Word on the Street, Vancouver

Once again, BC members of the BC/Yukon chapter of Crime Writers of Canada were out in full force to man the table at this year’s Word on the Street festival in Vancouver. For those of you who don’t know about it, this annual free event is held in cities across Canada usually during the last Sunday of September. Its purpose is to celebrate literacy and books, and many nonprofit organizations, publishers, booksellers, and writers help make this happen. Workshops, panel discussions, reading, and entertainment are provided in the main Vancouver Public library and in tents on two streets which are blocked off for the occasion.

This year, our Vancouver celebration was held on September 30^th, a week later than other cities, but the weather remained glorious. Since those of us with smaller tables are situated outside the library’s perimeter, weather matters. As usual, our table was beside the romance writers’ table, which is always great fun and works well for attendees. After all, crime and romance tend to go together, and those romance writers really do have the coolest bookmarks!

Volunteers handed out CWC bookmarks, and those who dropped by our table know that crime writing is flourishing not only in BC but throughout Canada. We were delighted to see familiar faces return and continue to buy books in support of local authors.

Leaving the table in capable hands, I walked around the festival, listened to writers read their work aloud, and caught up with colleagues I hadn’t seen in a while. One of the reasons I attend this festival every year is because there is always a sense of fun and positive energy there. The event makes me happy to be part of the reading and writing community.

Huge thanks to volunteers Joan Donaldson-Yarmey, Cathy Ace, Roberta Rich, Colleen Cross, Sharon Rowse, Anne Barton, Elizabeth Elwood, and Ruth Donald who made the day so much fun. Elizabeth’s husband, Hugh, did a superb job of directing people to our table, and volunteer Anne Hopkinson, who had her plate full with other volunteer duties, still made time to help promote us. I’m really grateful for everyone’s contribution and can’t wait to do this again next year!