Kamloops Writers Fair a hit

Patricia Donahue and Gail Anderson-Dargatz at the Kamloops Writers Fair

 The old Kamloops Courthouse hosted the inaugural Kamloops Writers Fair Nov. 19 & 20 to a sold out crowd. It was a fitting venue for the event since the Friday night open mic started with a tribute to author Robert W. Service who was once a Kamloops bank teller at the Bank of Commerce. His poem The Prisoner was read from the judge’s bench to much applause. The bank eventually transferred Robert Service to the Yukon, where he became famous for writing The Cremation of Sam McGee, but it’s nice to know that Kamloops once had a literary connection to the past.

 

Friday evening was very entertaining, not only was the audience treated to a variety of readings from talented local authors but our presenters read from their books as well. It was made all the more enjoyable having the House of Rose Vineyards from Kelowna serve their award winning boutique wines. Owner Wouter van der Hall* is not only a vintner but also a member of the Federation of BC Writers.

Saturday morning started with a historic tour of the Courthouse and then Gail Anderson-Dargatz* gave her informative Key Note address. There were four workshops throughout the day. Anderson-Dargatz presented a workshop called, Writing Home, Turning Fact into Fiction and novelist and UBC Okanagan instructor Patricia Donahue’s* workshop was, Character and Dialogue. Sue Buis from TRU spoke about editing skills in her workshop and Janet Whitehead, author and creativity coach did a workshop on Finding Your Creative Muse. 

Between the workshops there were critique sessions giving participants the opportunity to have their work looked at by the authors. After a catered lunch, the closing session was a panel discussion about publishing with moderator and author Elma Schemenauer*. The day ended with door prizes of $ 25.00 gift certificates donated by Chapters and may happy participants talking about coming back next year.

The event was organized by central rep. Sylvia Olson with assistance from the city through the Kamloops Arts Council and local BC Living Arts organization as well as our Katimavik volunteers who came to us from 5 different provinces. We were happy to reach our goal of 50 registrations.

*indicates Federation members

Where the heck is Ymir, and why should it matter to me?

Jenny Craig at the Ymir Retreat

Where Ladies of the Night once snapped garters and tapped heels, a collection of writers tapped keyboards during the 2^nd annual Ymir Palace Retreat October 22, 23, and 24^th.

Set in a former brothel—now backpacker’s hostel—from silver rush days, sixteen wordsmiths gathered to write, eat, walk, think, soak in the hot tub, and raise a glass to the craft. Meals were communally prepared in the kitchen and consumed at the massive dining room table, later the site for a cutthroat game of scrabble and an impromptu singalong of Word War II favourites.

Ymir (pop. 200), near Nelson BC, offered a distraction-free atmosphere, with a country store and a restaurant-pub complete with greasy fries and bluegrass band for the Friday night inaugural dinner.

All reports point to a successful event: not only were many words written, $400 in profits were split between the Fed and the literary community, resulting in a Fed-sponsored student bursary and two subsidies for future Ymir Retreat participants facing financial barriers.

The retreat was organized by Fed member Anne DeGrace with support from Southeast Rep Jennifer Craig. Organizers are considering a spring retreat in addition to the annual fall event.