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SUMMARY:The Joys and Pitfalls of Memoir
DESCRIPTION:This workshop will explore the hazards and rewards of writing a personal memoir. Throughout the eight weeks\, we will look at ways to produce a compelling narrative out of the chaos of the past. We’ll discuss the tremendous value of research\, but we’ll also consider whether research can sometimes handicap a project. We will explore the creation of a narrative voice. And we will ask if and how a writer knows that a memoir has achieved its ideal focus and shape. \n\n\n\nEach participant will be expected to produce one or two finished (or near-finished) pieces of writing. They could be either stand-alone essays or excerpts from a longer work. I will provide a detailed response to these pieces\, and other participants in the workshop will be asked to give their feedback too. A good portion of time each week will be spent on a discussion of the work submitted by participants. Throughout the workshops\, I plan to emphasize the crucial importance not just of remembering but of rethinking and rewriting.  \n\n\n\nIn the remainder of each session\, we will examine and debate issues that memoir-writing brings to the fore. We will delve into some thorny issues that memoirs often raise: the unreliability of memory\, an author’s urge to justify\, and the sense of hurt and betrayal that a memoir may provoke in other people. I will ask the participants to read selected materials (none of them too lengthy) as a basis for discussion.   \n\n\n\n“Memoir\,” for the purposes of this workshop\, can include small-scale personal essays as well as longer\, more ambitious texts. The participants may choose to focus on a particular relationship\, place\, or time. But the pieces they submit for discussion should all be personal in nature\, and unless there are unusual reasons to the contrary\, they should make use of the first-person pronoun. Memoir can be a demanding form; it allows the author no place to hide. Yet it can be immensely rewarding to write. \n\n\n\nThe overall aim is to equip participants with more awareness\, more skills\, and more confidence in their own work.
URL:https://qwf.org/event/the-joys-and-pitfalls-of-memoir/2023-03-21/
LOCATION:QWF Office\, 1200 Atwater Avenue\, Room 3\, Westmount\, QC\, H3Z 1X4\, Canada
CATEGORIES:QWF Workshops,Workshops
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DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20230321T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20230321T200000
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SUMMARY:Deep Story Design
DESCRIPTION:Deep Story Design depends on a divine trine of three elements: character\, plot\, and theme. \n\n\n\nNovelists\, screenwriters\, and memoirists who learn to harmonize these elements are able to create stories with depth and resonance. \n\n\n\nThis 8-week online course is for the longer form narrative writer who wants to: create structurally sound and engaging plots; craft characters whose inner and outer conflicts captivate readers; and develop impactful themes that linger after the story is over. \n\n\n\nUsing April’s Deep Story Design method of combining basic three-act structure\, the seven stepping stones that uphold a narrative arc\, and the four stages of authentic character development\, writers will be guided to create a cohesive story that is greater than the sum of its parts. \n\n\n\nWeekly lessons\, homework assignments\, and in-class exercises and conversations will focus on the essential story elements that need to be in place to ensure a compelling and meaningful narrative. \n\n\n\nNote: Handouts will be provided digitally. Live weekly Zoom calls will be recorded and available for review for up to two weeks after the workshop finishes. Homework assignments\, shared with and reviewed by participants\, will receive light feedback from April during class time. \n\n\n\nApril Bosshard has been called a “story whisperer” and “story genie” for her keen awareness of story principles and deep understanding of the writer’s craft\, which allows her to help writers deal with the complex issues of story-creating and sticking to the writing process. She’s led workshops in Canada\, the US\, France\, and Mexico\, including at the internationally recognized San Miguel Writers Conference. She’s written novels\, short stories\, poems\, and non-fiction essays for traditional and independent markets\, which include publications in the US\, UK\, and Canada. Most recently\, she contributed a chapter to the newly released The Great Book of Journaling\, How Journal Writing Can Support a Life of Wellness\, Creativity\, Meaning\, and Purpose\, (Conari\, June 2022). April develops and maintains online courses and writing programs while also working with individual clients as a writing coach and developmental editor.
URL:https://qwf.org/event/deep-story-design/2023-03-21/
LOCATION:QWF Office\, 1200 Atwater Avenue\, Room 3\, Westmount\, QC\, H3Z 1X4\, Canada
CATEGORIES:QWF Workshops,Workshops
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20230321T193000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20230321T203000
DTSTAMP:20260403T134315
CREATED:20230328T145347Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20230328T145350Z
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SUMMARY:Counter Offence
DESCRIPTION:Set in 90’s Montreal\, Counter Offence tells the story of Shazia\, an Indo-Quebecois woman who finds herself caught in an abusive marriage with Shapoor\, an Iranian man grappling with complex parental problems\, and challenges of immigration. Things take a turn when Shapoor is arrested on domestic violence charges by Sgt. Galliard\, a white officer staunchly dedicated to preventing violence against women. Moolchand\, an Indo-Canadian anti-racist activist\, comes to Shapoor’s defense\, by accusing Galliard and the entire SPVM of racial bias. Clarinda Keith\, a Black social worker\, defends Galliard despite the police’s undeniable racism against people of colour\, in order to support the voices of vulnerable women. When suddenly a body is found\, everyone is a suspect as lines between what is right and wrong become blurred. Counter Offence explores multiple realities existing simultaneously\, and asks the question: how can one discover truth through conflicting narratives?
URL:https://qwf.org/event/counter-offence/2023-03-21/
LOCATION:Quebec
CATEGORIES:Community Events,Performance
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20230321T200000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20230321T220000
DTSTAMP:20260403T134315
CREATED:20221215T171053Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20221215T171056Z
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SUMMARY:Tell Your Story as a Graphic Novel!
DESCRIPTION:You don’t need to be an artist to enjoy this graphic novel workshop. All you need is a story you want to tell and the courage to put it down on paper. Drawings can be formal and detailed or simple and expressive. Comic making bridges storytelling and picture making\, and this workshop will explore both. Through dynamic exercises that combine simple drawing experiments and story brainstorming\, each participant will develop their own personal style and hone the story they wish to tell. \n\n\n\nPeople will share their work and give feedback on each other’s pieces and end the workshop with a comic of their own! \n\n\n\nKate Lavut is the author and illustrator of the graphic novel Chico\, a true tale of the time she dressed as a boy\, jumped on a bus\, and went to Mexico. Chico was featured at TCAF\, Toronto Comics Arts Festival\, and was a finalist for the Quebec Writers’ Federation Prize for Children’s and Young Adult Literature. Lavut has recently produced her play A Little Bit Pregnant at Fringe Montreal and was a finalist for the Most Promising Emerging Artist award. She is currently at work on a new graphic novel\, about her experience having breast cancer\, called Content Removed.
URL:https://qwf.org/event/tell-your-story-as-a-graphic-novel/2023-03-21/
LOCATION:QWF Office\, 1200 Atwater Avenue\, Room 3\, Westmount\, QC\, H3Z 1X4\, Canada
CATEGORIES:QWF Workshops,Workshops
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DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20230322T120000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20230322T120000
DTSTAMP:20260403T134315
CREATED:20230307T201734Z
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SUMMARY:Heather and Arizona O'Neill speak at Dawson
DESCRIPTION:Conversation\, Questions\, Answers! Readings! Raffle!\n\n\n\nMontreal literary duo Heather and Arizona O’Neill speak about their lives and read from their work Wednesday\, March 22 at noon at Dawson College\, Room 5B.16. \n\n\n\nFeaturing special opening act\, Dawson student writer Elise Roy. \n\n\n\nThe Authors\n\n\n\n\nHEATHER O’NEILL is the beloved award-winning author of When We Lost Our Heads\, The Lonely Hearts Hotel\, The Girl Who Was Saturday Night\, and Lullabies for Little Criminals. Born and raised in Montreal\, Heather O’Neill has been said to write “like a sort of demented angel with an uncanny knack for metaphor” (Toronto Star). \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nARIZONA O’NEILL is a multi-disciplinary artist who has made original videos for CBC’s Creator Network and artists such as Laurence Philomène and Patrick Watson. She recently wrote and illustrated the book Est-ce qu’un artiste peut être heureux?  \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nTogether they form O’Neill Reads\, the exuberant book review page on Instagram. \n\n\n\nThe Books\n\n\n\n\nWhen We Lost Our Heads is Heather O’Neill’s latest page-turning novel that explores gender and power\, sex and desire\, class and status\, and the terrifying strength of the human heart when it can’t let someone go. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nEst-ce qu’un artiste peut être heureux?is Arizona O’Neill’s book of illustrated graphic interviews with celebrated and controversial Quebec artists.
URL:https://qwf.org/event/heather-and-arizona-oneill-speak-at-dawson/
LOCATION:Dawson College\, Room 5B.16\, 3040 Sherbrooke St W\, Montreal\, H3Z 1A4\, Canada
CATEGORIES:Reading
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://qwf.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/ONeillReads.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20230322T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20230322T200000
DTSTAMP:20260403T134315
CREATED:20230109T170626Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20230109T170629Z
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SUMMARY:The Joys and Pitfalls of Memoir
DESCRIPTION:This workshop will explore the hazards and rewards of writing a personal memoir. Throughout the eight weeks\, we will look at ways to produce a compelling narrative out of the chaos of the past. We’ll discuss the tremendous value of research\, but we’ll also consider whether research can sometimes handicap a project. We will explore the creation of a narrative voice. And we will ask if and how a writer knows that a memoir has achieved its ideal focus and shape. \n\n\n\nEach participant will be expected to produce one or two finished (or near-finished) pieces of writing. They could be either stand-alone essays or excerpts from a longer work. I will provide a detailed response to these pieces\, and other participants in the workshop will be asked to give their feedback too. A good portion of time each week will be spent on a discussion of the work submitted by participants. Throughout the workshops\, I plan to emphasize the crucial importance not just of remembering but of rethinking and rewriting.  \n\n\n\nIn the remainder of each session\, we will examine and debate issues that memoir-writing brings to the fore. We will delve into some thorny issues that memoirs often raise: the unreliability of memory\, an author’s urge to justify\, and the sense of hurt and betrayal that a memoir may provoke in other people. I will ask the participants to read selected materials (none of them too lengthy) as a basis for discussion.   \n\n\n\n“Memoir\,” for the purposes of this workshop\, can include small-scale personal essays as well as longer\, more ambitious texts. The participants may choose to focus on a particular relationship\, place\, or time. But the pieces they submit for discussion should all be personal in nature\, and unless there are unusual reasons to the contrary\, they should make use of the first-person pronoun. Memoir can be a demanding form; it allows the author no place to hide. Yet it can be immensely rewarding to write. \n\n\n\nThe overall aim is to equip participants with more awareness\, more skills\, and more confidence in their own work.
URL:https://qwf.org/event/the-joys-and-pitfalls-of-memoir-2/2023-03-22/
LOCATION:QWF Office\, 1200 Atwater Avenue\, Room 3\, Westmount\, QC\, H3Z 1X4\, Canada
CATEGORIES:QWF Workshops,Workshops
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20230322T193000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20230322T203000
DTSTAMP:20260403T134315
CREATED:20230328T145347Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20230328T145350Z
UID:10003346-1679513400-1679517000@qwf.org
SUMMARY:Counter Offence
DESCRIPTION:Set in 90’s Montreal\, Counter Offence tells the story of Shazia\, an Indo-Quebecois woman who finds herself caught in an abusive marriage with Shapoor\, an Iranian man grappling with complex parental problems\, and challenges of immigration. Things take a turn when Shapoor is arrested on domestic violence charges by Sgt. Galliard\, a white officer staunchly dedicated to preventing violence against women. Moolchand\, an Indo-Canadian anti-racist activist\, comes to Shapoor’s defense\, by accusing Galliard and the entire SPVM of racial bias. Clarinda Keith\, a Black social worker\, defends Galliard despite the police’s undeniable racism against people of colour\, in order to support the voices of vulnerable women. When suddenly a body is found\, everyone is a suspect as lines between what is right and wrong become blurred. Counter Offence explores multiple realities existing simultaneously\, and asks the question: how can one discover truth through conflicting narratives?
URL:https://qwf.org/event/counter-offence/2023-03-22/
LOCATION:Quebec
CATEGORIES:Community Events,Performance
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://qwf.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/20230324_115943_0000.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20230322T200000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20230322T220000
DTSTAMP:20260403T134315
CREATED:20221215T172340Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20221215T172545Z
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SUMMARY:The Ghost at the Heart of a Short Story
DESCRIPTION:A man down on his luck has moved everything he owns out onto his lawn\, and for no reason anybody can articulate\, he pawns some of it to two young passersby; in northern Ontario\, a woman whose cancer is in remission lets a teenaged boy\, half her age\, kiss her on a floating bridge—she doesn’t know why; in a hotel room in Wenatchee\, a man has a strange\, galvanizing sexual encounter with a bare-knuckle boxer\, and it leaves him more sure of himself\, or more sure of his past\, or more sure of who he might yet become. But if you asked him what had changed\, he wouldn’t be able to tell you. \n\n\n\nThere is something ineffable in every good short story\, something that cannot bepinned down\, a question—perhaps insignificant—whose answer is not merely unknown\, but unknowable\, and whose presence haunts us long after we’ve put a story down. \n\n\n\nThis workshop is a guided discussion about the plot\, characters\, point of view\, structure\, and language (the mechanics or “craft”) of participants’ short stories\, as well as an investigation of each story’s aboutness\, patterns\, emotional plot\, and central question(s)—that is\, all those hard-to-define elements that make fiction what it is. \n\n\n\nAdditionally\, the workshop aims to foster community among the attendees\, to bring together \n\n\n\nwriters of similar skill and drive\, and to encourage the kind of creative energy that crackles \n\n\n\nbetween new practitioners. \n\n\n\n Some Learning Objectives \n\n\n\n\nCritical reading\, and the ability to identify the roots of a story’s problems\, particularly with regard to dramatic structure and conflict. Conversely: the ability to identify the roots of a story’s successes\, especially when it seems intangible or difficult to pin down.\n\n\n\nClose reading\, even of your own work\, for strongest possible sentences. (They are\, after all\, the building blocks of fiction.)\n\n\n\nImmersing yourself in\, and engaging with\, literature among a cohort of people who are similarly immersed and engaged in literature; enjoying it.\n\n\n\n\nIn our first meeting\, we will establish a schedule\, review workshop etiquette\, spend some time meeting each other\, and do a few writing exercises. From then on\, each session will consist of detailed discussion and feedback of participants’ stories. The goal\, always\, is to offer the writer of each story constructive suggestions to help them improve the story and their craft. We are\, I always say\, in this together. \n\n\n\nIn preparation: Please bring a short story you’ve written of no more than 2500 words to the first session. \n\n\n\nD. W. Wilson is the author of Once You Break a Knuckle\, a collection of short stories\, and Ballistics\, a novel. His work has appeared in lit mags across the globe\, and in 2011 he won the BBC National Short Story Award for “The Dead Roads.” Since then he has been shortlisted for numerous fiction prizes\, and has won the CBC Short Story Prize and the Manchester Fiction Prize. He taught creative writing at the University of Victoria and Brandon University\, as well at literary festivals such as the London Short Story Festival and Wordfest.
URL:https://qwf.org/event/the-ghost-at-the-heart-of-a-short-story/2023-03-22/
LOCATION:QWF Office\, 1200 Atwater Avenue\, Room 3\, Westmount\, QC\, H3Z 1X4\, Canada
CATEGORIES:QWF Workshops,Workshops
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20230323T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20230323T200000
DTSTAMP:20260403T134315
CREATED:20221215T181429Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20221215T181432Z
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SUMMARY:Writing the TV Pilot
DESCRIPTION:In this eight-week workshop\, Montreal-based screenwriter Allen Markuze will give you the tools to be able to write a TV pilot. He’s going to do so by asking and helping answer the following… \n\n\n\n\nWhat is your TV series about?\n\n\n\nIs your idea sustainable?\n\n\n\nWhat happens episode to episode?\n\n\n\nWhat’s the theme of your show?\n\n\n\nWhat are some similar shows?\n\n\n\nWho are your characters?\n\n\n\nIs your pilot going to be a premise episode or an episodic episode?\n\n\n\nWhat is a three-act structure and five-act structure?\n\n\n\n\nThese intimate sessions will involve a mixture of group discussion\, critical analysis of TV pilots and shows\, and workshopping participants’ own ideas with the goal of completing their own TV pilot. Ideas will be workshopped in groups as well as one-on-one with the workshop leader and fellow participants. \n\n\n\nAllen Markuze is an award-winning screenwriter who has taken part in writers rooms and has written for a variety of live-action and animation TV shows that have aired on the likes of Netflix\, Disney\, Nickelodeon\, Hulu\, and CBC. Before embarking on a screenwriting career\, Markuze spent several years working in LA at Dan Halsted’s company\, Manage-ment\, where he helped manage a roster of writers from shows such as Mad Men and Breaking Bad\, and on feature films like Friday Night Lights and Wall Street. Prior to that\, he worked as an assistant to screenwriter Janus Cercone (Leap of Faith with Steve Martin). Markuze’s foray into the entertainment industry began as a development intern in LA at Underground Films (FX’s Snowfall) where he read countless scripts\, books\, and plays\, and eavesdropped on A LOT of conversations.
URL:https://qwf.org/event/writing-the-tv-pilot/2023-03-23/
LOCATION:QWF Office\, 1200 Atwater Avenue\, Room 3\, Westmount\, QC\, H3Z 1X4\, Canada
CATEGORIES:QWF Workshops,Workshops
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20230323T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20230323T200000
DTSTAMP:20260403T134315
CREATED:20230316T150117Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20230316T150119Z
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SUMMARY:carte blanche "Thaw" Spring Reading Event
DESCRIPTION:We are delighted to announce that carte blanche will be holding our first in-person reading event since 2019! \nTHAW: A CARTE BLANCHE SPRING READING EVENT\nThursday March 23rd at 7pm\nPhoenix Books (5928 Sherbrooke St. W)  \nReserve your spot (tickets are free!) here:\nhttps://carteblanchemagazine.com/cb-news/thawreading \nFeaturing readings by:\nZoe Lubetkin\nDomenica Martinello\nLaura Mota
URL:https://qwf.org/event/carte-blanche-thaw-spring-reading-event/
LOCATION:Phoenix Books\, 5928 Sherbrooke St W\, Montreal\, Quebec\, H4A 1X7\, Canada
CATEGORIES:Community Events,Reading
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://qwf.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Thaw.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20230323T193000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20230323T203000
DTSTAMP:20260403T134315
CREATED:20230328T145347Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20230328T145350Z
UID:10003347-1679599800-1679603400@qwf.org
SUMMARY:Counter Offence
DESCRIPTION:Set in 90’s Montreal\, Counter Offence tells the story of Shazia\, an Indo-Quebecois woman who finds herself caught in an abusive marriage with Shapoor\, an Iranian man grappling with complex parental problems\, and challenges of immigration. Things take a turn when Shapoor is arrested on domestic violence charges by Sgt. Galliard\, a white officer staunchly dedicated to preventing violence against women. Moolchand\, an Indo-Canadian anti-racist activist\, comes to Shapoor’s defense\, by accusing Galliard and the entire SPVM of racial bias. Clarinda Keith\, a Black social worker\, defends Galliard despite the police’s undeniable racism against people of colour\, in order to support the voices of vulnerable women. When suddenly a body is found\, everyone is a suspect as lines between what is right and wrong become blurred. Counter Offence explores multiple realities existing simultaneously\, and asks the question: how can one discover truth through conflicting narratives?
URL:https://qwf.org/event/counter-offence/2023-03-23/
LOCATION:Quebec
CATEGORIES:Community Events,Performance
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://qwf.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/20230324_115943_0000.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20230323T200000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20230323T220000
DTSTAMP:20260403T134315
CREATED:20221215T182413Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20221215T182414Z
UID:10003244-1679601600-1679608800@qwf.org
SUMMARY:Biography\, Autobiography\, and Ghostwriting
DESCRIPTION:The basic tools of biography and autobiography are the same\, and this workshop will show how you can write any life in a meaningful and engaging way. \n\n\n\nThe first challenge is learning how to put lives in a larger context. This means researching the times and places the subject lived in\, then weaving their individual narratives with all of their complex personal relationships\, into the larger world. We will learn how to do this with the use of the illuminating details that bring people and places to life. \n\n\n\nWe will also look at the sub-category of ghostwriting\, where you are writing a first-person biography and\, in a sense\, become the person you are writing for\, internalizing their thoughts and feelings as you use all of the tools at your disposal to tell their story as if was your own. \n\n\n\nGhostwriting also happens to be a field where a writer can make a decent living in Canada\, and at the end of the course\, we will look at the business side and what goes into a ghostwriting contract. \n\n\n\nOne thing you soon discover in writing biographies of any kind\, including ghosting an autobiography\, is the truth of the cliché that everyone has a book in them. At least in the sense that all of our stories—following our lives along the trajectories of time and space and meeting and beating challenges—are worth telling. As a writer you discover that it is a privilege to write someone else’s life. \n\n\n\nIdeally\, you will be working on biographical or autobiographical material of your own in the class\, but this is not necessary. If you are working on a text now or if you are simply planning one for the future\, I look forward to meeting you in the spring of 2023 and exploring the writing of lives together. \n\n\n\nPeter McFarlane has written 4 nonfiction books of his own and five ghostwritten books\, as well as more than 100 newspaper and magazine features. He has specialized in Indigenous history and politics and has worked on several CBC radio programs as a researcher and on-air contributor. He is currently completing another ghostwritten book and a new work of his own nonfiction.
URL:https://qwf.org/event/biography-autobiography-and-ghostwriting/2023-03-23/
LOCATION:QWF Office\, 1200 Atwater Avenue\, Room 3\, Westmount\, QC\, H3Z 1X4\, Canada
CATEGORIES:QWF Workshops,Workshops
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20230324T130000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20230324T130000
DTSTAMP:20260403T134315
CREATED:20230322T205800Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20230322T210021Z
UID:10003320-1679662800-1679662800@qwf.org
SUMMARY:4K Speaker Series – Historian Joseph Graham – The Christian Invasion\, Colonial Encounters in Context
DESCRIPTION:In person and online via Zoom. Registration required. \n\n\n\nThe sixteenth-century European wars of religion were the launching pad for the mass migration to Turtle Island. Comparing European accounts with those from Indigenous perspectives illustrates the vast chasm that separated the understandings of these two civilizations. The path to reconciliation and living together as equals comes through acknowledging the truth of past actions. \n\n\n\nJoseph Graham\, historian and author of Naming the Laurentians and Insatiable Hunger\, is also a columnist in both Main Street and the Quebec Heritage News. He also been published in The Gazette and Canada’s History Magazine. He has a deep interest in our history and explores who the non-Indigenous people were in the context of the Christian arrival here. \n\n\n\nLive presentation (registration mandatory): In-person at Chalet Bellevue27 rue Bellevue\, Morin-Heights (QC) J0R 1H0 \n\n\n\nOnline presentation: connect on Zoom from the comfort of home \n\n\n\nFor in-person registration\, contact info@4korners.org | 450-974-3940 | 1-888-974-3940 ext. 601 \n\n\n\nFor online attendees\, register to get the Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZAlfu-qrDsuHtYXot-X-LRauB8nw1eyXvJD
URL:https://qwf.org/event/4k-speaker-series-historian-joseph-graham-the-christian-invasion-colonial-encounters-in-context/
LOCATION:Quebec
CATEGORIES:Reading
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20230325T193000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20230325T203000
DTSTAMP:20260403T134315
CREATED:20230328T145347Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20230328T145350Z
UID:10003348-1679772600-1679776200@qwf.org
SUMMARY:Counter Offence
DESCRIPTION:Set in 90’s Montreal\, Counter Offence tells the story of Shazia\, an Indo-Quebecois woman who finds herself caught in an abusive marriage with Shapoor\, an Iranian man grappling with complex parental problems\, and challenges of immigration. Things take a turn when Shapoor is arrested on domestic violence charges by Sgt. Galliard\, a white officer staunchly dedicated to preventing violence against women. Moolchand\, an Indo-Canadian anti-racist activist\, comes to Shapoor’s defense\, by accusing Galliard and the entire SPVM of racial bias. Clarinda Keith\, a Black social worker\, defends Galliard despite the police’s undeniable racism against people of colour\, in order to support the voices of vulnerable women. When suddenly a body is found\, everyone is a suspect as lines between what is right and wrong become blurred. Counter Offence explores multiple realities existing simultaneously\, and asks the question: how can one discover truth through conflicting narratives?
URL:https://qwf.org/event/counter-offence/2023-03-25/
LOCATION:Quebec
CATEGORIES:Community Events,Performance
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://qwf.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/20230324_115943_0000.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20230326T100000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20230326T160000
DTSTAMP:20260403T134315
CREATED:20221215T192925Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20221215T192927Z
UID:10003262-1679824800-1679846400@qwf.org
SUMMARY:Are you Talking to Me? A Dialogue Workshop
DESCRIPTION:Dialogue is one of the key tools a writer can use in fiction and nonfiction. Good dialogue makes a scene sizzle with energy and life. Not only is it the words the characters speak to one another\, dialogue reveals personality and voice\, creates humour\, generates tension\, plays with pace\, and dramatizes relationships.  \n\n\n\nIn this full-day workshop we will focus on what dialogue is good for and what it isn’t. By touching on the three different ways of using dialogue (summary\, indirect and direct)\, we will examine how dialogue reveals theme and the various formatting and styles of dialogue. \n\n\n\nIn the first half of the workshop\, we will examine several excerpts from writers like Roddy Doyle\, ZZ Packer\, Akhil Sharma\, Deborah Levy\, and Eden Robinson. We will discuss how these authors use dialogue to accomplish several things at once and how this layering generates more compelling scenes. In the second half of the workshop the participants will have an opportunity to try two exercises\, one on conflict and the other on silence\, which will strengthen their knowledge and skill of how to use dialogue in their writing. \n\n\n\nEach participant will leave with a handout summarizing the highlights of how to use dialogue. \n\n\n\nA week before the workshop\, a document with the readings will be sent out for the participants to read prior to attending the workshop.    \n\n\n\nMarcia Walker’s writing has appeared in Electric Literature’s Recommended Reads\, The New Quarterly\, Fiddlehead\, The Chicago Review\, The New York Times\, PRISM international\, Room\, EVENT\, The Globe and Mail\, CBC radio and elsewhere. She has been shortlisted for the Commonwealth Short Story Prize\, PRISM’s fiction and non-fiction prize\, and the Writers’ Union of Canada short prose competition. She has completed residencies at Yaddo\, the Banff Centre\, Vermont Studio Center and will attend Saari\, Finland in early 2023. Originally from Shakespeare\, Ontario\, she now makes her home in Montreal where she teaches creative writing online through the University of Toronto. \n\n\n\nVisit her at www.marciawalker.ca
URL:https://qwf.org/event/are-you-talking-to-me-a-dialogue-workshop/
LOCATION:QWF Office\, 1200 Atwater Avenue\, Room 3\, Westmount\, QC\, H3Z 1X4\, Canada
CATEGORIES:QWF Workshops,Workshops
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20230326T193000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20230326T203000
DTSTAMP:20260403T134315
CREATED:20230328T145347Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20230328T145350Z
UID:10003349-1679859000-1679862600@qwf.org
SUMMARY:Counter Offence
DESCRIPTION:Set in 90’s Montreal\, Counter Offence tells the story of Shazia\, an Indo-Quebecois woman who finds herself caught in an abusive marriage with Shapoor\, an Iranian man grappling with complex parental problems\, and challenges of immigration. Things take a turn when Shapoor is arrested on domestic violence charges by Sgt. Galliard\, a white officer staunchly dedicated to preventing violence against women. Moolchand\, an Indo-Canadian anti-racist activist\, comes to Shapoor’s defense\, by accusing Galliard and the entire SPVM of racial bias. Clarinda Keith\, a Black social worker\, defends Galliard despite the police’s undeniable racism against people of colour\, in order to support the voices of vulnerable women. When suddenly a body is found\, everyone is a suspect as lines between what is right and wrong become blurred. Counter Offence explores multiple realities existing simultaneously\, and asks the question: how can one discover truth through conflicting narratives?
URL:https://qwf.org/event/counter-offence/2023-03-26/
LOCATION:Quebec
CATEGORIES:Community Events,Performance
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://qwf.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/20230324_115943_0000.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20230327T110000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20230327T130000
DTSTAMP:20260403T134315
CREATED:20230228T185418Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20230228T185421Z
UID:10003307-1679914800-1679922000@qwf.org
SUMMARY:Morin Heights Book Club discusses "Don't Ask"
DESCRIPTION:Gina Roitman will be meeting with the Morin Heights Book Club to discuss the origins and research that informed “Don’t Ask\,” a literary thriller about  how the horrors of war and family secrets become the burden of future generations.
URL:https://qwf.org/event/morin-heights-book-club-discusses-dont-ask/
LOCATION:Quebec
CATEGORIES:Book Club
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20230327T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20230327T200000
DTSTAMP:20260403T134315
CREATED:20221214T191418Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20221214T210450Z
UID:10003205-1679940000-1679947200@qwf.org
SUMMARY:Poetic Conversations
DESCRIPTION:Samuel Johnson (1709-1784) is known to have said\, “A writer only begins a book. A reader finishes it.” Put differently\, a reader’s personal response offers an added dimension to a book. In this workshop\, participants will select a published poetry collection whose world resonates with them\, one that includes poems they would like to “dialogue with” for the remainder of the workshop.* Weekly writing prompts will initiate a “conversation” with a chosen text from their book\, an opportunity to engage with the source material on a deeper level. Topics covered will include imagery\, line breaks\, and poetic language\, and we will attempt a variety of poetic forms. Roughly half of each session will be devoted to theoretical concerns and/or writing exercises; the second half to workshopping the pieces produced in class and tweaked at home. Aside from the selected poetry book\, no texts are required\, but participants are strongly encouraged to read poetry and/or essays on poetics outside class time and share materials/information that might be of interest to the group. \n\n\n\n*A list of suggested poets and/or titles will be provided after the first class\, upon request. \n\n\n\nAuthor of nine poetry books and an award-winning novel\, Carolyn Marie Souaid has performed at literary events in Canada and abroad; her work has been featured on CBC-Radio and in a variety of national and international publications. Her videopoem\, Blood is Blood\, won a top prize at the 2012 Zebra Poetry Film Festival in Berlin. Other books have been shortlisted for the Pat Lowther Memorial Award and the A.M. Klein Prize for Poetry. Carolyn has been guest faculty at Bishop’s University and has led several previous QWF workshops. Her literary papers are housed at Rare Books and Special Collections of the McLennan Library (McGill University).
URL:https://qwf.org/event/poetic-conversations/2023-03-27/
LOCATION:QWF Office\, 1200 Atwater Avenue\, Room 3\, Westmount\, QC\, H3Z 1X4\, Canada
CATEGORIES:QWF Workshops,Workshops
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20230327T193000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20230327T203000
DTSTAMP:20260403T134315
CREATED:20230328T145347Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20230328T145350Z
UID:10003350-1679945400-1679949000@qwf.org
SUMMARY:Counter Offence
DESCRIPTION:Set in 90’s Montreal\, Counter Offence tells the story of Shazia\, an Indo-Quebecois woman who finds herself caught in an abusive marriage with Shapoor\, an Iranian man grappling with complex parental problems\, and challenges of immigration. Things take a turn when Shapoor is arrested on domestic violence charges by Sgt. Galliard\, a white officer staunchly dedicated to preventing violence against women. Moolchand\, an Indo-Canadian anti-racist activist\, comes to Shapoor’s defense\, by accusing Galliard and the entire SPVM of racial bias. Clarinda Keith\, a Black social worker\, defends Galliard despite the police’s undeniable racism against people of colour\, in order to support the voices of vulnerable women. When suddenly a body is found\, everyone is a suspect as lines between what is right and wrong become blurred. Counter Offence explores multiple realities existing simultaneously\, and asks the question: how can one discover truth through conflicting narratives?
URL:https://qwf.org/event/counter-offence/2023-03-27/
LOCATION:Quebec
CATEGORIES:Community Events,Performance
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://qwf.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/20230324_115943_0000.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20230327T200000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20230327T220000
DTSTAMP:20260403T134315
CREATED:20221214T203321Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20221215T163934Z
UID:10003189-1679947200-1679954400@qwf.org
SUMMARY:Picture Book Spyglass: Writing through the Lens of Children’s and YA Literature
DESCRIPTION:Why every writer should know picture books: in this workshop\, emerging and experienced writers will return to the source and hone their skills through a selection of outstanding picture books. We will learn wisdom\, gain inspiration\, and rediscover the joy of word-sounds and word play. We’ll find eye-popping object lessons in voice\, character\, plot\, and surprise—while renewing our delight in language.  \n\n\n\nBe prepared to articulate your own writing goals for this session to receive personalized prompts. Or feel free to just explore\, through collaborative and individual writing time and assignments. Whether you are casting for new reveries\, or seeking to push forward on a particular project\, let the concise brilliance of picture books light your way. \n\n\n\n——————————————– \n\n\n\nRaquel Rivera is a two-time winner of the QWF Prize for Children’s and YA Literature; her books were selected for CCBC Best Books for Kids & Teens (starred selection)\, USBBY Outstanding International Books (Grades 3-5)\, Quill & Quire’s “Best of 2007” (Children’s)\, and more. \n\n\n\nRaquel has lived and worked in Washington DC\, Kuala Lumpur\, Singapore\, Barcelona\, and Toronto (where she was born and raised as a first-generation Canadian). These experiences\, and her own mixed heritage\, engender her deep interest in history\, culture\, social roles\, and norms. Cultures in cooperation is the theme that runs through her writing.
URL:https://qwf.org/event/picture-book-spyglass-writing-through-the-lens-of-childrens-and-ya-literature/2023-03-27/
LOCATION:QWF Office\, 1200 Atwater Avenue\, Room 3\, Westmount\, QC\, H3Z 1X4\, Canada
CATEGORIES:QWF Workshops,Workshops
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20230328T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20230328T200000
DTSTAMP:20260403T134315
CREATED:20221214T210152Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20221214T210154Z
UID:10003197-1680026400-1680033600@qwf.org
SUMMARY:The Joys and Pitfalls of Memoir
DESCRIPTION:This workshop will explore the hazards and rewards of writing a personal memoir. Throughout the eight weeks\, we will look at ways to produce a compelling narrative out of the chaos of the past. We’ll discuss the tremendous value of research\, but we’ll also consider whether research can sometimes handicap a project. We will explore the creation of a narrative voice. And we will ask if and how a writer knows that a memoir has achieved its ideal focus and shape. \n\n\n\nEach participant will be expected to produce one or two finished (or near-finished) pieces of writing. They could be either stand-alone essays or excerpts from a longer work. I will provide a detailed response to these pieces\, and other participants in the workshop will be asked to give their feedback too. A good portion of time each week will be spent on a discussion of the work submitted by participants. Throughout the workshops\, I plan to emphasize the crucial importance not just of remembering but of rethinking and rewriting.  \n\n\n\nIn the remainder of each session\, we will examine and debate issues that memoir-writing brings to the fore. We will delve into some thorny issues that memoirs often raise: the unreliability of memory\, an author’s urge to justify\, and the sense of hurt and betrayal that a memoir may provoke in other people. I will ask the participants to read selected materials (none of them too lengthy) as a basis for discussion.   \n\n\n\n“Memoir\,” for the purposes of this workshop\, can include small-scale personal essays as well as longer\, more ambitious texts. The participants may choose to focus on a particular relationship\, place\, or time. But the pieces they submit for discussion should all be personal in nature\, and unless there are unusual reasons to the contrary\, they should make use of the first-person pronoun. Memoir can be a demanding form; it allows the author no place to hide. Yet it can be immensely rewarding to write. \n\n\n\nThe overall aim is to equip participants with more awareness\, more skills\, and more confidence in their own work.
URL:https://qwf.org/event/the-joys-and-pitfalls-of-memoir/2023-03-28/
LOCATION:QWF Office\, 1200 Atwater Avenue\, Room 3\, Westmount\, QC\, H3Z 1X4\, Canada
CATEGORIES:QWF Workshops,Workshops
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20230328T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20230328T200000
DTSTAMP:20260403T134315
CREATED:20221215T165441Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20221215T165444Z
UID:10003213-1680026400-1680033600@qwf.org
SUMMARY:Deep Story Design
DESCRIPTION:Deep Story Design depends on a divine trine of three elements: character\, plot\, and theme. \n\n\n\nNovelists\, screenwriters\, and memoirists who learn to harmonize these elements are able to create stories with depth and resonance. \n\n\n\nThis 8-week online course is for the longer form narrative writer who wants to: create structurally sound and engaging plots; craft characters whose inner and outer conflicts captivate readers; and develop impactful themes that linger after the story is over. \n\n\n\nUsing April’s Deep Story Design method of combining basic three-act structure\, the seven stepping stones that uphold a narrative arc\, and the four stages of authentic character development\, writers will be guided to create a cohesive story that is greater than the sum of its parts. \n\n\n\nWeekly lessons\, homework assignments\, and in-class exercises and conversations will focus on the essential story elements that need to be in place to ensure a compelling and meaningful narrative. \n\n\n\nNote: Handouts will be provided digitally. Live weekly Zoom calls will be recorded and available for review for up to two weeks after the workshop finishes. Homework assignments\, shared with and reviewed by participants\, will receive light feedback from April during class time. \n\n\n\nApril Bosshard has been called a “story whisperer” and “story genie” for her keen awareness of story principles and deep understanding of the writer’s craft\, which allows her to help writers deal with the complex issues of story-creating and sticking to the writing process. She’s led workshops in Canada\, the US\, France\, and Mexico\, including at the internationally recognized San Miguel Writers Conference. She’s written novels\, short stories\, poems\, and non-fiction essays for traditional and independent markets\, which include publications in the US\, UK\, and Canada. Most recently\, she contributed a chapter to the newly released The Great Book of Journaling\, How Journal Writing Can Support a Life of Wellness\, Creativity\, Meaning\, and Purpose\, (Conari\, June 2022). April develops and maintains online courses and writing programs while also working with individual clients as a writing coach and developmental editor.
URL:https://qwf.org/event/deep-story-design/2023-03-28/
LOCATION:QWF Office\, 1200 Atwater Avenue\, Room 3\, Westmount\, QC\, H3Z 1X4\, Canada
CATEGORIES:QWF Workshops,Workshops
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20230328T193000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20230328T203000
DTSTAMP:20260403T134315
CREATED:20230328T145347Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20230328T145350Z
UID:10003351-1680031800-1680035400@qwf.org
SUMMARY:Counter Offence
DESCRIPTION:Set in 90’s Montreal\, Counter Offence tells the story of Shazia\, an Indo-Quebecois woman who finds herself caught in an abusive marriage with Shapoor\, an Iranian man grappling with complex parental problems\, and challenges of immigration. Things take a turn when Shapoor is arrested on domestic violence charges by Sgt. Galliard\, a white officer staunchly dedicated to preventing violence against women. Moolchand\, an Indo-Canadian anti-racist activist\, comes to Shapoor’s defense\, by accusing Galliard and the entire SPVM of racial bias. Clarinda Keith\, a Black social worker\, defends Galliard despite the police’s undeniable racism against people of colour\, in order to support the voices of vulnerable women. When suddenly a body is found\, everyone is a suspect as lines between what is right and wrong become blurred. Counter Offence explores multiple realities existing simultaneously\, and asks the question: how can one discover truth through conflicting narratives?
URL:https://qwf.org/event/counter-offence/2023-03-28/
LOCATION:Quebec
CATEGORIES:Community Events,Performance
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://qwf.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/20230324_115943_0000.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20230328T200000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20230328T220000
DTSTAMP:20260403T134315
CREATED:20221215T171053Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20221215T171056Z
UID:10003221-1680033600-1680040800@qwf.org
SUMMARY:Tell Your Story as a Graphic Novel!
DESCRIPTION:You don’t need to be an artist to enjoy this graphic novel workshop. All you need is a story you want to tell and the courage to put it down on paper. Drawings can be formal and detailed or simple and expressive. Comic making bridges storytelling and picture making\, and this workshop will explore both. Through dynamic exercises that combine simple drawing experiments and story brainstorming\, each participant will develop their own personal style and hone the story they wish to tell. \n\n\n\nPeople will share their work and give feedback on each other’s pieces and end the workshop with a comic of their own! \n\n\n\nKate Lavut is the author and illustrator of the graphic novel Chico\, a true tale of the time she dressed as a boy\, jumped on a bus\, and went to Mexico. Chico was featured at TCAF\, Toronto Comics Arts Festival\, and was a finalist for the Quebec Writers’ Federation Prize for Children’s and Young Adult Literature. Lavut has recently produced her play A Little Bit Pregnant at Fringe Montreal and was a finalist for the Most Promising Emerging Artist award. She is currently at work on a new graphic novel\, about her experience having breast cancer\, called Content Removed.
URL:https://qwf.org/event/tell-your-story-as-a-graphic-novel/2023-03-28/
LOCATION:QWF Office\, 1200 Atwater Avenue\, Room 3\, Westmount\, QC\, H3Z 1X4\, Canada
CATEGORIES:QWF Workshops,Workshops
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20230329T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20230329T200000
DTSTAMP:20260403T134315
CREATED:20230109T170626Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20230109T170629Z
UID:10003270-1680112800-1680120000@qwf.org
SUMMARY:The Joys and Pitfalls of Memoir
DESCRIPTION:This workshop will explore the hazards and rewards of writing a personal memoir. Throughout the eight weeks\, we will look at ways to produce a compelling narrative out of the chaos of the past. We’ll discuss the tremendous value of research\, but we’ll also consider whether research can sometimes handicap a project. We will explore the creation of a narrative voice. And we will ask if and how a writer knows that a memoir has achieved its ideal focus and shape. \n\n\n\nEach participant will be expected to produce one or two finished (or near-finished) pieces of writing. They could be either stand-alone essays or excerpts from a longer work. I will provide a detailed response to these pieces\, and other participants in the workshop will be asked to give their feedback too. A good portion of time each week will be spent on a discussion of the work submitted by participants. Throughout the workshops\, I plan to emphasize the crucial importance not just of remembering but of rethinking and rewriting.  \n\n\n\nIn the remainder of each session\, we will examine and debate issues that memoir-writing brings to the fore. We will delve into some thorny issues that memoirs often raise: the unreliability of memory\, an author’s urge to justify\, and the sense of hurt and betrayal that a memoir may provoke in other people. I will ask the participants to read selected materials (none of them too lengthy) as a basis for discussion.   \n\n\n\n“Memoir\,” for the purposes of this workshop\, can include small-scale personal essays as well as longer\, more ambitious texts. The participants may choose to focus on a particular relationship\, place\, or time. But the pieces they submit for discussion should all be personal in nature\, and unless there are unusual reasons to the contrary\, they should make use of the first-person pronoun. Memoir can be a demanding form; it allows the author no place to hide. Yet it can be immensely rewarding to write. \n\n\n\nThe overall aim is to equip participants with more awareness\, more skills\, and more confidence in their own work.
URL:https://qwf.org/event/the-joys-and-pitfalls-of-memoir-2/2023-03-29/
LOCATION:QWF Office\, 1200 Atwater Avenue\, Room 3\, Westmount\, QC\, H3Z 1X4\, Canada
CATEGORIES:QWF Workshops,Workshops
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DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20230329T193000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20230329T203000
DTSTAMP:20260403T134315
CREATED:20230328T145347Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20230328T145350Z
UID:10003352-1680118200-1680121800@qwf.org
SUMMARY:Counter Offence
DESCRIPTION:Set in 90’s Montreal\, Counter Offence tells the story of Shazia\, an Indo-Quebecois woman who finds herself caught in an abusive marriage with Shapoor\, an Iranian man grappling with complex parental problems\, and challenges of immigration. Things take a turn when Shapoor is arrested on domestic violence charges by Sgt. Galliard\, a white officer staunchly dedicated to preventing violence against women. Moolchand\, an Indo-Canadian anti-racist activist\, comes to Shapoor’s defense\, by accusing Galliard and the entire SPVM of racial bias. Clarinda Keith\, a Black social worker\, defends Galliard despite the police’s undeniable racism against people of colour\, in order to support the voices of vulnerable women. When suddenly a body is found\, everyone is a suspect as lines between what is right and wrong become blurred. Counter Offence explores multiple realities existing simultaneously\, and asks the question: how can one discover truth through conflicting narratives?
URL:https://qwf.org/event/counter-offence/2023-03-29/
LOCATION:Quebec
CATEGORIES:Community Events,Performance
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DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20230329T200000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20230329T220000
DTSTAMP:20260403T134315
CREATED:20221215T172340Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20221215T172545Z
UID:10003229-1680120000-1680127200@qwf.org
SUMMARY:The Ghost at the Heart of a Short Story
DESCRIPTION:A man down on his luck has moved everything he owns out onto his lawn\, and for no reason anybody can articulate\, he pawns some of it to two young passersby; in northern Ontario\, a woman whose cancer is in remission lets a teenaged boy\, half her age\, kiss her on a floating bridge—she doesn’t know why; in a hotel room in Wenatchee\, a man has a strange\, galvanizing sexual encounter with a bare-knuckle boxer\, and it leaves him more sure of himself\, or more sure of his past\, or more sure of who he might yet become. But if you asked him what had changed\, he wouldn’t be able to tell you. \n\n\n\nThere is something ineffable in every good short story\, something that cannot bepinned down\, a question—perhaps insignificant—whose answer is not merely unknown\, but unknowable\, and whose presence haunts us long after we’ve put a story down. \n\n\n\nThis workshop is a guided discussion about the plot\, characters\, point of view\, structure\, and language (the mechanics or “craft”) of participants’ short stories\, as well as an investigation of each story’s aboutness\, patterns\, emotional plot\, and central question(s)—that is\, all those hard-to-define elements that make fiction what it is. \n\n\n\nAdditionally\, the workshop aims to foster community among the attendees\, to bring together \n\n\n\nwriters of similar skill and drive\, and to encourage the kind of creative energy that crackles \n\n\n\nbetween new practitioners. \n\n\n\n Some Learning Objectives \n\n\n\n\nCritical reading\, and the ability to identify the roots of a story’s problems\, particularly with regard to dramatic structure and conflict. Conversely: the ability to identify the roots of a story’s successes\, especially when it seems intangible or difficult to pin down.\n\n\n\nClose reading\, even of your own work\, for strongest possible sentences. (They are\, after all\, the building blocks of fiction.)\n\n\n\nImmersing yourself in\, and engaging with\, literature among a cohort of people who are similarly immersed and engaged in literature; enjoying it.\n\n\n\n\nIn our first meeting\, we will establish a schedule\, review workshop etiquette\, spend some time meeting each other\, and do a few writing exercises. From then on\, each session will consist of detailed discussion and feedback of participants’ stories. The goal\, always\, is to offer the writer of each story constructive suggestions to help them improve the story and their craft. We are\, I always say\, in this together. \n\n\n\nIn preparation: Please bring a short story you’ve written of no more than 2500 words to the first session. \n\n\n\nD. W. Wilson is the author of Once You Break a Knuckle\, a collection of short stories\, and Ballistics\, a novel. His work has appeared in lit mags across the globe\, and in 2011 he won the BBC National Short Story Award for “The Dead Roads.” Since then he has been shortlisted for numerous fiction prizes\, and has won the CBC Short Story Prize and the Manchester Fiction Prize. He taught creative writing at the University of Victoria and Brandon University\, as well at literary festivals such as the London Short Story Festival and Wordfest.
URL:https://qwf.org/event/the-ghost-at-the-heart-of-a-short-story/2023-03-29/
LOCATION:QWF Office\, 1200 Atwater Avenue\, Room 3\, Westmount\, QC\, H3Z 1X4\, Canada
CATEGORIES:QWF Workshops,Workshops
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20230330T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20230330T200000
DTSTAMP:20260403T134315
CREATED:20221215T181429Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20221215T181432Z
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SUMMARY:Writing the TV Pilot
DESCRIPTION:In this eight-week workshop\, Montreal-based screenwriter Allen Markuze will give you the tools to be able to write a TV pilot. He’s going to do so by asking and helping answer the following… \n\n\n\n\nWhat is your TV series about?\n\n\n\nIs your idea sustainable?\n\n\n\nWhat happens episode to episode?\n\n\n\nWhat’s the theme of your show?\n\n\n\nWhat are some similar shows?\n\n\n\nWho are your characters?\n\n\n\nIs your pilot going to be a premise episode or an episodic episode?\n\n\n\nWhat is a three-act structure and five-act structure?\n\n\n\n\nThese intimate sessions will involve a mixture of group discussion\, critical analysis of TV pilots and shows\, and workshopping participants’ own ideas with the goal of completing their own TV pilot. Ideas will be workshopped in groups as well as one-on-one with the workshop leader and fellow participants. \n\n\n\nAllen Markuze is an award-winning screenwriter who has taken part in writers rooms and has written for a variety of live-action and animation TV shows that have aired on the likes of Netflix\, Disney\, Nickelodeon\, Hulu\, and CBC. Before embarking on a screenwriting career\, Markuze spent several years working in LA at Dan Halsted’s company\, Manage-ment\, where he helped manage a roster of writers from shows such as Mad Men and Breaking Bad\, and on feature films like Friday Night Lights and Wall Street. Prior to that\, he worked as an assistant to screenwriter Janus Cercone (Leap of Faith with Steve Martin). Markuze’s foray into the entertainment industry began as a development intern in LA at Underground Films (FX’s Snowfall) where he read countless scripts\, books\, and plays\, and eavesdropped on A LOT of conversations.
URL:https://qwf.org/event/writing-the-tv-pilot/2023-03-30/
LOCATION:QWF Office\, 1200 Atwater Avenue\, Room 3\, Westmount\, QC\, H3Z 1X4\, Canada
CATEGORIES:QWF Workshops,Workshops
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20230330T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20230330T210000
DTSTAMP:20260403T134315
CREATED:20230316T150048Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20230316T150051Z
UID:10003314-1680202800-1680210000@qwf.org
SUMMARY:SpeakUp
DESCRIPTION:FREE EVENT\nSpeakUp\nThe Montreal Inter-Active Poetry Exchange\nPoets : IF THE POET\, Simon Occulis \nA POETRY READING WITH A DIFFERENCE: AUDIENCE ENGAGEMENT\nEach audience member receives a copy of the poems.\nPoet reads their poem\, first in the original version\, and then in translation\, followed by 15 to 20-minute discussion.\nPoet reads their poem a final time. \nVisit our Facebook page for more details or contact us: MTLSpeakUp@gmail.com
URL:https://qwf.org/event/speakup-9/
LOCATION:Quebec
CATEGORIES:Community Events,Reading
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20230330T193000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20230330T203000
DTSTAMP:20260403T134315
CREATED:20230328T145347Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20230328T145350Z
UID:10003353-1680204600-1680208200@qwf.org
SUMMARY:Counter Offence
DESCRIPTION:Set in 90’s Montreal\, Counter Offence tells the story of Shazia\, an Indo-Quebecois woman who finds herself caught in an abusive marriage with Shapoor\, an Iranian man grappling with complex parental problems\, and challenges of immigration. Things take a turn when Shapoor is arrested on domestic violence charges by Sgt. Galliard\, a white officer staunchly dedicated to preventing violence against women. Moolchand\, an Indo-Canadian anti-racist activist\, comes to Shapoor’s defense\, by accusing Galliard and the entire SPVM of racial bias. Clarinda Keith\, a Black social worker\, defends Galliard despite the police’s undeniable racism against people of colour\, in order to support the voices of vulnerable women. When suddenly a body is found\, everyone is a suspect as lines between what is right and wrong become blurred. Counter Offence explores multiple realities existing simultaneously\, and asks the question: how can one discover truth through conflicting narratives?
URL:https://qwf.org/event/counter-offence/2023-03-30/
LOCATION:Quebec
CATEGORIES:Community Events,Performance
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END:VCALENDAR