2024 Festival:
October 21–27

My Roots Workshop

Saturday, June 1st, 1–5pm at Suite Genius,
225 West 8th Avenue, Second Floor,
Vancouver

Applications are open now for the Vancouver Writers Fest’s annual writing workshop for immigrants, My Roots.

Our popular My Roots Workshop provides participants with an opportunity to deepen and enrich their writing through guided exercises and techniques. Participants will work with acclaimed writer Eddy Boudel Tan—the author of After Elias and The Rebellious Tide, and the forthcoming novel The Tiger and the Cosmonaut—to write their stories, centred around themes of place and home. Participants can write in the form of their choosing, including poetry, fiction, or non-fiction, and will leave with a piece of writing that they can publish in the Vancouver Writers Fest newsletter.   

All levels of writers are welcome, and attendance is free. My Roots is only open to immigrants to Canada. 

Workshop Instructor
Eddy Boudel Tan is the author of After Elias, a finalist for the Edmund White Award and the ReLit Awards, and The Rebellious Tide, a finalist for the Ferro-Grumley Award. His latest novel, The Tiger and the Cosmonaut, is forthcoming from Penguin Canada. He was named a Rising Star by Writers’ Trust of Canada in 2021. His short stories can be found in JoylandYolk, and various literary journals and anthologies. He lives in Vancouver with his husband. Follow Eddy on Instagram (@eddyautomatic) and at eddyboudeltan.com.

My Roots Application

Application deadline: May 10 at midnight

Space is limited, so submitting an application does not guarantee a spot. We’ll send you a follow up email by May 17 to let you know if you have been accepted.