Sunshine Coast Festival of the Written Arts

01/18/2025

Remembering Len Pakulak (1936-2024)

All of us here at the Festival of the Written Arts were saddened to hear of the passing of one of our very good friends and supporters, Len Pakulak. Len was a dedicated festival volunteer for more than three decades. He did everything from swinging hammers while building the Festival Pavilion to slinging drinks at the Festival bar to working the barbecue in the days when the Festival hosted salmon dinners. He also served on the SCFWA’s Fund Development Committee and established the Lynn Pakulak Endowment Fund (held at the Sunshine Coast Foundation) in memory of his wife, a former board member. The many generous contributions Len made to the Festival over the years have created a beautiful legacy that has helped us celebrate 42 years and head into the future with strength and vitality. Len, you will be deeply missed, and you will always be remembered at the Festival of the Written Arts.

We send our heartfelt condolences to Len’s family, especially his daughters Kathy and Karen, and his many friends. A celebration of Len’s life will take place on February 19, 2025 at St. Hilda's By The Sea Anglican Church. Please see Len's obituary in the Coast Reporter for more details, and visit our Legacy of Literacy Donor Wall to read more about Len and the Lynn Pakulak Endowment he founded.
https://writersfestival.ca/donors/len-pakulak/

Photos: Len and Lynn Pakulak at the 2011 Festival of the Written Arts (photo by Cathie Roy); Daughter Kathy, Len Pakulak and author Ausma Zehanat Khan at the 2018 Festival of the Written Arts (photo by Roan Mee)

01/01/2025

We send all of our friends and followers our best wishes for 2025...

The Sunshine Coast Festival of the Written Arts gives thanks for our production team and the many authors, volunteers, donors, sponsors and audience members who supported us in 2024.

We also want to acknowledge Talewind Books and our funders, including the Government of Canada, through the Canada Council for the Arts | Conseil des arts du Canada, the Department of Canadian Heritage and Service Canada; the Province of British Columbia through the BC Arts Council; the District of Sechelt; and the Sunshine Coast Foundation.

2024 Festival photos (from left to right, top to bottom): Mo Amir (left) and Naomi Klein; Pavilion entrance; Catherine Hernandez; Sam George (left) and Jill Yonit Goldberg; SCFWA director Daniel Heath Justice (left) and Waubgeshig Rice; Brent Butt; Simon Paradis (left) and Kara Stanley; Susan Juby; Lorna Crozier (left) and Jess Housty; festival attendees lining up in the rain; Shelley Wood; Jill Barber. All photos by Rik Jespersen. See a complete photo gallery at https://writersfestival.ca/photo-gallery/photo-gallery-2024/

12/21/2024

Looking for a gift for the person who has everything? 🎁 The Vancouver Writers Fest is offering an all-access pass to their digital festival (good until January 31st, 2025), featuring 26 author events from their stellar 2024 festival. And the production values are great!

The Digital Festival is available online NOW for a limited time! 🖥️📚✨
https://writersfest.bc.ca/event/digital-festival-2024

This holiday season, enjoy binge-watching worthy of book lovers. A curated selection of 26 outstanding events from the 2024 Vancouver Writers Fest are available to watch and rewatch until January 31.

🎥 26 full-length, professionally recorded, fully captioned events
🎟️ Multi-access pricing options
💻 Passes and full lineup details: https://writersfest.bc.ca/event/digital-festival-2024

Featuring award-winning, bestselling authors such as Rachel Kushner, Richard Powers, Anne Michaels, Brandon Taylor, Dionne Brand, Tanya Talaga, Nathan Thrall, Beverley McLachlin, George McWhirter, Timothy Snyder, and many more, the Digital Festival offers hours of entertainment and inspiration for readers of all genres!

💛 Presented in partnership with Libro.fm and Peliplat, and with the generous support of Hotfusion Communications Inc.

10/21/2024

The 2024 edition of the Vancouver Writers Fest starts today! Are you excited? I know we are...

Day 1 of begins with a nuanced and courageous conversation between Raja Khouri and Jeffrey Wilkinson, authors of The Wall Between. This event is available online and free to all.
https://writersfest.bc.ca/festival-event-2024/01

On October 3, 2023, Khouri and Wilkinson published The Wall Between: What Jews and Palestinians Don’t Want to Know about Each Other. This wall is not only one of concrete, but distrust, enmity, and hate, fueling the breakdown of civil discourse in public spaces around the world. How can it be dismantled with dignity and safety for all? The authors joined us on September 9 to record this essential conversation.

Raja Khouri joins us in-person on October 27 to host a screening of the conversation, followed by a Q+A where he will answer audience questions in a space for listening and reflecting on how we can all work towards a lasting peace, moderated by Avril Orloff.
https://writersfest.bc.ca/festival-event-2024/82

10/18/2024

Have you seen some of the wonderful events being offered at the Whistler Writers Festival? We're heading there for the weekend and we suggest you do too! There are still some tickets left...

10/09/2024

If you're in Sechelt today, don't miss this special MedTalks event, hosted by the Sechelt Hospital Foundation. Registration is free!

Finland. Iceland. Denmark. Sweden. These are the "happiest countries" on earth, year over year. Why is that?

Join John Helliwell, founding editor of the World Happiness Report, as he shares the latest findings in happiness research and life satisfaction across the ages.

This free lecture is open to all ages at Raven’s Cry Theatre in Sechelt on Oct 9, 2-3:30pm.

RSVP at https://www.sechelthospitalfoundation.org/upcoming-medtalks/

09/04/2024

The SCFWA sadly acknowledges the recent and unexpected passing of author Darrel J. McLeod, who presented at the 2019 Festival of Written Arts to read from and discuss his spectacular debut book Mamaskatch: A Cree Coming of Age, which won the Governor General’s Literary Award for non-fiction in 2018. We were also honoured to have Darrel participate in our Festival’s special 40th anniversary event “Walking With” (along with Joseph Dandurand, Danielle Geller and Angela Sterritt) in September 2022. Darrel was a talented, generous, kind and beautiful soul who made friends and fans where ever he went. He will be deeply missed and we send our sincere condolences to Darrel’s friends and family.

This photo of Darrel was taken by Roan Mee at the 2019 Festival of the Written Arts.

08/24/2024

If you missed this year's festival, or you want to relive some of the highlights, we're excited to release our Festival 2024 Wrap-Up podcast, produced by board member Sean Eckford!

Sunshine Coast Festival of the Written Arts board member Sean Eckford looks back on some highlights from the 2024 festival. For news, updates, tikcet and lineup information visit www.writersfestival.

08/20/2024

That’s a wrap on the 2024 Sunshine Coast Festival of Authors, and what an incredible literary journey it’s been! Celebrating its 42nd year, the festival once again stayed true to the vision of our founders by bringing together renowned literary figures, fresh new voices, and readers from across Canada, while nurturing our literary and cultural community and celebrating the written arts.

A heartfelt thank you to everyone who made this event possible. To the authors, readers, panelists, moderators, musicians, staff, volunteers, and guests who gathered at the Rockwood Centre — your presence and participation were invaluable. We look forward to seeing you all again very soon!

08/09/2024

Amazing opportunity! 🤩 Saturday passes have been sold out for weeks, but we just had one come available! This pass for August 17 will give you access to events 9 - 15, including Ann-Marie MacDonald's SOLD OUT event at 7:00 pm. Please phone our office at (604) 885-9631 immediately if you are interested, because it won't last long...

08/08/2024

We'll be kickstarting the festival next week with best-selling author and journalist Naomi Klein, who will be in conversation with Mo Amir, host of This is VANCOLOUR.

From August 15-18, we’ll be featuring 21 amazing authors throughout this year’s Sunshine Coast Festival of Written Arts, with musical guest three-time Juno nominated singer-songwriter Jill Barber to close out the event.

Visit our website (or the link in our bio) to access our printable festival planner. Tickets available while supplies last.

08/07/2024

Kevin Chong is the award-winning author of several books of fiction and nonfiction. His work has appeared in The Guardian, The Rumpus, and more. He currently lives in Vancouver and is an associate professor at the University of British Columbia, Okanagan campus. The Double Life of Benson Yu was a finalist for the Scotiabank Giller Prize.

Kevin will join the 2024 Sunshine Coast Festival of the Written Arts for Event #12, taking place Saturday, August 17 @ 3:00 p.m. Tickets available on our website at the link in our bio.

ABOUT THE BOOK:
In a Chinatown housing project lives twelve-year-old Benny, his ailing grandmother, and his strange neighbor Constantine, a man who believes he’s a reincarnated medieval samurai. When his grandmother is hospitalized, Benny manages to survive on his own until a social worker comes snooping. With no other family, he is reluctantly taken in by Constantine and soon, an unlikely bond forms between the two.

At least, that’s what Yu, the narrator of the story, wants to write.

08/07/2024

On a warm June afternoon in King’s Cove, an explosion disrupts the peace. Lane investigates and finds a secluded cabin with an injured, mute young Japanese girl hiding nearby. Meanwhile, at the Nelson Police Station, Inspector Darling and Sergeant Ames discover a dead jeweller and a live wire at the scene of a heist. As Lane searches for the girl’s family, Darling’s team uncovers a local connection that leads to Cornwall and a mining interest on the McKenzie River. Offices are ransacked, and someone is following Lane. Amidst ransacked offices and hidden threats, the latest Winslow mystery delves into old promises and persistent prejudice.

You can catch Iona at 6 on Friday, August 16 @ 4:00 p.m. Tickets available on our website at the link in our bio. *Purchased tickets for Kyo Maclear are valid for this event.*

Silence

08/06/2024

We are very pleased to be able to present, along with the BC Arts Council, these Front Porch Grant Conversations for writers and other artists and cultural workers interested in knowing more about funding opportunities at the BC Arts Council. During the Festival of the Written Arts you can sign up for a 15-minute session with Program Advisor Michelle Benjamin.

08/05/2024

NEW PODCAST! With the Festival just around the corner, Artistic and Executive Director Marisa Alps and Festival Vice President Sean Eckford sit down to talk about some of the authors who will be presenting at the 42nd annual Sunshine Coast Festival of the Written Arts, running August 15-18, 2024.

Festival board member Sean Eckford and Artistic and Executive Director Marisa Alps look ahead to the 2024 Sunshine Coast Festival of the Written Arts, August 15 -18. www.writersfestival.ca

08/05/2024

🚨SOLD OUT 🚨
Looking for professional advice on how to write a memoir? Publisher of Howard White will be joining the 2024 Sunshine Coast Festival of the Written Arts for Event B: Writing Memoir and Family History, with Howard White on Friday, August 16, from 11:45 am – 12:45 pm.

Howard will be sharing his years-long career advice in his workshop that offers tips for writing memoirs, as well as inspiration for those just getting started.

This event is by donation to the Festival of the Written Arts but hurry space is limited! Visit our website at the link in bio.

08/04/2024

Iona Whishaw is a former educator and social worker whose mother and grandfather were both spies during their respective wars. She is the award-winning author of the Lane Winslow Mystery series. The eleventh novel, “Lightning Strikes the Silence,” was recently named by CBC Books as a Top 20 Bestselling Canadian Book of 2024 so far. She lives in Vancouver, British Columbia, with her husband.


Whishaw will join the 2024 Sunshine Coast Festival of the Written Arts for Event #6, taking place Friday, August 16 @ 4:00 p.m. Tickets available on our website at the link in our bio. *Purchased tickets for Kyo Maclear are valid for this event.*

ABOUT THE BOOK:
On a warm June afternoon in King’s Cove, an explosion disrupts the peace. Lane investigates and finds a secluded cabin with an injured, mute young Japanese girl hiding nearby. Meanwhile, at the Nelson Police Station, Inspector Darling and Sergeant Ames discover a dead jeweller and a live wire at the scene of a heist. As Lane searches for the girl’s family, Darling’s team uncovers a local connection that leads to Cornwall and a mining interest on the McKenzie River. Offices are ransacked, and someone is following Lane. Amidst ransacked offices and hidden threats, the latest Winslow mystery delves into old promises and persistent prejudice.

Silence