The Sunshine Coast Writers and Editors Society has launched a crowdfunding initiative to raise money for its inaugural Writer in Residence program.
Reaching its goal of $6,500 will fund a three-month writer’s residency from April to June 2022.
According to Cathalynn Labonte-Smith, President of the SCWES, “The program at the Sunshine Coast Arts Centre will provide space, time and resources for an author to write in a zen-like space in the idyllic coastal village of Sechelt in a gallery filled with inspiring works of art just steps from the ocean.” Because the SCWES is less than two years old, it is ineligible for government grants. Its other initiatives are already the beneficiaries of locally-generated financial support.
The Writer in Residence’s tenure will involve mentorship, leadership of workshops, offering public readings, and advancing their own work in space provided by the Sunshine Coast Arts Council Centre.
Potential donors can learn more at: gofundme.com/f/put-a-writer-in-residence-on-the-sunshine-coast.
Armchair travellers invited skyward
The Sunshine Coast Arts Council’s annual Literary Reading Series has gone virtual due to COVID-19 restrictions, and is launching a series of “intimate encounters” between authors and audiences on the Zoom web conferencing platform.
On Feb. 5 at 7 p.m., author Andrew Scott will read from his latest work, Under the Bright Sky: A Memoir of Travels Through Asia. An audience discussion will follow.
Scott is a writer, editor and photographer whose books about British Columbia’s history include The Promise of Paradise, an account of utopian communities, and The Encyclopedia of Raincoast Place Names.
Under the Bright Sky is a collection of personal essays and travel memoirs set in 10 different Asian countries. It was published in September 2021 by Caitlin Press.
Admirers of travelogues and winsome historicity can tune in to Scott’s reading by registering at eventbrite.ca/e/247340812027.
Jazz standards served up at market
A resurgence of live music on the Sunshine Coast continues at the Gibsons Public Market with a concert by singer Wanda Nowicki on Feb. 5 at 2:30 p.m.
Nowicki has been performing on the Coast for the past seven years. Her musical career has taken her from venues from Los Angeles to Vancouver.
During her appearance in Gibsons, Nowicki will be joined by Mark Bender on bass and Michael Toth on guitar for a program consisting of pop tunes, jazz classics, and some less-familiar favourites of the ensemble.
Preview Nowicki’s sparkling vocals on her SoundCloud page at soundcloud.com/wanda-nowicki-106352088.
