Diaspora Dialogues

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Diaspora Dialogues to Launch New Project “It Begins with a Book”

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Diaspora Dialogues is thrilled to announce a fresh and exciting project “It Begins with a Book” funded by Canada Council for the Arts.

As the world around us has gotten more intimate in the face of this unprecedented pandemic, DD seeks to spark travel of the imagination through the exploration of global fiction. We will be launching a contest to choose one book from a contemporary writer from Africa, Asia and/or Australia. 

With the help of our community of diverse writers/artists, as well as with partners, arts organizations, and the general public, we’ll be requesting submissions of English language or translated work. People will be asked to submit their recommendation, and a one paragraph description of why that book would be important for Canadians to read.

The nominated books will then be shared with a jury to consider, which includes information on the writer, a summary of the book, how the book fits into the literature canon of its country, the impact it’s had since publication, sample media reviews and any awards it has received, along with a sample excerpt. The final book chosen will then serve as the foundation stone for a series of activities including the creation and presentation of new artistic works by Canadian artists including singer/songwriter/guitarist Lucas Haneman.

More information on the project and submission details is available by signing up for DD’s newsletter, visiting diasporadialogues.com or via DD’s social media channels.

UPCOMING EVENT: Introduction to Self-Publishing

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With more writer’s looking for alternative options to traditional publishing, this workshop will provides an introduction to the essential elements of independent publishing. In the workshop, participants will learn about their publishing options, how to format and prepare their work for submission portals, royalties, important tools to help them along the way, marketing, and what comes after publication. The goal is to help answer common questions, demystify the independent publishing process and allow participants to make informed decisions about how to publish their work.

Tiara Jade Chutkhan is a book blogger. writer and editor born and raised in Toronto. Her love of literature led her to start blogging and sharing her reads, particularly those by BIPOC authors. Through her blogging, Tiara has had the opportunity to review books for HarperCollins, Penguin Random House, Simon and Schuster, Dundurn Press and ZG Stories.

Tiara is the Editor-in-Chief at The Brown Girl Diary and Marketing Coordinator at Diaspora Dialogues. She is a regular contributor for The Brown Girl Diary and Caribbean Collection Magazine. Tiara is also working towards a certificate in Creative Writing from University of Toronto.​

Tiara’s first book, Two Times Removed: An Anthology of Indo-Caribbean Fiction, was released in May 2021.

To register, visit our Eventbrite below:

https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/introduction-to-self-publishing-tickets-195626804037

In Conversation with Sumaiya Matin

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Join us for a live conversation with social worker and writer, Sumaiya Matin as she discusses her debut memoir The Shaytan Bride.

The Shaytan Bride is the true coming-of-age story of a girl navigating desire and faith. Through her journey into adulthood, she battles herself and her circumstances to differentiate between destiny and free will. Sumaiya Matin’s life in love and violence is a testament to one woman’s strength as she faces the complicated fallout of her decisions.

Sumaiya Matin is a writer and a strategic advisor for the Ontario government, working on anti-racism initiatives. She lives in Toronto.

Register for FREE on our Eventbrite:

https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/in-conversation-with-sumaiya-matin-tickets-175800854087

Call for Submissions: GTA and National Long Form Mentorship

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Diaspora Dialogues is thrilled to invite submissions from emerging writers for our GTA and National Long Form Mentorship in 2022!

This mentorship is for those who currently have a full or near-full draft of an original full-length novel, or collection of short stories, or collection of poems. We are now also accepting works intended for young adults. Full or near-full draft means that the writer has up to 85,000 words or 300 double-spaced pages of prose; or up to 25 poems (50 pages maximum).

Diaspora Dialogues is committed to supporting a literature of Canada that is as diverse as the country itself. Writers are encouraged to keep this mandate in mind, but it is not essential in the submission.

Submission Guidelines include:

• Work from which the excerpt is submitted must be in a full draft or near-full draft stage.
• Samples submitted can be one chapter from the novel or one short story from the collection (up to but not exceeding
5,000 words); poetry can include up to 10 poems but not exceed 15 pages.
• Submissions must include a one-page description of the novel, short story or poetry collection.
• Submissions must include a short biography in paragraph form (no more than 250 words.)
• The work must be original and not previously published.
• Submissions must be in English.
• Each writer may submit only one manuscript.
• A completed submission form must be included.
• Submissions will be accepted by email.
• Commentary/feedback is not available on submissions.
• Writers must not have a previously published full-length manuscript (although appearances in magazines
and/or anthologies are acceptable).
• Any writer of any age can apply.


Deadline: November 1 2021 at 11:59 pm.

The mentorships will begin in January 2022 and run for six months. Assigned mentors
are at the discretion of Diaspora Dialogues.


Please read all of the guidelines carefully before submitting. If you have questions, email: [email protected]


Find out more info on the program here: https://diasporadialogues.com/mentoring-program/

In Conversation with Helen Walsh

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DD President Helen Walsh’s debut novel Pull Focus publishes September 7, 2021 in North America (Oct 7th in the UK). Set behind the scenes at an international film festival, the book explores the intersection of gender and power in the film industry and beyond. Join us Sept 9th, 5:30-6:30pm, as Helen sits down in conversation with author (and DD mentor) Rabindranath Maharaj. Free with registration. Copies of Pull Focus available HERE.

In Pull Focus, Jane has been appointed interim director of the Worldwide Toronto Film Festival after her boss has been removed for sexual harassment. Knives are out all around her, as factions within the community want to see her fail. At the same time, her partner, a fund manager, has disappeared, and strange women appear, uttering threats about misused funds. Yet the show must go on. As Jane struggles to juggle all the balls she’s been handed and survive in one piece, she discovers unlikely allies and finds that she’s stronger than she thinks.

Helen Walsh’s debut novel, Pull Focus, will be published September 7, 2021 by ECW Press in Canada and the US, and October 7, 2021 in the UK.

Walsh is also the founder and president of Diaspora Dialogues, a charitable organization that supports writers to turn their craft into a career, through mentorship, professional development, and opportunities to present and publish their work.

Previously, Walsh was publisher and president of the Literary Review of Canada, a monthly book review magazine; director of Spur, a festival of politics, arts and ideas; and a film/digital media writer & producer in Canada and the US.

Walsh lives in Toronto.

Rabindranath Maharaj is the award-winning author of: the novels, Fatboy Fall Down (2019, ECW Press); Adjacentland (2018, Wolsak and Wynn); The Amazing Absorbing Boy (2010, Knopf Canada; winner of the 2010 Trillium Book Award, the 2011 Toronto Book Award, and voted a CBC Canada Reads Top 10 for Ontario); A Perfect Pledge (2005, Knopf Canada; Farrar, Straus and Giroux US; a Rogers Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize and the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize finalist); The Lagahoo’s Apprentice (2000 Knopf Canada; a Globe and Mail and Toronto Star Notable Book of the Year); Homer in Flight (1997, Goose Lane Editions, a Chapters/Books in Canada First Novel Award finalist); The Picture of Nobody (2010, Good Reads/Harper Collins Canada) and the short story collections The Book of Ifs and Buts (2002, Vintage Canada), The Writer and His Wife (1996, Peepal Tree Press, UK), and The Interloper (1995, Goose Lane Editions; Nominated for the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize for Best First Book). Maharaj also co-edited with Dionne Brand and Tessa McWatt. an anthology of Canadian writing, Luminous Ink (2018, Cormorant).

To register for the event, visit: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/in-conversation-with-helen-walsh-tickets-169162528677

Join Us for the TOK Toronto 2021 Symposium

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After the great success of TOK Toronto 2019, and TOK Toronto 2020, we are excited to be bringing our community a fresh line up of events for TOK Toronto 2021.

For the third year, we will be partnering with Word On The Street this September to host all events online. Just as we did last year, anyone is free to register without the limitations of space as everyone can partake from the comfort of their own home. The full schedule of events, along with authors and panel information, can be found here.

All events will be FREE to register on our Eventbrite page.

Stay tuned for our official programming announcement which will be shared on our website and via social media.

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