BookFest Windsor and Real Residential 3!

Making my way to Toronto now, and then Windsor tomorrow morning. In Windsor, I'm doing a pre–BookFest Windsor event — a three-hour Writers' Boot Camp at the Art Gallery of Windsor. Admission is a measly five bucks, and there may still be openings available. If anyone's interested, they can visit BookFest Windsor's website and see the details. The festival starts in earnest next week, and the lineup is great. Wish I was gonna be there for the major hubbub. I've really enjoyed my visits to the festival in years past. Great group of people and a great venue.

On Monday, I'm hosting the third instalment of the Real Residential Reading Series in Kingston, where I'm Writer-in-Residence this fall and having an amazing time. Again, meeting some fantastic people, reading some incredible stuff, and getting a bunch of my own writing done.

Monday's reading features novelist Martha Baillie, coming in from Toronto; Natalee Caple, who's a fiction writer and poet, but mostly a poet on Monday, visiting from Peterborough; and local light Trevor Strong, a member of the Arrogant Worms, as well as his Kingston group Trevor Strong and his Line of Credit, and the author of some very demented little stories.

The first two readings in the series attracted standing-room-only crowds. I'm expecting the same on Monday. Here's the poster:



Over and out.

ReLit!

Went to Ottawa on Wednesday for the 10th annual ReLit shindig. After three consecutive years of being shortlisted for the award, this year I won, for short fiction. Yay for Buying Cigarettes for the Dog! Michael Kenyon won in the novel category for The Beautiful Children and Gillian Jerome in poetry for Red Nest.

The celebration took place at a small pub called the Barley Mow. I got my decoder ring. And, best of everything, John Lavery played six of his original songs, including one called "Quickeye," which he dedicated to me; this version had a couple of Claude François references!



It's been a busy week! On Monday, I brought Paul Dutton, Jason Camlot and Lily Hoang to my Real Resident Reading Series in Kingston, and the room was packed and the readings were stellar. The next night I was in Toronto for Mansfield Press's 10th-anniversary launch party. Considering how much stuff was going on in Toronto that night, it was amazing how busy the room was. Denis De Klerck, Mansfield's publisher, said it was the biggest Mansfield event ever. Again, great readings and lots of book sales.

Over and out.

Celebrating McFadden, Real Resident Reading, Mansfield Launch Party ... and more!

So much has been happening. A week ago last Thursday, David McFadden was surprised in the Mansfield Press office by a 70th-birthday party and the presentation of a festschrift with contributors from across the country.

Dave was lured to his celebratory fate with the promise of a lecture on Chile by Jim Smith. But when he opened the door, his eyes immediately fell on his 96-year-old dad sitting there. And then a big cake that read, "Dave — You're 70! Be calm, honey!"

In a highly secret operation, Jim Smith and I began planning both the festschrift and the party about six months ago. It was pretty tricky getting the various names and addresses and figuring out who was important in Dave's life. I'm sure we missed a lot of people. But we did our best.

The party was a blast. Dave's father (Bill) was there, and Dave's brother (Jack), and Dave's daughter (Jenny) and granddaughter (Chloe). Four generations of McFaddens, and every one of them a wonderful person! Lots of writer friends, and others close to Dave. Stan Bevington, Merlin Homer, John Boyle, Leslie McAllister, Paul Vermeersch, Victor Coleman, Richard Huttel, Margaret Hollingsworth, Paul Dutton…

Denis De Klerck, the publisher of Mansfield Press, was generous enough to offer his beautiful office for the occasion, and to provide some great wine. Stan Bevington and the crew at the Coach House press did a beautiful job on the book, and were also very generous in their billing on this non-commercial venture.

It was a really excellent party. It was a thrill, too, to be able to honour a great writer like Dave, someone who has been a great influence, and a great friend.

Here's the book, A Trip Around McFadden. Contributions from many of the above, plus Diana Hartog, bill bissett, George Bowering, Michael Dennis, and so many more…



Meanwhile, over here in Kingston, where I'm spending the fall as writer-in-residence, October 4 kick-off of the Real Resident Reading Series was a standing-room-only success, with fine readings by Elyse Friedman, Jeff Latosik and Jennifer Londry.

The second instalment of the Real Resident Reading Series takes place tomorrow night (October 18) at 7:30 pm at the Grad Club on Queen's Campus:



And finally, for now, looking forward to this Tuesday night in Toronto, when Mansfield Press celebrates its 10th anniversary with the launch of five new books and guest readings by the poets Denis De Klerck published in his inaugural year. This will also be the launch of my imprint, "a stuart ross book." There's a lot going on in Toronto this Tuesday night, but this'll be a wonderful party. Here are the details:



Over and out.

My new book trailer!

Over and out.

Real Resident Reading Series @ Queen's

Tomorrow marks the first instalment of the reading series I'm curating this fall in Kingston as part of my writer-in-residency at Queen's University. Here's the poster. Imagine it in colour.



Over and out.