The Writers' Workshop Program contributes towards the development and maintenance of an active creative writing community in Canada.

The program encourages both new and experienced writers to engage and explore new ideas and perspectives on the art of writing.

2008 Spring/Summer Workshops

NALO HOPKINSON Practical Realities of a Career in Fiction May 3, 2008 1pm – 3pm Toronto Public Library Beaches Branch

So you want to make a career writing fiction. But where do you submit your work? What should you do if you get an offer? What can you expect to be paid? Can you live off writing short stories? Do you need an agent? What does an editor really do? Will you have to give readings? How do you keep yourself fed while you're churning out pellucid prose? Will you need a day job as well? And what if you get sick? This workshop is about some of the practical realities of living as a working fiction writer.

> This is a free workshop however space is limited. To register, or for more information, please email or call 416.504.8222 x 243.

BILLIE LIVINGSTON Fiction: The Devil in the Details Saturday, May 10, 2008 1pm – 3pm Vancouver Public Library Central Library

A story with believable characters and situations is something a writer strives for. What makes you love or loathe a person? What makes a situation feel awkward or anxious? It has been said: “Write what you know.” But what does that mean? How do you find out what it is your subconscious is picking up on every day? Why don’t you trust your building manager or that cashier at Safeway? In this workshop we’ll discuss not only how to unearth the details but how to steal them to make compelling fiction.

> This is a free workshop however space is limited. To register, or for more information, please email or call 416.504.8222 x 243.

DAVID ADAMS RICHARDS The Art & Craft of Writing Saturday, May 10, 2008 2pm Spring Garden Road Library Halifax, NS

The award-winning author of Mercy Among the Children and The Lost Highway leads a lively discussion on the art and craft of writing and provides insights into the writerly life.

Interested participants are encouraged to come with questions or concerns about their own work as time will be devoted to help turn the heat on projects left too long on the back burner.

Co-presented with the Writers' Federation of Nova Scotia in honour of the 2008 Atlantic Book Festival.

> This is a free workshop however space is limited. To register, or for more information, please email or call 902.423.8116.

MARK FRUTKIN The Alchemy of Fiction Saturday, June 7, 2008 1pm - 3pm Library & Archives Canada Ottawa, ON

The workshop will focus on four main areas: How to Begin, Plot, Characters, and The Writing Itself. We will investigate the following: How do we transcend hesitation? Should the writer use a map or wander in the wilderness? How do we make characters come alive?

Following this short discussion of the writing process, particularly in relation to fiction, the main portion of the workshop will involve an on-site short writing exercise that will be reviewed and analyzed during the workshop.

> This is a free workshop however space is limited. To register, or for more information, please email or call 416.504.8222 x 243.

EILEEN WHITFIELD Secrets of Biography Saturday, June 14, 2008 1pm – 3pm Toronto Public Library Beaches Branch Toronto, ON

A good biographer must combine the skills of an historian, investigative reporter, and researcher. He must have the imaginative empathy of an actor, and the narrative skills to endow historical facts with the pace and excitement of a novel.

Workshop participants will learn how biographers choose a subject, research the life, articulate their point of view and shape the results into compelling narrative. They will learn such framing devices as epilogues, prologues and chapter titles. Research techniques will be examined, as well as accuracy, footnotes and bibliography. Finally, writing another's life will be discussed as an act of self-exploration, as every good biography tells us as much about the writer as it does about the subject.

> This is a free workshop however space is limited. To register, or for more information, please email or call 416.504.8222 x 243.

ANNE LAUREL CARTER Writing for Children Saturday, June 21, 2008 1pm – 3pm Toronto Public Library Lillian H. Smith Branch Toronto, ON

Mine your childhood memories and daydreams for story ideas. Could they become a picture book or Young Adult novel? Explore the elements of story and learn how to get published with the award-winning author of Last Chance Bay and Under a Prairie Sky. Visit Anne's website.

> This is a free workshop however space is limited. To register, or for more information, please email or call 416.504.8222 x 243.