The Kube gallery in Gibsons held its inaugural Mini Makers Market on April 13. The craft fair featured young entrepreneurs who create art, crafts, jewelry, apothecary, treats and more.
“It was chaotic fun. We loved supporting our young entrepreneurs,” said Jody Youngren, co-owner of The Kube.
More than 20 vendors filled the gallery’s showroom and communal studio space.
Writers earn accolades
The North Shore Writers Association has named two Sunshine Coast wordsmiths among the winners of its 28th annual writing contest.
On Saturday, April 13, at the writers and readers closing reception of its North Shore Writers Festival, the association presented awards to winners selected from a record number of entries.
Gibsons-based writer Kathleen Vance received first prize for her nonfiction submission Still Life with New Washing Machine.
Vance has previously published non-fiction in the 2022 anthology Don’t Tell: Family Secrets and the 2001 book Hard Jobbin’: Women’s Experiences of the Workplace.
She will be reading from her story Queen of the Railway Bridge (which won an honourable mention in the Dave Williamson 2024 National Short Story Competition) in Port Alberni on April 24.
Poet Atma Frans, also from Gibsons, earned honourable mention for her work My Sister Helen. Frans has been published in a host of prestigious poetry periodicals and was a featured reader at the Burnaby Writers’ Society last year. In May, she will also be reading in Port Alberni at the Electric Mermaid salon at Char’s Landing public house.
This year saw a record number of entries in the history of the North Shore Writers contest: 115 entries from 73 authors. The increase in the number of entries was partly due to the addition of the new category “Writing for Children and Young Adults.” The bulk of entries fell into the category of poetry, with 44 entries altogether.
Most contestants were from British Columbia, but the competition received national attention this year with entries from Ontario and as far away as Newfoundland.
A very literary brunch
The first in a series of literary conversations exploring a unique theme in the company of writers, creatives and readers will take place early next month.
The inaugural event on Saturday, May 4 will explore two recent books (both of which have been covered in the pages of the Coast Reporter).
Author Liz Long will read from her memoir Navigating Shitstorms: How to Find Your True Path When Life Gets Rough. Caitlin Hicks will present her novel of historical fiction A Theory of Expanded Love.
The gathering takes place during a light brunch at the West Coast gardens and studios of Writers Radio (a popular literary podcast) in Halfmoon Bay.
Author readings from each work will precede audience discussion. The conversation will be recorded live for later broadcast.
The “bruncheon,” moderated by artist/filmmaker Gordon Halloran, will also feature Gary Sill, who will perform improvisational piano between the author readings. Ingrid Rose and Carole Harmon are hosts for the event itself.
Admission of $30 includes a light brunch, readings, discussion and live music. Advance tickets for the very limited seating are available by browsing local listings on Eventbrite.
Trail to an award-winning film
A seven-day run of Sunshine Coast filmmaker Dianne Whelan’s groundbreaking documentary 500 Days in the Wild came to an end at the Raven’s Cry Theatre on April 18.
The movie documents Wehlan’s traversal of the 24,000-kilometre, cross-Canada hiking and biking route known as the Trans Canada Trail. The journey took her over five years, not including her 2020 funding campaign that recruited 100 women to donate $1,000 each.
The film combines a grueling first-hand survey of Canada’s vast landscape with Whelen’s own process of inner transformation.
It was released at the 2023 Whistler Film Festival, where it earned honourable mention from the Best Documentary Award jury and was the winner of the Audience Award.
A full list of upcoming screening locations is available from the film’s website at 500daysinthewild.com.
Editor's note: This story has been included to reflect that Kathleen Vance won an honourable mention in the Dave Williamson 2024 National Short Story Competition.
