Vancouver International Writers Festival

About

The Vancouver Writers Fest is one of North America's premiere literary events.

Story

The Vancouver Writers Fest turns reading into a community experience, bringing people together to share thoughts, explore ideas, and witness brilliant conversations.

For the past 27 years, the Writers Fest has enriched our imaginations and the culture of our city and has touched and inspired thousands of lives by creating a forum for authors to connect with readers and by offering a vibrant exchange of ideas and conversation.

The Festival is a celebration of story, told by authors, poets, spoken word performers, and graphic novelists. For six days in October, this celebration takes place in the cultural oasis of Granville Island, and continues throughout the year with the Incite reading series at the VPL, special events with leading writers and the Spreading the Word education programs at Lower Mainland schools and in small BC communities.

Through Spreading the Word, the Festival can reignite a teacher’s passion for teaching, mesmerize a teenager who rarely looks up from her phone or engage a child who is a reluctant reader. Festival events can encourage discussion and reflection, and connect old friends and introduce new ones.

Ideas create books, but people create the Festival. The Writers Fest brings people of all backgrounds together—writers, children, adults, staff and hundreds of volunteers—all of whom love to read. They also love what reading represents: the stirring of ideas, the sparks of recognition, and the realization that we are all connected.

Mission

Our Mission:
The Vancouver Writers Fest produces "must-see" events and the most prestigious literary festival in Canada, with an international reputation among the finest writers and thinkers.

The VWF draws richly diverse audience of all ages and backgrounds.

The Writers Fest is a highly regarded cultural organization, sought after for its expertise and its skilled curation of high-quality conversations about books and ideas.

People attend VWF events to be entertained, to enjoy a communal experience, to be surprised -- the moments when a story suddenly delights, or laughter erupts, or an idea inspires a new way of thinking.

The VWF is a catalyst for change.