Diaspora Dialogues

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DD-TD Black Playwrights Mentoring Program presents: La déception m’a ouvert les yeux. February 12, 2:00 PM online presentation

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La déception m’a ouvert les yeux, a play by Edwige Jean-Pierre , presented by Theatre Passe Muraille.

About the Playwright:

Born and raised in Ottawa, Edwige Jean-Pierre is a bilingual actor and playwright of Haitian and Congolese descent. A graduate of the University of Ottawa and Vancouver’s Studio 58, she is a past member of Obsidian Theatre and Tarragon Theatre’s Playwriting Units as well as Les Héritières de Toto B. (in collaboration with Théâtre français de Toronto).

She first came on to the scene with her solo show Even Darkness is Made of Light (dramaturgy and direction by Patrick Conner) at Buddies. Other plays she has written include Saint Bitch/Our Lady of Spills, SOS/MS/ ASAP, GOIN4BROKE, The Big Mess and Espoir/Espwa (co-written with Les Héritières de Toto B).

Her plays have been presented at many festivals such as Rhubarb Festival, Edgy Women Festival, Hysteria Festival, rock.paper.sistahz #7 and #11, AfriCanadian Playwrights’ Festival, Summerworks, InspiraTo Festival and Ohio Northern University’s International Playwright’s Festival.

She’s a recipient of Summerworks’ Spotlight Award in 2010 for her performance in Even Darkness is Made of Light.

Edwige’s work focuses on political and social issues. She lives in Toronto with her husband Andrew.

Merlin Simard (she/they/iel/elle) is a performer, playwright, dramaturge, and filmmaker originally from Tiohtiá:ke (Montréal) now based in Tkarón:to (Toronto). Her practice focuses on themes of access, gender euphoria, technology, and multilingual performance. They co-founded and co-run, bigT, a theatre collective seeking to uplift intersectional trans* voices. As a performer, Merlin has worked with Stratford, Crow’s, Outside The March, Buddies In Bad Times, and many other theatre companies across Canada. She has also acted on Grand Army (Netflix) and This Life (CBC). They are developing several projects spanning across theatre and VR with the support of Theatre Passe Muraille (FEAR OF MEN), Théâtre Français de Toronto (ZADDY ISSUES), and Nightwood Theatre (a free britney) amongst others. @hussy4hussy
Attached is also a headshot! 

Register for FREE here: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_BtW71ZX1RF2FH2k5_w8LKA

The Public Lending Right with TWUC

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Attention writers! Are you considering joining The Writer’s Union of Canada? Join us for a workshop hosted by TWUC’s Executive Director John Degen and chair Rhea Tregebov. They will further explain what TWUC does and offers Canadian writers, as well as explain what the Public Lending Right is and how it can be beneficial.

Rhea Tregebov’s second novel Rue des Rosiers was short-listed for the 2020 BC and Yukon Book Prizes Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize and won the 2020 Nancy Richler Memorial Prize for Fiction. An award-winning poet and celebrated author of children’s picture books, Tregebov has also edited numerous anthologies.

John Degen is Executive Director of The Writers’ Union of Canada (TWUC), and Chair of the International Authors Forum (IAF) in the UK – serving and representing over 700,000 authors worldwide. He is a poet and novelist with three published books. His novel, The Uninvited Guest, was shortlisted for the 2007 Amazon First Novel Award.

To register for the event, visit our Eventbrite: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/the-public-lending-right-with-twuc-tickets-224862789657

ARCHIVED 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

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.

ARCHIVED EVENT: The Art of the Pitch

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Attention writers! Have you finished a fantastic manuscript and are now looking to sell it? Join us for a workshop on the Art of the Pitch with Bryan Ibeas, fiction editor at Invisible Publishing and Hazel Millar, Co-Publisher of Book*hug Press. Come prepared to talk about your project, ask questions and have your pitch flash assessed!

Bryan Ibeas is a fiction editor at Invisible Publishing.

Hazel Millar is the Co-Publisher at Book*hug Press, an independent literary press based in Toronto. She is the Past Chair of the Board of the Literary Press Group of Canada and sits on several publishing-related boards and advisory committees She lives in Toronto with her husband, Jay MillAr, aka, the other half of Book*hug Press, their two sons, and a cool calico cat named Tess.

To register for the workship, visit:

https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/the-art-of-the-pitch-tickets-162592844575

ARCHIVED EVENT: Money Matters

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Money issues? Who doesn’t have them! Join us on June 11th at 12:30 pm for a Money Matters presentation with TD Business Management Analyst Jennifer Tomic, a TD employee who is very kindly volunteering her time and expertise.

We have been very fortunate to partner with TD on our DD-TD Black Playwrights Program this past year. When we reached out to them about a LnL focussed on financial planning, they were happy to tailor one to our needs. Jennifer will discuss practical strategies for saving and making your dollars count as you invest for your future.

To register for the workshop, visit: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/money-matters-tickets-158031088239

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