Guest Speakers

OUTwrites Speaker Series

OUTwrites speaker series features some prominent names in the Canadian Literary scene.  Listening to the experiences and stories of published writers inspires and informs writers about the pitfalls and triumphs of the publishing industry.

Please contact outwritestoronto@gmail.com if you would like to suggest a speaker.

Oct 24, 2013 – Stuart Ross

  Stuart Ross is the author of The Inspiration Cha-Cha, Farmer Gloomy’s New Hybrid (shortlisted for the 2000 Trillium Award), Razovsky at Peace, and Hey, Crumbling Balcony!. He has been active in the Toronto literary scene for nearly 25 years. He sold 7,000 copies of his self-published chapbooks in the streets of Toronto during the ’80s, has edited several literary magazines, and is co-founder of the Toronto Small Press Book Fair. Ross has also had his work published in journals such as Harper’s,This Magazine, Geist, Rampike, Bomb Threat Checklist, and Spudburn. Richard Huttel of Another Chicago Magazine has called Stuart Ross “one of North America’s most active and fiercely independent literary populists.” His Web site is Hunkamooga. (ECW Press)

Feb 2013 – Farzana Doctor

Farzana Doctor, author of Six Metres of Pavement, visits OUTwrites Feb 28, 2013.  She “was praised by Publishers Weekly as “..a paean to second chances” and was named one of Now Magazine’s Top Ten Books of 2011. It also won the Lambda Literary and Rainbow Awards (2012) and was short-listed for the Toronto Book Award. I was named as one of CBC Books’ “Ten Canadian Women Writers You Need to Read Now” and was the recipient of the Writers’ Trust of Canada’s Dayne Ogilvie Grant (2011), was the autumn 2012 Writer in Residence at the Toronto Public Library and co-curate the Brockton Writers Series” (farzanadoctor.com).

Oct 2012 – Matthew J. Trafford

Matthew J. Trafford, author of The Divinity Gene visits OUTwrites on

Thurs. Oct. 18th, 2012 from 8-9pm at The 519 (see link on left side panel).  Check out the facebook event.  Bring friends to this great opportunity to hear from a published author on getting a book published and being queer in the publishing industry.

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April 2012 – Vivek Shraya

Vivek Shraya is a Toronto-based multimedia artist, working in the mediums of music, performance, literature and film. Vivek also creates and delivers workshops and guest lectures about writing, art, gender, sexuality and homophobia, and currently facilitates the Supporting Our Youth Pink Ink writing program for queer, transgender, Two-Spirit and questioning youth writers. (Vivekshraya.com).  Photo:  Karen Campos.

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January 2012 – Brian Francis

Brian Francis is the author of two critically acclaimed novels. His most recent, Natural Order, was selected by the Toronto Star, Kobo and Georgia Straight as a Best Book of 2011. The book was shortlisted for a 2012 Ontario Library Association Evergreen Award. His first novel, Fruit, was a 2009 Canada Reads finalist and was selected as a Barnes and Noble Discover Great New Writers title. His fiction has also appeared in 07: Best Canadian Stories. Francis is a former recipient of the Writers’ Union of Canada’s Emerging Author Award. He lives in Toronto.

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