The literary life keeps me gosh-darn busy! And boy am I grateful!
On the plate this week – tonight, as a matter of fact! – is Poetry At The Manor Volume 4!
Each year, Windsor Poet Laureate Marty Gervais teams up with the City’s Cultural Affairs Office to present Poetry at the Manor, an intimate evening of poetry and storytelling at Willistead Manor. This year Marty welcomes 5 poets laureate from across Canada to come and read to Windsor audiences.
This year’s guest poets include: Yvonne Blomer (Victoria, British Columbia), Micheline Maylor (Calgary, Alberta), Anna Yin (Mississauga, Ontario), Kim Fahner (Sudbury, Ontario) and Gerry Hill (Regina, Saskatchewan).
In addition to public readings and discussion, there will be book signings and sales, literary giveaways, and Poetry-On-Demand with Windsor poet and published author Vanessa Shields.
Also in the flesh will be singer/songwriter Crissi Cochrane to woo us with her magical voice and musical talent! We hope to see you there – oh, and yes, it’s FREE!
Next week is loaded with exciting events including BookFest Windsor, taking place at new location – The Art Gallery of Windsor and Chimczuk Museum. Though the festival doesn’t begin until Friday, November 5, my dear friend and writer Charis Cotter will be in town for the festivities, and she and I will be visiting some elementary school classroom to gets kids excited about literacy and writing on Wednesday and Thursday.
During the festival, I will be at several events, including as Moderator/Host at the Student Writing Contest Award Ceremony, at Snack BBQ for the opening reception, and as Host again at a Spoken Word Event.
For all your planning and scheduling needs, please stay connected at the BookFest Windsor website: www.bookfestwindsor.com
VANESSA SHIELDS, writer 