\n\n\n\nWe’ll also explore a range of prose poem variations such as the haibun\, list poems\, persona poems\, collage-based prose\, constraint-driven pieces\, and more. \n\n\n\nExpect some reading and drafting to happen outside of the workshop. Our shared time will be devoted to generative discussion and thoughtful feedback. Prior workshop experience is helpful but not necessary. Either way\, participants should come ready to both receive and offer critique in the spirit of curiosity and care.
URL:https://qwf.org/event/slantwise-writing-the-prose-poem/2026-04-16/
LOCATION:QWF Office\, 1200 Atwater Avenue\, Room 3\, Westmount\, QC\, H3Z 1X4\, Canada
CATEGORIES:QWF Workshops,Workshops
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://qwf.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/8.png
GEO:45.4886431;-73.5864377
X-APPLE-STRUCTURED-LOCATION;VALUE=URI;X-ADDRESS=QWF Office 1200 Atwater Avenue Room 3 Westmount QC H3Z 1X4 Canada;X-APPLE-RADIUS=500;X-TITLE=1200 Atwater Avenue\, Room 3:geo:-73.5864377,45.4886431
END:VEVENT
END:VCALENDAR