Poetry Parlour (Calgary) — May 20, 2025
Poetry Parlour (Calgary) Tuesday, May 20th, 20257:00pm – 9:15pm MTPachamama Soul Flavour Emporium #2110, 380 Canyon Meadows Drive SE, Calgary FREE Join host Ashley Frerichs at the next Poetry Parlour. Open mic sign-up starts at 7pm. There are limited slots available and will be filled on a first come, first served basis. In May, in honour of Asian Heritage Month, we are excited to feature poet & translator, Leilei Chen! About the Featured Reader Leilei Chen 莫譯 published Re-orienting China: Travel Writing and Cross-cultural Understanding, the traditional and simplified Chinese versions of Nationalism: A Very Short Introduction, poetry in translation of
WGA Branded T-Shirts Now Available!
We have exciting news! We’ve just launched our exclusive WGA-branded t-shirts, and they’re ready for you to wear with pride! They’re perfect for showing your support and participation in the guild. You can find them here!
The Writers’ Guild of Alberta 2025 Golden Pen Award Recipient
The Writers’ Guild of Alberta Golden Pen Award is presented to acknowledge the lifetime achievements of outstanding Alberta writers. Past recipients are W.O. Mitchell, Grant MacEwan, Rudy Wiebe, Myrna Kostash, Robert Kroetsch, Merna Summers, Aritha van Herk, Fred Stenson, George Melnyk, Alice Major, Betty Jane Hegerat, Greg Hollingshead, Candas Jane Dorsey, Cecelia Frey, Bob Stallworthy, Vivian Hansen, Chris Wiseman, Joan Crate, and Marty Chan. Richard Harrison was introduced to Alberta as the University of Calgary’s Canadian Writer in Residence with the
Connections Brewing (Calgary) — May 5th, 2025
Connections Brewing (Calgary) Monday, May 5th, 20256:00pm – 9:00pm MSTLast Best Brewing & Distilling607 – 11th Ave SWDownstairs in the beer room Free. No registration required. Open to members of WGA and/or AWCS.Street parking free after 6pm. 7 minute walk from 4th street c-train station. Come ready to mingle and network with the Calgary literary community. Our May event will feature a Book Swap Social! Bring a book to swap with the community and tell us what it’s about and why you love it. *This is optional. You do not
An Afternoon with the Awards Finalists (Edmonton) — May 4, 2025
An Afternoon with the Awards Finalists (Edmonton) Sunday, May 4, 20252PM MTAudreys Books10702 Jasper Ave, Edmonton Alberta Literary Awards finalists were announced on April 1st! You can find the full list here. Join us in May as we hear from Katherine Abbass, Diana Davidson, Marcello Di Cintio, E.C. Dorgan, Marion Douglas, Myrna Garanis, Rayanne Haines, Fran Kimmel, Ben Lof, Omar Mouallem, Cristina Quintero, Julie Sedivy ,Tonya Simpson, and Cristalle Smith
Mentorship Program Reception and Readings (Edmonton) — May 3, 2025
Mentorship Program Reception and Readings Saturday, May 3rd, 2025 5PM MT (Readings at 7pm)Artshub Ortona Armoury 9722 102st, Edmonton Join us as we celebrate the end of another year this great program for writers: the WGA Mentorship Program. Mentee writers and their mentors will gather to talk about what they worked on over the past four months, plus the mentee writers will read from their new works. This is a free event. Everyone is welcome. Hors d’oeuvres and refreshments will
2025 Alberta Literary Awards Finalists Announced!
2025 Alberta Literary Awards Finalists Announced! The Writers’ Guild of Alberta is excited to announce the finalists for the 2025 Alberta Literary Awards. Each year, the Alberta Literary Awards celebrates the highest standards of literary excellence from Alberta authors. The WGA would like to send our congratulations to those whose work is among this year’s finalists! We look forward to celebrating your creativity and hard work, and we will do all we can to spread the word about the wonderful writing you
NO MORE FEAR OF FAILURE: INTERACTIVE WRITING WORKSHOP (Edmonton) — April 30, 2025
No More Fear of Failure: Interactive Writing WorkshopWednesday, April 30, 20256-8pm MT8331 104 St NWSecond floor, Activity RoomEdmontonFree and open to the public Join Alyx Bui at this interactive writing workshop. Actively build scenes, characters, narrative structure, and improvisational skills. Bust through the barriers and fear and achieve the limitless possibilities of being fearless. This event is hosted by past Horizons Writers Circle Participant, Alyx Bui. This event is FREE and ALL are welcome.
City of Calgary W.O. Mitchell Book Prize – Finalist Reading (Calgary) — April 29, 2025
City of Calgary W.O. Mitchell Book Prize – Finalist Reading (Calgary) Tuesday, April 29th, 20257:00pm – 8:30pm MSTShelf Life Books1302 4th Street SW Please join us to celebrate the 2025 finalists for the City of Calgary W.O. Mitchell Book Prize! You can expect light catering and readings from finalists Julie Sedivy and David Martin. Also, congratulations to finalist Teresa Wong, who is unfortunately unable to make it to the event. See you there!
2025 Alberta Literary Awards Finalist Readings (Calgary) — April 25, 2025
2025 Alberta Literary Awards Finalist Readings (Calgary) Friday, April 25th, 20257:00pm to 9:00pm MTat the Marriott Residence Inn (Calgary/Beltline District)610 – 10th Ave SWFREE Please join us for a special evening of celebration recognizing the finalists of the 2025 Alberta Literary Awards, as well as the Calgary-based winners of the 2025 Kemosa Scholarship. The Readers Lareina AbbottTara BeaganKirti BhadresaNicole BoycePatty CucmanMarcello Di CintioMarion Douglas Samantha JonesAmy LinJulie SedivyCristalle SmithNatalie SueAlycia Two BearsTeresa Wong This event is sponsored by the Artists
Poetry Parlour (Calgary) — April 22, 2025
Poetry Parlour (Calgary) Tuesday, April 22nd, 2025 7:00pm – 9:15pm MTPachamama Soul Flavour Emporium #2110, 380 Canyon Meadows Drive SE, Calgary FREE **Important** Please note, April’s Poetry Parlour is happening on the 4th Tuesday of the month, NOT the 3rd Tuesday as usual. Join host Ashley Frerichs at the next Poetry Parlour. Open mic sign-up starts at 7pm. There are limited slots available and will be filled on a first come, first served basis. In April, we are excited to feature award-winning poet, Juleta Severson-Baker! About the Featured Reader Juleta Severson-Baker is of settler heritage and
Under 30 Write Night (Edmonton and Calgary) — April 17, 2025
Under 30 Write Night!April 17th, 2025 at 7pm MTin Edmonton at Block 1912 (10361 Whyte Ave NW, Edmonton, AB T6E 1Z9)and in Calgary at Element Cafe (331 17 Ave SW, Calgary, AB T2S 0A5) A chill event with first come, first serve seating. Come join us for a fun and chill writing session, where you can work amongst like-minded young peers, and inspire each other to start writing (or continue to write) whatever comes to mind.Grab a cup of tea, get
Pub Night (Edmonton) — April 16, 2025
WGA April Pub Night (Edmonton)Wednesday, April 16, 20257-9pm MTRooster Bar & Kitchen, 10732 Whyte aveEdmontonFREE “The Best (free) Writing Advice I Ever Received”Special guests Ella Pfalzgraff, Ruth DyckFehderau, and Jasmina Odor will join us to talk about the best (free) advice about writing they ever received. A discussion and audience Q&A will follow. All are welcome!
Write Night (Edmonton) — April 16, 2025
Write NightWednesday, April 16, 20256-8pm MTStanley Milner Library, Civic Emplotees Room 2 – First FloorDowntown, EdmontonFree and open to the public Have you always wanted to write but other things get in the way? Join a WGA Horizons Write Night to focus on your writing and set words onto the page. This is a casual and unstructured meet-up where we sit and write, offer some friendly critique, or just come to meet other writers, especially from the BIPOC community. This
The Olive Reading Series at Edmonton Poetry Festival: Featuring Horizons Writers Circle (April 9, 2025)
The Olive Reading Series at Edmonton Poetry Festival: Featuring Horizons Writers Circle Wednesday, April 9, 7:00 – 9:00 pmRooster Kitchen & Bar10732 82 Avenue NWEdmonton, AB T6E 6P4 CanadaFREE The Olive Reading Series at the Edmonton Poetry Festival will feature 7 readers from the Writers’ Guild of Alberta’s Horizons Writers Circle. This program provides support and mentorship for writers within the BIPOC, Indigenous, and ESL communities – and other underrepresented writers who live in Edmonton and are at the beginning of their literary
A Chat with Danny Ramadan (Calgary) — April 9, 2025
A Chat with Danny Ramadan (Calgary) Wednesday, April 9th, 20257:00pm – 9:00pm MSTCommunityWise – Main Common Room (ground floor) 223 – 12th Ave SW, CalgaryFREE. No registration required. All are welcome. Join us for an evening with Danny Ramadan, the current Writer in Residence of the University of Calgary’s Distinguished Writers Program and outgoing president of the Writers’ Union of Canada. Danny will perform a reading from his book Crooked Teeth followed by a discussion about the publishing landscape in Canada. Light refreshments will