Canadian Festivals and Reading Series

Canadian Literary Festivals and Reading Series are eligible to apply for funding through the Union's National Public Readings Program. Through this program, The Writers’ Union of Canada supports organizations across Canada that are hosting public author readings by providing payment for the author's reading fee and some travel expenses. This program is only open to authors who are members of the Union.

Members of the Union can access further information about other writer's resources and writing organizations in the Member's Only section – Members must be logged on to access this page.

Have we missed a festival or reading series? Please email us the name of the festival, the city and province it takes place in, and its website, and we will happily add it to the list. Thank you!

Canada

• Canadian Festival of Spoken Word
• Canadian Library Month
• Freedom to Read Week
• National Poetry Month
• TD Canadian Children’s Book Week
• The Word On The Street (events in Halifax, Toronto, Saskatoon & Lethbridge) 

British Columbia

• Bookfest: Children’s Book Festival (Vancouver Island)
• Cherie Smith JCCGV Jewish Book Festival (Vancouver)
• Dead Poets Reading Series (Vancouver)
• Denman Island Readers and Writers Festival (Denman Island)
• Elephant Mountain Literary Festival (Nelson)
• Galiano Literary Festival (Galiano)
• Lit Fest New West (New Westminster)
• LiterASIAN (Vancouver)
• North Shore Writers’ Festival (Vancouver)
• Planet Earth Poetry reading series (Victoria)
• Shuswap Lake International Writers’ Festival – Word on the Lake (Salmon Arm)
• Sidney and Peninsula Literary Festival (Sidney)
• Sunshine Coast Festival of the Written Arts (Sechelt)
• Surrey International Writers’ Conference (Surrey)
• The Pacific Festival of the Book (Victoria)
• Vancouver International Writers & Readers Festival (Vancouver)
• Victoria Writers Festival (Victoria)
• Whistler Readers and Writers Festival (Whistler)
• Word Vancouver
• Word on the Lake Festival (Salmon Arm)
• Words on the Water (Campbell River)

Yukon

• Yukon Writers’ Festival (Whitehorse)
• Whitehorse Poetry Festival (Whitehorse)

Alberta

• Banff Mountain Book Festival (Banff)
• Calgary International Spoken Word Festival
• Edmonton International Literary Festival (Edmonton)
• Edmonton Poetry Festival (Edmonton)
• LitFest. Edmonton International Literary Festival (Edmonton) 
• Stroll of Poets (Edmonton)
• Taleblazers: Young Alberta Book Society Literary Festival
• When Words Collide (Calgary)
• WordFest (Banff an Calgary )

North West Territories

• Northwords (Yellowknife)

Saskatchewan

• Ânskohk Aboriginal Writer's Festival (Regina) 
• Saskatchewan Festival of Words (Moose Jaw)
• Talking Fresh (Regina)
• Vertigo (Regina)

Manitoba

• In Dialouge (Winnipeg)
• THIN AIR, the Winnipeg International Writers Festival

Ontario

• 1000 Islands Writers Festival
• AB Reading Series (Ottawa)
• African Canadian Children’s Literary Festival
• Art Bar Poetry Readings (Toronto)
• Authors' Book Fair (Port Dover)
• BookFest (Windsor)
• Brockton Writers Series (Brockton Village, Toronto)
• Can Write 
• Cat Sass Literary Nights (Norwood)
• Draft Reading Series (Toronto)
• Eden Mills Writers’ Festival (Eden Mills)
• Elora Writers’ Festival (Elora, Ontario)
• First Nations House (Toronto)
• The Festival of Literary Diversity (FOLD) (Brampton)
• gritLIT (Hamilton)
• Impossible Arts (Toronto)
• International Festival of Authors (Toronto) – TWUC members receive a 50% discount on tickets. For more information see Corporate Discounts
• Kama Reading Series (Toronto)
• Killaloe Kids Book Fest (Killaloe)
• Kingston Writers Festival (Kingston)
• Lakefield Lit Festival (near Peterborough)
• Leacock Festival (Orillia)
• Life Rattle Podcasts
• Lit Live (Hamilton)
• Niagara Literary Arts Festival (Niagara)
• Northwestern Ontario Writers Workshop (Thunder Bay)
• Northwords Muskoka Literary Festival (Huntsville)
• Ontario Writers' Conference (Oshawa)
• Ottawa International Writers Festival (Ottawa)
• Pivot Readings (Toronto)
• Poetry London (London)
• Prince Edward County Authors Festival (Picton)
• Prose in the Park (Ottawa)
• Rowers Pub Reading Series (Toronto)
• Salon du Livre du Grand Sudbury
• Spoken Word Canada
• Stellar Literary Festival – promotes new and emerging from Durham Region and GTA (Oshawa)
• Stories in the North (Thessalon)
• Telling Tales Festival (Hamilton)
• This is Not a Reading Series (Toronto)
• Toronto Poetry Project (Toronto)
• Toronto Small Press Group (Toronto) 
• Toronto Storytelling Festival (Toronto)
• Tree Readings (Ottawa)
• Two Women Productions (Lanark County)
• VerseFest (Ottawa)
• Voice of Venus (Ottawa)
• Word on the Water (Kenora)
• Wordstock Sudbury Literary Festival (Sudbury)
• Words Aloud (Durham) 

Quebec

• Blue Metropolis Montreal International Literary Festival (Montreal) 
• Festival International de la Littérature (Montreal)
• Festival Phenomena (Montreal)
• ImagiNation Writers' Festival (Quebec City)
• Salon du Livre de Montréal (Montreal)
• Trois-Rivieres International Festival of Poetry (Trois-Rivieres)
• The Wakefield Writers Festival - La Pêche (La Pêche )

Nova Scotia

• Read by the Sea (River John)
• Cabot Trail Writers Festival (Baddeck) 
• Lunenburg Lit Festival (Lunenburg)

New Brunswick

• Attic Owl Reading Series (Moncton)
• Fog Lit Festival (Saint John)
• Frye Festival
• Lorenzo Society Readings (Saint John)
• Saint Mary's Reading Series (Halifax)
• UNB Poetry Weekend (Fredericton)
• UNB Reading Series (Fredericton)
• Wordsfall

Newfoundland and Labrador

• Come From Away Reading Series (St. John’s)
• Just Before Dinner Reading Series (Port Rexton)
• Festival at Ochre Pit Cove (Ochre Pit Cove)
• The March Hare (Cornerbrook)
• Sparks Literary Festival (St. John’s)
• Spring Tides Reading Series (St. John’s)
• Winterset in Summer (Eastport)
• Writers at Woody Point (Woody Point)

Prince Edward Island

• Pen and Inkling Festival (Charlottetown)