Diaspora Dialogues

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Dante Mottillo

Stand and Celebrate Canadian Writing

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Workshop: Public Speaking Workshop

Heart racing. A bead of sweat rolling down your brow. Clenching your page and wrinkling its rigid edge as you stand up to the microphone. Becoming a good writer takes time, and for some, just as much time as becoming a good speaker. Award-winning poet Andrea Thompson will be facilitating this workshop which will aid you in many aspects of your future life. From speaking in an interview, in front of a class, to shaking loose of performance jitters, this is perfect for all to join. Best of all, many of the participants will be from our very own Young Writers from the Edge Program.

When: March 24, 2012; from 2 pm—4 pm
Where: 170 Bloor Street West, Suite 804
Register: Email Natalie at natalie@diapsoradialogues.com

Book Talk: Keep Toronto Reading: Read it Here: In the Skin of a Lion

Project Bookmark Canada is a wonderful organization that allows readers to walk by the various settings within Toronto that they have read about. Founder Miranda Hill will be examining Michael Ondaatje’s In the Skin of a Lion, which was bookmarked at the Bloor Street Viaduct in 2009. Read the book and join the discussion to find out about what and where you are reading.

When: April 4, 2012; from 7:00 pm—8:30 pm
Where: Riverdale TPL branch, Adult Program Room; 370 Broadview Ave.

Calling All Writers: National Poetry Month Celebration!

Literature is always finding new ways to be celebrated, and now you can join in the festivities. Members from The League of Canadian Poets will be revelling in the glory of their poetry and of their fellow writers. The organization began in 1999 in order to gather a variety of writers that embraced their Canadian culture. Now they are taking the time to celebrate how far they have come in representing themselves in the Canadian eye. Poets, writers, songwriters and singers will be attending the party, and so will you!

When: April 5, 2012; from 1:00 pm—2:15 pm
Where: Downsview TPL branch; 2793 Keele Street
Registration: FREE! Call 416-395-5720, or e-mail doprograms@torontopubliclibrary.ca

Workshop Bonanza

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Workshop: Wordplay Writing

Join fiction author Karen Krossing to practise playing with words. Learn how to create great scenes in fiction and just let your writing flow. With this fun hands-on workshop, you will have two hours to start and develop a character and scene for your latest fiction frenzy.

Who: Ages 12-19
When: March 15, 2012; from 3:00 pm-5:00 pm
Where: Cedarbrae TPL branch; 545 Markham Road
Registration: FREE! Call 416-397-5970 or email ksparling@torontopubliclibrary.ca

Workshop: Playwriting 101

Ever imagine words forming into a 3D reality? With award-winning playwright, Marjorie Chan, all participants will take part in improvisation-based warm-ups and learn how to write outside of print. Be prepared with loose and comfy clothing as this workshop is not restricted to stiff chairs. Bring a notebook (no laptop), a pen, and plenty of energy. Lunch is provided!

Who: Grades 7-9
When: May 5, 2012; from 10:00 am-2:00 pm
Where: 215 Spadina Ave, Suite 210
Registration: FREE! www.playwrightsguild.ca

Workshop: The World of Kluscap According to M’Shoum

Writing and reading is extremely fun, but what about the origins of some of your favourite childhood fairy-tales? In collaboration with the Toronto Storytelling Festival, Robert Seven Crows will be exploring the joys of folklore with a guitar and tawegan (drum). He will be telling stories of the Kluscap, a celebrated hero in native stories. Although no writing is involved, you will better grasp how some of the earliest narratives sounded, and they may even shape the way that you form your own modern writing style.

When: March 29, 2012; from 2:00 pm-3:15 pm
Where: Spadina Road TPL branch; 10 Spadina Road

Handy Happenings

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Contest: Trillium 25th Anniversary Contest

Open Book Toronto is hosting a special contest to honour their past award-winning books. To win, simply visit the site through the below link and vote on which book is your favourite. Submission requires you to be an Open Book e-newsletter subscriber. To subscribe, simply give your email along with your vote. Voting is so easy that with a few strokes of the keypad and two simple mouse-clicks, you are eligible to win one of three Kobo eReaders Touch.

Runtime: February 1 to March 28, 2012
For more information visit here

Workshop: Six Degrees of Writing

To be honorably published is the dream of writers all around. Toronto Public Library is inviting award-winning author and teacher Catherine Rondina to aid in the discovery of publishing opportunities. She will discuss the essentials of how to make it into the publishing world and what kinds of novels are best sellers. This workshop sounds fabulous for all that aspire to be famed authors of the twenty-first century.

When: March 24, 2012; from 2:30 pm-4:30 pm
Where: York Woods TPL branch, 1785 Finch Avenue West
Registration: Call 416-395-5980

Workshop: Best Loved Books: Teen Book Discussion

Reading is the best way to flood your mind with inspiration. To learn of literature that has yet to hit your conscious creativity, this gathering of books is a great way to expand your library. From most memorable novels to poetic prose, fun fiction to colourful comics, you’ll have a blast learning of books that you would never have heard of. Bringing in a copy of your dearest paperbacks and hardcovers is preferred as a visual to show the group. This event is coming in the distant future, so start marking down titles that you can’t wait to spread the word about. I know that I have been making a list since the beginning of ’06!

When: May 3, 2012; from 4:30 pm-6:30 pm
Where: North York Central Library, Room 2; 5120 Yonge Street
Registration: Not Required. Drop in.

Eager Writing

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Contest: Book Week

Writing is an artist’s chance to manipulate and craft words into flowing streams, but prizes are always fun, aren’t they? Well, if you have any poems or short stories in need of edits, or choose to create something new, Book Week is allowing students across Canada to submit works for winnings. Eligibility is for students in Canada from grades 4-12, in which one student from every grade has a chance to win a $250 gift certificate to his/her favourite bookstore, and even better, the chance to be named a winner of a countrywide contest!

Deadline: February 1, 2012

For more information and entry forms click here

Workshop: Looney Poems Poetry

Cartoons are the muse of nearly everyone, no matter the age. The Looney Tunes have especially been iconic in many childhood memories, so why not use them to inspire your poetry? Matthew Tierney is a Canadian poet, who will be hosting a workshop dedicated to lightening the hearts of your writing. If you feel that your works have been a little dry of humour, or you just really like Bugs Bunny, attend this hands-on workshop. For ages 12-19.

When: February 15, 2012; from 4:30 pm—6:30 pm
Where: Runnymede TPL branch, 2178 Bloor Street West

Registration: FREE! Call 416-397-5970 or email ksparling@torontopubliclibrary.ca

Workshop: Young Voices Magazine

Young Voices Magazine is one of my favourite magazines in the city, and it is composed entirely of youth talent. The Young Voices Magazine is run by the Toronto Public Library, and as a former writer in the magazine, I can personally say how much of a joy it is. Open to both visual and literary artists, teens aging from 12-19 are eligible to submit (not to worry, there are three different age categories). From poems to sketches, rants to photographs, this contest is a great way to get your work into the eyes of your peers throughout Toronto.

Deadline: March 31, 2012

For more information and specifications for submissions click here

Every Monday Dante Mottillo will post his upcoming event picks of what’s happening in and around the city.

Cramped in a Cardboard Box: The Fixated Writer

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Being cramped in a cardboard box is not fun. The mind is stuck, and dry, and cannot finish a thought. Finding a rhyme with orange is nearly impossible, and other fruit will simply not suffice. So how does one conclude thoughts that seem unthinkable? Try standing up, and claw at the air for the word out of reach. Go wash your hands of the mucky words that reiterate themselves to you constantly. Even try to meditate, and hope that the sentence to save your story will float into your consciousness. Now, I am no guru of thought, nor do I admit to having any foreknowledge as to why orange is the only fruit to bring joy.

Read on simply because you must do something besides scratch your head and stare at a wall with a quizzical expression. Read because maybe this babbled thought will be just the jumble of letters and words that give you what you need.

This is the instruction that I can pass on to you: retain the first three words that come into your mind. Now try your best to forget them all. Hop on the spot and shake your head free of them. If you can’t, then it shows that you may be doomed to your little cardboard box. Hopefully though, by now you will have thought of that rhyme for orange, or realized that tangerines are better anyway. Hopefully this bit of nonsensical reasoning has given a flow to your creative juices, and has dampened your cardboard box enough to break free.

Grammatical Ingenuity or the Writer’s Curse?

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Ever look at two words that are inexplicably indifferent, and yet perplex you to an irritable state? If yes, then be grateful for the trouble caused by something so pointless. Flourish in the structure of Strunk and White’s Elements of Style, or the punctuation-driven humour in Truss’ Eats, Shoots & Leaves. Both praise the grammarian inside the select few, and the wondrous life opened up to syntactical obsession.

Take for instance the conundrum between center and centre. There truly is no difference in the meaning between the two words. They are spelled with the same letters, take up the same syllables, and are spoken no differently. Yet, the reality of having the two variants exemplifies the intriguing complexities of language.

To clarify, centre—in Canadian English—is the noun, and center is a verb. Truthfully, to a normal individual there is no distinct purpose to acknowledging the difference. Even if one might need to say that “the water cooler must be centered in the Hospital Centre.” All that comes is a fun run of the mouth.

So then, what’s the point? Well, the trouble caused by such indifference is the tell-tale sign of a great grammatical enthusiast. Or simply, OCD in the making. Regardless, great writers acknowledge the gift and profusely obsess over whether it’s center or centre, and whether or not the comma should come before and. Like the duality of words, embrace the ability to be just as inexplicably indifferent.

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