Podcasts about literary diversity

Records sound better than t-shirts. Today we're talking literature and CanLit, sports, and music around the theme of accessibility as we continue to promote women in the arts for the remainder of Women's History Month. Well this week on Outlook we're discussing wearing our message on our clothing as The Festival of Literary Diversity's (FOLD) schedule of events and festival sign-up has gone live on their website which we'll share at the end of this episode's description. It's an eight day long event (first, half virtual and the second four days in person) as we discuss the importance of both options for events and gatherings, workshops, and festivals of all kinds, for people with disabilities which make in-person attendance more difficult, something we've sadly moved away from since coming out of the worst of the pandemic. A friend told sister/co-host Kerry about a recent online author talk, put on by the FOLD, from their FOLD Academy, with Amanda Leduc called “Building a Life as a Disabled Writer” which included topics such as managing energy for writing when living with disability or chronic illness and information on applying for arts grants which are geared to creators with disabilities. (The next FOLD Academy takes place on April 19th at noon Eastern.) Spring has sprung )or is trying to) and that means baseball so brother/co-host Brian is ready, with his fantasy league and with the real thing, as we highlight the usefulness of listening to games on the radio for those of us who can't see the visuals of the live thing. It's like audiobooks or podcasts, an audio method of listening. He's traveling to New York City shortly, but only time will tell if he ends up attending a New York team's live game, as Kerry remembers the experience of attending a Bluejays game in the Sky Dome, as we forever refer to it. We talk the creative projects we've worked on together and the factors which make them more or less possible, about the need for diversity in literature and art, and even about the ignorance of certain authors who don't understand the value of authenticity reading or even what it is. Proud to be woke on Outlook, it's part II of a March Mixed Bag pile of topics, including the FOLD, and sister/co-host Kerry will be attending the online portion next month and sharing more come May. So many books, so little time, but check out more info on The Festival of Literary Diversity, from April 27th to May 4th, by going to their website here: https://thefoldcanada.org

Free 5-Day Email Mini Course on Hooking an Agent with Your OpeningClick here to rate and review the podcast!Find out more about Emmy Nordstrom HigdonLink to the last time Emmy was on the podcastConnect with David on TwitterEPISODE INFO:In today's episode, we're going to hear from a literary agent about what you need in your opening pages. If you're hoping to sign with an agent this year, then you'll love the clear, actionable steps outlined in this episode.BIO:emmy (they/them) holds a PhD in justice-oriented social work with a focus on critical animal studies from McMaster University, with peer-reviewed publications in public health and psychology. In 2019, they made a lateral career move into publishing after four years as a bookseller at a local independent bookstore.They are a literary agent at Westwood Creative Artists, a faculty member for the Manuscript Academy, and an advisor for the Festival of Literary Diversity and Sheridan College Creative Writing and Publishing programs. In their agenting work, they use a hands-on, conscious editing approach.emmy is a queer, trans, and non-binary colonizer originally from Ktaqmkuk (Newfoundland), the ancestral homelands of the Beothuk and the Mi'kmaq, now based on the Haldimand Tract, which is the territory of the Anishinaabe, Haudenosaunee, and Attawandaran peoples. emmy is autistic, has psychiatric disabilities, and a hormone-related chronic illness.emmy lives with their partner, a Deaf Dalmatian named Pavot, two formerly feral Maine coon cats, Whisper and Willow, and their collection of plants, informally nicknamed The Leafy Bois. They keep busy with vegan cooking, needlework, wholesome games, snail mail, their sticker collection, TTRPGs, and… obviously, reading.Tweet me @DavidRGwyn

Literacy Quebec team member, Jessica Leahy interviews Jael Richardson. Jael Richardson bio: Jael Richardson is the author of three books: The Stone Thrower: A Daughter's Lesson, a Father's Life (also adapted into a children's book), Gutter Child, and Because You Are. She also founded and serves as the executive director of the FOLD, the Festival of Literary Diversity. The FOLD is Canada's first festival for diverse writers, giving a platform to underrepresented voices through panels, discussions, workshops, and more! Jael Richardson website, where you can order Jael's books: http://www.jaelrichardson.com/ The FOLD website: https://thefoldcanada.org/ The FOLD linktree: https://linktr.ee/thefold_ More on Literacy Quebec: Have questions or need help? Contact ⁠⁠⁠⁠Literacy Quebec's Literacy Helpline⁠⁠⁠⁠ or call 1-888-521-8181 Jump onto ⁠⁠⁠⁠www.literacyquebec.org⁠⁠⁠⁠ for events and to find what literacy services our members can offer you or someone you know. What's Literacy? is a podcast for English-speaking listeners and learners interested in everything and anything to do with literacy in Quebec and beyond. Our hosts, Niamh Devaney and Jeff Taylor from⁠⁠⁠⁠ Literacy Quebec⁠⁠⁠⁠ explore community building, lifelong learning, and multiple types of literacy through their interviews with a range of special guests. Subscribe, share our podcast, and write to us at podcast@literacyquebec.org, call us at 514-508-6805. Subscribe to our YouTube Channel and follow us on Facebook and Instagram @LiteracyQuebecSpecial thanks: Podcast ⁠⁠⁠⁠Theme Music ‘No Math' by Cú: Jaan Eerik Priks & Brian Francis Devaney

5 Minute WriterArticleEmmy's Manuscript Wish ListConnect with Emmy on Twitter!Connect with David on TwitterLast week on the interview series I talked to author, Josh Stallings. He shared how to write unique and three-dimensional characters by avoiding cliche's.Interview with Christopher Golden.3 BIG TAKEAWAYS Writing real charactersFinding people you trust to work withHow our life experiences can drive our fictionBIOemmy (they/them) holds a PhD in justice-oriented social work with a focus on critical animal studies. They are a member of the planning team for the Festival of Literary Diversity, a faculty member at the Manuscript Academy, and a literary agent at Westwood Creative Artists. They are a queer, trans, and non-binary colonizer based in Tkaronto (Toronto, Ontario). emmy lives with their partner, a Deaf Dalmatian named Pavot, two formerly feral Maine coon cats, Whisper and Willow, and their collection of plants, informally nicknamed The Leafy Bois. They keep busy with vegan cooking, thread painting embroidery, crochet, wholesome video games, snail mail, their sticker collection, and… obviously, reading.Tweet me @DavidRGwynCheck out the YouTube Channel

The Centre for Equitable Library Access now offers its services in Manitoba. We get the details on that, plus a list of featured titles at this year's Festival of Literary Diversity, with Karen McKay and Theresa Power.

"You can't really pick what you're going to represent or what you're going to pitch based on what people are excited about today. You need to be thinking about what's going to be happening three years from now or four years from now.” – Emmy Nordstrom Higdon, Westwood Creative Artists Abigail K. Perry sits down with Emmy Nordstrom Higdon to discuss their career shift from a bookseller to a literary agent—and why both taught them how to predict the market. They also share their love for books by underrepresented authors in traditional publishing, especially identity-driven stories in upmarket and literary fiction and nonfiction across all ages. Emmy loves weird, bizarre books and wants more of those in their inbox. Emmy talks about FOLD and why the focus of this festival is literary diversity, and how they try to lift up books that are unrightly marginalized by barriers in traditional publishing. Emmy also shares the two main questions they ask authors that they are interested in representing, and what they consider when they put a book out on submission. About Emmy: Emmy holds a PhD in justice-oriented social work with a focus on critical animal studies from McMaster University, with additional peer-reviewed publications in public health and psychology. They even studied professional circus arts in a former life, but fell in love with the publishing industry while working as an indie bookseller at Another Story. Emmy brings a deep appreciation and unique perspective to their work as an agent. They are a member of the planning team for FOLD, the Festival of Literary Diversity. Emmy is a queer, trans, non-binary colonizer originally from (Newfoundland), and lives with their partner, a Deaf Dalmatian, and two formerly feral Maine coon cats. Emmy primarily represents authors of upmarket fiction and narrative nonfiction, across age ranges. They specialize in identity-driven stories based on lived experience, particularly from LGBTQ2S+ and disabled or chronically ill authors. They prioritize queries from trans and/or non-binary, Black and/or BIPOC, and/or disabled authors. Their clients can be found on social media as the #SpineSquad. Emmy's MSWL: Fiction: Children's, Commercial, Crime, Family Saga, General, Graphic Novel, Horror, LGBTQ, Literary, Middle Grade, Mystery, Picture Books, Romance, Thriller, Women's Fiction, Young Adul Non-Fiction: Journalism, LGBTQ, Psychology, Science, True Crime (currently only accepting non-fiction queries from authors traditionally under-represented in publishing) Favorite sub-genres: Diversity, Feminism, Gothic Horror, Narrative Nonfiction, Psychological Thrillers, Social Issues Find us: Twitter: @abigailkperry @emmy_of_spines Instagram: @abigailkperry Website: www.abigailkperry.com | https://wcaltd.com/emmy-nordstrom-higdon/ Read the books discussed in this episode: BUNNY SATELLITE LOVE GINGERBREAD ON THE COME UP

In her debut novel, "Gutter Child," writer and founder of the Festival of Literary Diversity, creates an imagined world divided into two distinct ways of life: the privileged Mainland and the policed Gutter, revealing a fractured world of heartbreaking disadvantages and shocking injustices. She discusses her ideas with Nam Kiwanuka. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In today's jam-packed bonus episode, Carly chats with author, Jael Richardson, and HarperCollins Senior Editorial Director, Jennifer Lambert, about the author/editor relationship. They also discuss having an outline to work with to keep you on track and feeling motivated; creating a fully developed dystopian world; working on one thing at a time during each draft; making the world building rules disappear for the reader; informing and entertaining readers; what a writer's responsibility is to their audience; characters' upward or downward trajectories; figuring out who your audience is, and whether that shapes the writing process; writing for young adults vs adults; the FOLD (Festival of Literary Diversity); how acquisitions happen in publishing; how important a platform is for nonfiction; and how the publishing industry has changed during Covid. 

Did you buy yourself an indoor plant during the pandemic to cope with the stress of our early lockdown days? So did our co-host Justine, and in the process of caring for her indoor jungle, she learned all about the root system and just how connected it is to our experiences as hyphenated Canadians. In this episode, revel in stories about the earth, land, and soil. What it means to be repotted and replanted. What it means to recognize your native soil and to be connected to or disconnected from it. Today we're digging roots, exploring how we are uprooted from one place and moved to another. And how we can either flourish or wither in this new environment. Featured in this episode: • Desiree Mckenzie is an award-winning poet, arts educator, and photographer, based out of Toronto. Her poetry has also been featured as part of CBC's Poetic License series, VIBE Arts NExT Exhibit, and Clearbanc Financial's International Women's Day Campaign. In 2020, she was awarded the JAYU iAM Arts for Human Rights Award recognizing creatives doing exceptional work where the arts and human rights intersect. In March 2021, she released her EP, Wet Hair, now available on streaming platforms. Find her EP of spoken word poetry at linktr.ee/WETHAIREP and learn more about her at www.desireemckenziepoetry.com. Follow Desiree on Instagram at @desireemckenzie. • Natasha Ramoutar is an Indo-Guyanese writer living in Scarborough. She is the Social Media Assistant at the Festival of Literary Diversity, and her first collection of poetry, BITTERSWEET, was published in 2020 by Mawenzi House. Follow Natasha on socials at @spondeee. • Micaela Comeau / Just Micci is a Canadian-Acadian-Métis singer-songwriter from the French shore of Nova Scotia who often finds inspiration from nature, the environment, and love. Micci has been writing and directing children's musicals for the past 8 years and this connection with their students serves as a huge opportunity for growth, inspiration, and joy. Micci has performed at festivals including Evolve, White Rabbit and the Mi'kmaq Acadian Festival and shares their work online and on patreon.com/justmicci. Micci will draw you in, dancing between poetry and music. Support her work on Patreon or follow her on TikTok, Facebook, Youtube, and Instagram. Living Hyphen is a community seeking to turn up the volume on the voices of hyphenated Canadians. You can purchase our magazine at www.livinghyphen.ca, support us on Patreon, or find us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/living-hyphen/message

“Don’t give up and recognize that the writing is a thing in and of itself as well. You need to be able to love doing the writing and just love being in this world that you create with your characters, over and above wanting your name on a book.” —Amanda Leduc Host Rachel Thompson speaks with Amanda Leduc of the Festival of Literary Diversity about disability in literature and how the literary culture has started to make a place for writers with disabilities. Find all the show notes and a full transcript of the interview at rachelthompson.co/podcast/14 The Lit Mag Love course is open for early registration now! I offer this live, guided course only a couple of times per year. If you want to get a big YES for your writing from a lit mag you love, learn more and sign up at rachelthompson.co/litmaglove

Amanda Leduc, author of The Centaur's Wife, in conversation with her friend and colleague Jael Richardson, founder of the Festival of Literary Diversity, and author of the bestselling novel Gutter Child. Set in an imagined world in which the most vulnerable are forced to buy their freedom by working off their debt to society, Gutter Child uncovers a nation divided into the privileged Mainland and the policed Gutter. In this world, Elimina Dubois is one of only 100 babies taken from the Gutter and raised in the land of opportunity as part of a social experiment led by the Mainland government. But when her Mainland mother dies, Elimina finds herself all alone, a teenager forced into an unfamiliar life of servitude, unsure of who she is and where she belongs. Elimina is sent to an academy with new rules and expectations where she befriends Gutter children who are making their own way through the Gutter System in whatever ways they know how. When Elimina's life takes another unexpected turn, she will discover that what she needs more than anything may not be the freedom she longs for after all. Richardson's Gutter Child reveals one young woman's journey through a fractured world of heartbreaking disadvantages and shocking injustices. Elimina is a modern heroine in an altered but all too recognizable reality who must find the strength within herself to forge her future and defy a system that tries to shape her destiny.

Co-host Beth Lyons welcomes Jael Richardson, author and executive director of the Festival of Literary Diversity (FOLD) to discuss the importance of choosing to bring Canadian content- authors, illustrators, publishers- into Canadian classrooms. Looking at the social responsibility and moral imperative of the Canadian education system to book Canadian authors and activists to speak to students. They discuss how the publishing industry in Canada needs to shift to promote Canadian writers, in particular BIPOC authors, that represent the lived experience of our country. How might we as readers and specifically teacher-librarians work to bring intentionality to the authors we showcase within our schools and with our students? Jael shares her thoughts on how teacher-librarians and educators can work from the geographical space in which their students reside to help share a clear path that has been followed by authors and other artists in order to help students make connections. What mandates and policies exist within an educational organization that promotes and holds people accountable to bringing in Canadian authors and content? How might we advocate to make these policies a reality? Lastly, the role of parents and grown-ups in advocating for the reading materials that are consumed by readers, regardless of the medium or genre, is discussed. Shout out to Toni Duval for being fabulous.Jael Richardson@JaelRichardsonThe Festival of Literary Diversity- https://thefoldcanada.org/Q Recommendations- http://www.jaelrichardson.com/writing/q-recommendationsI Read Canadian Day- https://ireadcanadian.com/day/Books Mentioned In This Episode:The Stone Thrower: A Daughter's Lesson, A Father's Life- Jael RichardsonThe Stone Thrower (Children's Book) - Jael RichardsonGutter Child- Jael RichardsonYou Are Eating An Orange, You Are Naked by Sheung-KingLike Home by Louisa Onome (YA)Bruised by Tanya Boteju

Natasha Ramoutar discusses her poetry collection, Bittersweet. Andrew talks about light poems and mentorship. It's a joyous occasion! ----- Listen to more episodes of Page Fright here. Follow the podcast on twitter here. ----- Natasha Ramoutar is an Indo-Guyanese writer by way of Scarborough (Ganatsekwyagon) at the east side of Toronto. She is the fiction editor of Feel Ways, an anthology of Scarborough writing, and the Social Media Assistant at the Festival of Literary Diversity. She lives in Scarborough, Ontario. ----- Andrew French is an author from North Vancouver, British Columbia. He is the author of one chapbook, Do Not Discard Ashes (845 Press, 2020). Andrew holds a BA in English from Huron University College at Western University and an MA in English from UBC. He writes poems, book reviews, and hosts this very podcast.

This week we have two guests. First up, Amanda Leduc will tell us about how the Festival of Literary Diversity managed to take their entire festival online, and what they’ve got going on in the future. After that, we talk with poet Tanja Bartel, whose excellent collection Everyone At This Party is available through Goose Lane. Hope you enjoy!

Lisa, Beth and Alanna crack open Teaching Tough Topics by Larry Swarz and we uncover the intersections of own voices, gaps in publishing and how much I Read Canadian day has pushed our school literature collections. The pandemic is further highlighting the inequities in our school systems. Lisa describes how tight knit communities seem to ‘make room' for invisible diversities but have trouble with other intersections. Beth wrestles with global literature and the primary bubble of kindness, and how not until junior levels do students open themselves to topics of social justice. Alanna recalls relying as a parent on the school to talk about the tough topics in that primary level when communication is just forming. Shoutouts to Jael Richardson, The FOLD (Festival of Literary Diversity), The Knowledge Bookstore, Wali Shah, Lorna Schultz Nicholson, and S.K. Ali

Of course, it is easier to say don’t give up than to do it, as my guest for this episode, Amanda Leduc admits. She’s the nonfiction Little Fiction: Big Truths, so, of course, we continue the trend from the last several episodes of Lit Mag Love and talk about truth-telling in creative nonfiction. Amanda is a writer with Cerebral Palsy, who grew up with scant examples of disability in literature. We talk about how the literary culture in general in North America, but in Canada particularly, has not made a place for writers with disabilities, while also taking stock of the really exciting times we are in, with many writers, Amanda among them, blazing a trail for younger disabled writers. Amanda Leduc is from Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. She has published essays and short stories across Canada, the US, the UK, and Australia, and currently serves as the Communications and Development Coordinator for the Festival of Literary Diversity, Canada's first festival for diverse authors and stories. Her first novel, The Miracles of Ordinary Men, was published in 2013 by Toronto's ECW Press. Her new novel, The Centaur's Wife, is forthcoming from Random House Canada. Little Fiction is a mostly digital publisher of short fiction and nonfiction singles. They are not officially a lit mag, though but do publish on a monthly basis.

Of course, it is easier to say don’t give up than to do it, as my guest for this episode, Amanda Leduc admits. She’s the nonfiction Little Fiction: Big Truths, so, of course, we continue the trend from the last several episodes of Lit Mag Love and talk about truth-telling in creative nonfiction. Amanda is a writer with Cerebral Palsy, who grew up with scant examples of disability in literature. We talk about how the literary culture in general in North America, but in Canada particularly, has not made a place for writers with disabilities, while also taking stock of the really exciting times we are in, with many writers, Amanda among them, blazing a trail for younger disabled writers. Amanda Leduc is from Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. She has published essays and short stories across Canada, the US, the UK, and Australia, and currently serves as the Communications and Development Coordinator for the Festival of Literary Diversity, Canada's first festival for diverse authors and stories. Her first novel, The Miracles of Ordinary Men, was published in 2013 by Toronto's ECW Press. Her new novel, The Centaur's Wife, is forthcoming from Random House Canada. Little Fiction is a mostly digital publisher of short fiction and nonfiction singles. They are not officially a lit mag, though but do publish on a monthly basis.

In this episode, we interview Jael Richardson who is the author of The Stone Thrower: A Daughter’s Lesson, A Father’s Life which is a novel about her father Chuck Ealey. Jael is not only a former Peel student, but she is a celebrated writer who was a Toronto District School Board Writer-In-Residence in 2013 and 2016. She has an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Guelph, and she lives in Brampton, Ontario where she founded and continues to serve as the Artistic Director for the Festival of Literary Diversity.

In today’s episode we share excerpts from the panel “Creating Space for Marginalized Voices” presented at the 2017 AWP Conference. The organizers of Canada's inaugural Festival of Literary Diversity in discussion with publishing professionals talk about how to promote and support a diverse lineup of authors, uncovering how targeted initiatives and intentional approaches can effectively address the diversity gaps in the publishing industry.

Show's a bit different this week. Tahmeka's traveling for work, so I'm (Jeanette) manning it solo. I'm speaking with Léonicka Valcius about Canadian literature, working for Scholastic Book Fair and also the Festival of Literary Diversity that we talked about briefly in the last show. Léonicka also provides a reading list of excellent Canadian books/authors to check out. Show rounds out with a solo "What Are You Reading?" because I'm newly obsessed with Rachel Howzell Hall and needed to fangirl.